I keep getting bitten at work, apparently by some sort of bug living in the carpet. (I found a dead mouse under the desk when I first moved in, 6 months back--maybe something that had been living on the mouse?) The bites are usually in long rows, 3-6" long, and look almost like a cat scratch (not the 1" close-spaced rows I hear bedbugs create). They don't hurt or itch much, but bleed a lot when I first get bitten. Yesterday it looked like the critter had chewed an oval divot about 4 millimeters long out of my shin--bled like crazy for 15 minutes.

All the bites are on my shins and lower calves. The only time I ever caught one of the critters, I squashed it before identifying it (to my regret)--it was black, fairly flat, and squashed easily (unlike a flea).

So there it is--more than anyone wanted to know about my problem. Does anyone have a theory/diagnosis? Thanks very much! -Erik