#Fly strike in horses Patch

#Fly strike in horses Patch

Once the maggots hatch, you may notice a damp patch in the wool, over the rump or shoulder but this is not necessarily visible in coloured sheep. At this stage they may or not have been struck ie the eggs may have been laid but the maggots haven't hatched and started chomping. They may be found hiding in the shade somewhere, with a small cloud of flies around them, or scratching their backsides against the fence. One of the first signs is that the sheep are 'bothered' so they stamp, flick themselves, suddenly leap away then lie flat on the ground, leap up again, scuttle forwards, stamp and so on. It's far from a silly question - a huge part of shepherding is based on observation, so obviously you need to know what you are looking for. I used to have them done around end of May but this year may shear earlier. You can't be too vigilant with flystrike and it's definitely easier to manage once they are shorn. Thankfully said pony recovered well although he is still missing his lovely tail. Last year I even had a pony succumb to it, the maggots ate his entire dock (tail) and I have never seen so many maggots in one place, it was horrendous! I had to clip off all his tail hair, and even then the vile things managed to crawl up inside his sheath. The areas of fleece that are affected are soggy and wet, you often can't see this from looking so if you suspect something is wrong then feel the fleece all over, especially if the sheep have a thick fleece. If the maggots have taken hold they will lie down a lot and seem depressed. Signs of strike are the sheep keeping looking at it's rump or trying to bite at an area it can't reach - this can be a sign of other conditions too but I know precisely when any of mine have strike now. I have at one time used diluted Jeyes fluid, this was because I didn't have any Crovect to hand and I was desperate, it was amazingly effective! Probably not to be recommended but it certainly did cure this ewe. If the fleeces are thick you can often clip and treat an area only to miss another, which is what happened to my ram one year - I had to treat him three times! Dagging will help keep the flies away from the rump area but they very often strike on the neck and shoulders. It's the most awful thing and without a doubt can kill - I lost a well grown lamb to it.

I've had loads of experience with flystrike but not with the various treatments - I only use Crovect as it both prevents and kills maggots once they have taken hold, I can vouch for it's effectiveness.