Fly strike, or Blow-fly strike, (Myiasis) is a condition caused by maggots living on the skin and in the fur of animals.

Sheep are most commonly attacked by fly strike around the rear end where the wool becomes soiled by faeces and urine. This may result from diarrhoea caused by sudden changes in diet, or illness. Fly strike can be fatal. Fly strike can occur on any animal, and also in humans.

What is Fly Strike Symptoms Treatment and Prevention References and Further Reading

What is Fly Strike ?

Fly strike is predominantly caused by the greenbottle (Lucilia sericata) and related fly species which lay eg on the living sheep - or any other mammal. Fly strike may occur on any part of the body where the wool o fur has become soiled or infected with bacteria. Fly strike is a common problem in sheep. In goats it is les common than in sheep, largely because goats tend to have less fibre around their tails and close in to the anus. Fly strike can also be a common problem in rabbits, especially where they are kept in closely confin conditions or small cages in warm and humid environments.

Castration and tail wounds, clipping wounds, head wounds on fighting rams and any open wound will attra flies (wound strike), particularly if infected by bacteria. The smell of foot rot is particularly attractive to flie and especially blowflies. When an animal with foot rot lies down, the skin and wool or fur over the chest w becomes contaminated from the infected foot, and this area can then serve as a attractant to the flies. Any animal lying down and urinating without standing, as a result of some other disease (e.g. pregnancy toxaemia) or physical injury, is particularly vulnerable.

Fly eggs, once laid, hatch within a few hours or days. The emerging larvae or maggots are especially activ They secrete enzymes which liquefy the skin and flesh of the animal on which they are feeding. Larvae fee for a variable time period depending on the availability of food. The mature maggots crawl off the fleece a pupate in the soil. In suitable weather conditions it can take less than a week for the adult fly to emerge. The adult flies are capable of laying thousands of eggs, and a population of blowflies can increase rapidly suitable weather conditions.

Symptoms

Infestation of an animal by maggots in areas of thick hair or wool as well as on nearby skin, usually when the area is constantly wet or fouled by faeces and/or urine. An obviously sick or uncomfortable

animal. An area of fur, wool or fleece with a number of maggots under it, on the skin, or even in the skin. Loss of an extensive area of fur or fleece cover. Animals suffering from fly strike show obvious signs of distress. They spend less time grazing and more time rubbing the affected areas and biting those areas of the wool or fur that they can reach. If signs go unrecognised and secondary strike occurs, the wounds can become very extensive. Bacterial infection of these wounds may lead to death from septicaemia and toxaemia. There is often a foul smell from the wound and visible signs of maggots. In severe and neglected cases lumps of flesh may come away in your hands when the animal is handled. In smaller animals such as rabbits, symptoms also include lethargy, seizures and shock from maggot infestation. The maggots are usually larvae of flies belonging to the genera Phaenicia, Phormia, Chrysomyia, or Calliphora (greenbottles, blackbottles, bluebottles).

Treatment and Prevention

Treatment of fly strike should aim to kill any maggots present, and prevent the likelihood of further fly str and assist the wound to heal. The wool should be carefully clipped away from around the wound and surrounding area. A suitable insecticidal cream should be applied to the infected areas. Mild cases should heal quickly with correct treatment.

A method of treatment that can be used with smaller livestock, such as rabbits, is to submerge the infecte part of the body in water and wash the maggots off. Moisture attracts more flies somake sure that the are is dried well after washing off all maggots and any faeces adhering to the fur. Individual maggots can also be picked off by hand. Keeping rabbits in a clean living area is the best method of prevention. It is also important to catch the problem early and to prevent any fly maggots leaving the animal and pupating in the soil.

Routine dagging should be carried out. This is the removal of excess and soiled fur or wool - usually in the region of the tail - and in wool sheep is usually carried out with the aid of dagging shears. Insecticidal sprays or pour-ons can be used as a preventative measure during high risk periods.

