When you were a kid, growing up in Knoxville, did you ever catch a bee under a glass? Did you ever corral a millipede and prod at it with a pencil? Did you ever use a magnifying glass on a mound of ants–ahem–I mean study them. You know…up close. When we were kids, bugs were the coolest things. Right? But somewhere along the way we lost our innocence and came to realize that bugs–no matter how interesting–are not meant to be in the house.

Here are the top 5 reasons your mother was right when she said, “Bugs don’t belong in the house!”

Bugs love rot. Have you ever found a decaying animal on the side of the road or in the woods? What is the first thing you notice about it? That’s right: It is covered in bugs. Bugs are the sanitary engineers of the animal kingdom. When something dies, bugs will feast on it until it is gone. Some bugs–the nastier ones–will even lay their eggs in rotting carcasses so their babies have something to easily feed on when they hatch. This may be all well and good in nature, but when a creature that enjoys rot and decay starts crawling around your house, you’re going to be exposed to harmful bacteria that will produce flu-like symptoms. Mom was right. Those bugs don’t belong in the house.

Some bugs chew on wood. If you have wood-destroying pests like termites, carpenter ants, carpenter bees or some other wood-destroying insect, your house isn’t going to last long. These pests weaken support beams, load-bearing walls, and door frames. They cause windows to stick, walls to bulge and floors to sink. Your mom nailed it on the head with this one. Those bugs don’t belong in the house!

Some bugs like to bite. Whether you have blood-eating insects like mites, fleas, ticks, bed bugs, and mosquitoes or defensive biters like brown recluse spiders, bees, hornets, wasps, ants and yellow jackets, everyone can agree, these bugs don’t belong in the house!

Yuck factor. Lots of pests are just nasty. Who likes millipedes climbing on the walls, ceiling and window sills by the hundreds? Who enjoys rolling over onto a hard cricket that has found its way in between the sheets? These bugs aren’t going to hurt you, but that doesn’t mean you want them around. Get those bugs out!

Pests. They bump your face, crawl across the television screen, bombard you as you head to the kitchen to get a snack, and land on your food while you’re eating it. There is a whole class of bugs that are just plain annoying. Those bugs don’t belong in the house!

If you have bugs in your Knoxville home, call Russell’s Pest Control and have them eradicated. Your home is where you relax after a long day at work, and build memories with your children. It isn’t a place for bugs. Do what your mom says and get those bugs out of the house! You’ll be glad you did.