Please don't even try to use West Nile or Lyme as your justification for use of these companies. Your chances of catching them are much, much lower than being in a car accident or dying from a heart attack. Really just slim to none. This is done for convenience only. Donttrytonportray it as mitigating a risk-- it isnt or you wouldnt drive or eat unhealthy foods. Which is totally fine in my book but I do find it odd that there are so many people on DCUM who only shop at Whole Foods/eat organic and also so many who use MS. I wonder how many are in both categories.

Happy MS user here...we told our neighbors (a common courtesy I think), and after they experienced being in our yard and not getting eaten alive, most of them have signed up as well. Yes it's a chemical blah blah, but so are the sprays you have to put on to keep the ticks and west nile carriers away. If you've ever seen anyone or known anyone with Lymes or West Nile, I don't see how you could criticize using MS.

Jeff - feel free to confirm that I'm a local, non-MS multiple time poster if you want so that everyone knows I'm not a sock puppet.

For the record, I do believe MS anon posting (if they are doing that) is wrong, and I would encourage MS to post using their full info should they wish to jump into one of their threads. They have a lot of happy customers, but they probably also aren't going to change the minds of people devoid of the ability to see different sides of an argument.

I remember ms's prior sock puppeting when I was researching them earlier to decide if we wanted to use them... FYI mosquito squad, if you are listening: your negative sock puppety posts were one of the reasons I decided not to contract with you! I for one dont trust any of the Mosquito sprays that are pesticides. Sure they may be everywhere but so is cancer these days. I prefer to douse my child in herbal armor before she goes outside and just reapply frequently.

Ugh. I'm one of their customers and I've disagreed with the OP on this thread. But I hate the sock puppeting. I only signed onto MS after reading tons of tributes on here last year. I am very satisfied with the service to date; like the PP, I accept that I live in a world where pesticides and other chemicals are all around us. While I try to limit my kids' exposure, I don't buy into the idea that avoiding things like mosquito repellent is worthwhile. My kids used to be miserable every time they tried to play outside in the yard, now they're not. That's well worth the marginal increase in exposure to chemicals that are all around us anyway. We still have butterflies and birds etc. On the other hand, if MS is so desperate for business that they play games on websites like this one, I'll probably investigate other companies/services for the future. Businesses should learn that sock puppeting is never a durable way to build their customer base.

I am not in love with the obvious sock puppeting that MS engages in... they have to realize they will have negative publicity given their line of business, but I will say that we went ahead and signed up this year. I didn't make the decision lightly but after a year of not being able to use our back yard and being bitten unmercifully at the playground we said enough is enough. The spray has made a world of difference and we can actually play outside, something that I think is very, very important for young children. Also, unless you eat only organic fruits and vegetables, these chemicals are all over your food.

Anonymous wrote:I use MS and still have butterflys, moths, bees, lightning bugs, etc. Keep ip the good work, MS!! BTW, do I get a discount next year for defending you?

As many of you will remember, we previous identified Mosquito Squad representatives sock puppetting a thread on DCUM. In addition, I subsequently identified a second thread in which sock puppetting occurred prior to that incident, so there have been two previous known cases of sock puppetting. I am not making any accusations against MS or anyone else, but I will simply point out these facts:

1) This user is not from the DC area and, as far as I can tell, never posted on DCUM before;

2) This poster has posted four (4) messages in this thread in support of Mosquito Squad;

3) This poster has not posted any other messages on the site that I can identify;

4) This poster arrived at DCUM, not by going to the home page and not by going to the main forum page, but by coming directly to this page.

We use mosquito squads natural alternative which is concentrated garlic spray. I am sure oir neighbors are like you and jumping to the wrong conclusion about what is being sprayed.

You are required by law to notify your neighbors and post signage BEFORE pesticide application.

Actually, the responsibility under the law lies with the pesticide company, not the person hiring them. The poster isn't breaking the law, but the company is, if they are not posting the signs etc.

Sorry PP, I'm not out of line. I'm not in DC proper and not required to tell my neighbors in advance of pesticide applications. (According to the link you posted, neither is anyone in DC - the brochure does not mandate prior notice by homeowners but rather by the DC government. Try reading before you rant next time.) MS posts a sign to alert dog walkers, etc. The exterminator service that sprays for ants once a quarter doesn't do this, nor do I expect my neighbors to inform me about the fertilizers or chemicals they use on their lawn. Do you really think every homeowner who sprays their yard for bugs or any other pest has to put up a public notice?? Get a grip, and move to a commune somewhere.

Anonymous wrote:Are you my neighbor? Your husband made faces at me yesterday and demanded to know the MS formula... even though our lawns don't even touch at any point! We've had MS spraying since April so I don't understand the sudden hysteria. And this is the first summer our kids have been able to use the backyard without running inside after 5 mins ravaged by bugbites. Plus we had a Lyme scare this spring. I know, pesticides are not my favorite thing, but neither is staying inside for 4 or 5 months of the year.

Anyway, if it is you, you're hardly in the running for neighbor of the year and I suspect you REALLY can't afford to alienate another neighbor, so please don't do the passive-aggressive thing on DCUM. They spray once a month and give us a heads up which I'm happy to pass along if it's such a concern...If you're not my neighbor, well, then go about your business being a PITA to someone else.

Wowza, first post on here and definitely not OP or your neighbor, but you're so out of line it's not even funny. Let me tell you a few things. First, your offer to tell your neighbor first? Should have happened BEFORE the first spray. We spray our own yard (garlic) and although it's all natural it's still a spray so we tell our neighbors before we do it. I'm actually cheering the fictitious husband in this story on. Of course he asked for the ingredients. Who wouldn't want to know what was being sprayed on his children?

Meantime, if you are in DC, you are breaking the law. You are required by law to notify your neighbors and post signage BEFORE pesticide application. Most communities / states have similar laws, so you're probably breaking the law in MD or VA too, though I'm less familiar. So you should just go ahead and "pass along (the info) if it's such a concern"...because it's also the law.

http://ddoe.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/ddoe/publication/attachments/Pesticides_Brochure.pdf

BTW, I totally feel bad for your neighbor. You seem like a bitch.

Anonymous wrote:My husband will not let me call Mosquito Squad for all the reaons others have cited above. He also won't let me use Deet on the kids. I guess he would rather let us get West Nile or Lyme disease or have to stay cooped up inside after school and all weekends because it is too buggy outside to stand it.
I can't blame someone for worrying a little bit, but OP sounds like she is off the deep end on this one.
Our neighborhood in DC is terrible with the mosquitoes.

Jeff, can you see if this is the mosquito squad sock puppet again?

Anonymous wrote:MS compounds (permetherin-like) also kills tics. we use it for lyme prevention and control. our kids aren't into playing with the foliage and they don't spray the deck or the swingset, so we stay inside for half the day and then head out. also, permetherin is commonly used to treat scabies and lice, where its applied for prolonged periods to the scalp and body and i think its been used for a really long time on children and i don't think there have been any known long-term side effects from permetherin.

MS also has a natural garlic-based product.

I read something about permetherin being linked to autism. Isn't it a neurotoxin? (That's how it kills the insects.)

My parents use MS in Chattanooga. They love those guys and their services. I know theY would not use them if it weren't Eco friendly.

I use MS and still have butterflys, moths, bees, lightning bugs, etc. Keep ip the good work, MS!! BTW, do I get a discount next year for defending you?

I tried the garlic (all natural) treatments MS uses. Not a effective. Went back to their Traditional mix. MS is awesome. I wouldnt use anyone else.