Myiasis (

ma . s s/ or /ma

a . s s/) is a general term for pathological infection

by parasiticfly larvae feeding on the host's living tissue. When the attack is directed against dead ornecrotic tissue, the condition is not necessarily harmful and the effects may be of value asmaggot therapy. Colloquialisms for myiasis include flystrike, blowfly strike, and fly-blown. In Greek, "myia" means fly. Because animals cannot react as effectively as humans to the causes and effects of myiasis, such conditions present a serious problem for livestock industries, causing severe economic losses worldwide.[1] Although infestation by fly larvae is much more serious and more prevalent in animals, it is relatively frequent in humans in rural, tropical and subtropical regions, and often may require medical attention.[2] Myiasis varies widely in the forms it takes and its effects on the victims. Such variations depend largely on the fly species and where the larvae are located. Some flies lay eggs in open wounds, other larvae may invade unbroken skin or enter the body through the nose or ears, and still others may be swallowed if the eggs are deposited on the lips or on food.[2] Myiasis, known as blowfly strike, commonly affects sheep, especially where conditions are hot and wet. The life cycle in sheep is typical of the disease. The female flies lay their eggs on the sheep in damp, protected areas of the body that are soiled with urine and faeces, mainly the sheep's breech (buttocks). It takes approximately eight hours to a day for the eggs to hatch, depending on the conditions. The larvae lacerate the skin, causing sores. The larvae then tunnel through the sores into the host's tissue, causing irritating lesions subject to infection. After about the second day, bacterial infection is likely and, if left untreated, causes toxemia or septicemia. This leads to anorexia and weakness and is generally fatal if untreated. Blowfly strike accounts for over A$170 million a year in losses in the Australian sheep industry so preventive measures such as mulesing are practised. Other surgical forms of intervention include the early removal of lambs' tails. Maggots also commonly infest the vulvar area, causing the condition called vulvar myiasis. Such problems are not peculiar to Australia and New Zealand; they occur world wide, especially in countries where livestock, particularly sheep, are kept under hot, wet, conditions, including most of Africa and the Americas, ranging from the cold temperate regions in the north, to corresponding latitudes in the south. Nor is myiasis peculiar to sheep; screwworm fly (Cochliomyia hominivorax in particular) caused untold poverty and misery through its deadly attacks on cattle and goats before sterile insect technique eliminated it from large regions. [edit]Classifications German entomologist Fritz Zumpt describes myiasis as "the infestation of live human and vertebrate animals with dipterous larvae, which at least for a period, feed on the host's dead or

living tissue, liquid body substances, or ingested food". For modern purposes however, this is too vague. For example, feeding on dead or necrotic tissue is not generally a problem except when larvae such as those of flies in the family Piophilidae attack stored food such as cheese or preserved meats; such activity suggests saprophagy rather than parasitism; it even may be medically beneficial in maggot debridement therapy (MDT). Currently myiasis commonly is classified according to aspects relevant to the case in question: 1. The classical description of myiasis is according to the part of the host that is infected. This is the classification used by ICD-10. For example:[5] 1. dermal 2. sub-dermal 3. cutaneous (B87.0) 1. Creeping, where larvae burrow through or under the skin 2. Furuncular, where a larva remains in one spot, causing a boil-like lesion 4. nasopharyngeal nose, sinuses or pharynx. (B87.3) 5. Ophthalmic or ocular in or about the eye (B87.2) 6. Auricular in or about the ear 7. gastric, rectal, or intestinal/enteric for the appropriate part of the digestive system(B87.8) 8. urogenital (B87.8). 2. Another aspect is the relationship between the host and the parasite and provides insight into the biology of the fly species causing the myiasis and its likely effect. Thus the myiasis is described as either:[5] 1. Obligatory, where the parasite cannot complete its life cycle without its parasitic phase, which may be Specific,Semispecific, or Opportunistic. 2. Facultative, incidental, or accidental, where it is not essential to the life cycle of the parasite; perhaps a normally free-living larva accidentally gained entrance to the host.[2] Accidental myiasis commonly is enteric, resulting from swallowing eggs or larvae with one's food. The effect is called pseudomyiasis.[6]One traditional cause of pseudomyiasis was the eating of maggots of cheese flies in cheeses such as Stilton. Depending on the species present in the gut, pseudomyiasis may cause significant medical symptoms, but it is likely that most cases pass unnoticed. Several different presentations of myiasis and their symptoms:[2]

Syndrome

Symptoms

Cutaneous Myiasis

Painful, slow-developing ulcers or furuncle- (boil-) like sores that can last for a prolonged period.

Nasal Myiasis

Obstruction of nasal passages and severe irritation. In some cases facial edema and fever can develop. Death is not uncommon.

Aural Myiasis

Crawling sensations and buzzing noises. Smelly discharge is sometimes present. If located in the middle ear, larvae may get to the brain.

Ophthalmomyiasis Fairly common, this causes severe irritation, edema, and pain. Nosocomial Myiasis refers to myiasis in a hospital setting. It is quite frequent, as patients with open wounds or sores can be infested if flies are present. To prevent nosocomial myiasis, hospital rooms must be kept free of flies. Human ophthalmomyiasis, both external and internal, has been caused by botfly larvae.[8] [edit]Diagnostics Myiasis is often misdiagnosed in the United States because it is extremely rare and its symptoms are not specific. Intestinal myiasis and urinary myiasis are especially difficult to diagnose.[2] Clues that myiasis may be present include recent travel to an endemic area, one or more nonhealing lesions on the skin, itchiness, movement under the skin or pain, discharge from a central punctum (tiny hole), or a small, white structure protruding from the lesion.[9]Serologic testing has also been used to diagnose the presence of botfly larvae in human ophthalmomyiasis.[8] [edit]Control

methods

The first control method is preventive and aims to eradicate the adult flies before they can cause any damage and is called vector control. The second control method is the treatment once the infestation is present, and concerns the infected animals (or humans). [edit]Prevention

