Saw my first case of fly strike this year. This happens when thick fur, soiled with diarrhea, blood, or other bodily fluids attracts flies which lay their eggs there. Maggots hatch out within 1-2 days. The maggots produce an enzyme which actually digests the skin and creates open wounds. They will feed on both live and dead tissue. They produce toxins and enzymes that can make the affected animal very ill or even kill it,. The wounds are always worse than they look at first!
Keep your pets CLEAN. If they are ill or have open wounds, keep them indoors, away from flies. Cleaning maggots out of wounds and trimming away dead tissue is not my favourite task.
.......Most often I see it in heavily coated dogs, like Newfies (and sheep, when I used to do large animal work) but this was actually a guinea pig which lived in an outdoor pen.
.........It can happen fairly quickly, in only a few days and since it is usually covered by soiled matted hair (at least at first) it can be easy to miss at the start. i probably see a half a dozen or so cases every summer. I used to see more when I worked in rural practice where animals were left outside more.