The principal control method of adult populations of myiasis inducing flies involves insecticide applications in the environment where the target livestock is kept. Organophosphorus or organochlorine compounds may be used, usually in a spraying formulation. One alternative prevention method is the SIT (Sterile Insect Technique) where a significant number of artificially reared sterilized (usually through irradiation) male flies are introduced. The male flies compete with wild bred males for females in order to copulate and thus cause females to lay batches of unfertilized eggs which can't develop into the larval stage. One prevention method involves removing the environment most favourable to the flies, such as by docking (removal of the tail). Another example is the crutching of sheep, which involves the removal of wool from around the tail and between the rear legs, which is a favourable environment for the larvae. Another more permanent practice which is used in some countries is mulesing, where skin is removed from young animals to tighten remaining skin leaving it less prone to fly attack.[10] PETA have been campaigning to have farmers cease mulesing. Celebrities such as Pink, Toni Collette and Chrissie Hynde have also participated in PETA's campaign against the mulesing practice;[11] However, Collette has since changed her stance[12] and Pink has said she was misled by PETA and had not done enough research herself into mulesing. To prevent myiasis in humans, there is a need for general improvement of sanitation, personal hygiene, and extermination of the flies by insecticides. Clothes should be washed thoroughly, preferably in hot water, dried away from flies, and ironed thoroughly. The heat of the iron kills the eggs of myiasis-causing flies.[9] [edit]Treatment This applies once an infestation is established. In many circles the first response to cutaneous myiasis once the breathing hole has formed, is to cover the air hole thickly with petroleum jelly. Lack of oxygen then forces the larva to the surface, where it can more easily be dealt with. In a clinical or veterinary setting there may not be time for such tentative approaches, and the treatment of choice might be more direct, with or without an incision. First the larva must be eliminated through pressure around the lesion and the use of forceps. Secondly the wound must be cleaned and disinfected. Further control is necessary to avoid further reinfestation. Livestock may be treated prophylactically with slow release boluses containing ivermectin which can provide long term protection against the development of the larvae. Sheep also may be dipped, which involves drenching the animals in persistent insecticide to poison the larvae before they develop into a problem.

Blowfly strike (Myiasis) in sheep was the cause of untold misery and death in sheep before the advent of dipping. Fly strike in sheep is predominantly caused by the greenbottle (Lucilia sericata) which prefers to lay its eggs on the living sheep. Fly strike may occur on any part of the body where the fleece has become soiled or infected with bacteria (body strike). Sheep are most commonly struck around the rear end where the wool becomes soiled by faeces and urine (breech strike). Castration and tail wounds, clipping wounds, head wounds on fighting rams and any open wound will attract flies (wound strike), particularly if infected by bacteria. The smell of footrot is particularly attractive to flies especially blowflies and often the fleece over the chest wall becomes contaminated from the infected foot when the sheep lies down. Fly eggs, once laid, hatch within a few hours or days. The emerging larvae or maggots are very active and secrete enzymes which liquefy the skin and flesh of the sheep upon which they are feeding. Larvae feed for a variable time period depending on the availability of food. The mature maggots crawl off the fleece and pupate in the soil. In suitable weather conditions in the summer it takes less than a week for the fly to emerge, but often it is two or three weeks. With flies laying thousands of eggs, it is easy to see why the population of blowflies increases so rapidly under warm, thundery weather conditions. SYMPTOMS Sheep suffering from fly strike show obvious signs of distress. They spend less time grazing and more time tail wagging and rubbing the affected area and biting the struck areas of the fleece they can reach. If these signs go unrecognised and secondary strike occurs, the wounds can become very extensive and bacterial infection may lead to serious complications such as death from speticaemia and toxaemia. On examination of the sheep the result is often a foul smell from the wound and visible signs of maggots. TREATMENT & PREVENTION Treatment of blowfly strike should aim to kill any maggots present, prevent the likelihood of further fly strike and assist the wound heal. The wool should be carefully clipped away from around the wound and surrounding area. A suitable insecticidal cream should be applied to the infected areas. Mild cases should heal quickly with correct treatment. Special attention should be paid to high risk sheep, such as those with dirty rear ends particularly during the period of risk, from May to September. If fly activity is likely to remain high, the flock should be dipped. It is particularly important to immerse sheep for at least a full minute so as to ensure the dip saturates the whole fleece and regular replenishment of dip baths is important to maintain the strength of dip concentrate. Dipping is effective against the sheep scab mite, insect parasites and the blowfly. The pour-ons are effective against blowfly strike. The withdrawal period following dipping can be 35 days versus 3 days for pour-ons. Contact your CAHL representative for further details.