The weather conditions are ripe for getting flystruck sheep. Flystrike is a devastating disease that starts with flies laying eggs in an area the size of a 5cent piece in the fleece of the sheep. The maggot larvae that hatch from the eggs then start eating skin tissue, which attracts more flies to lay eggs. This is an emergency scenario as it can escalate to larger affected areas in hours.
A skin infection and sometimes blood poisoning occurs and we have had to euthanise several pet sheep this year.
Early treatment is critical to saving sheep
- Shear/clip the affected area
- Our product of choice to kill the maggots in lifestyle sized packs is called “Cyrex” applied to the affected area as well as saturating the entire fleece,
- After you have followed these steps come and talk to us about how we manage the wound for quicker healing.
- If animal unwell and/or unable to stand and graze then call vets to organise an urgent vet visit.
Prevention is by far the best option and the same product “Cyrex” can be used for this by saturating the animal’s fleece. A garden sprayer or even a watering can will do the trick as long as saturation can be achieved. (This means a minimum of 2Litres of made-up solution applied per sheep).
This can give you up to 8 weeks protection, but in wet summers protection may be shorter.
Summary
- Get out there and check your sheep closely for signs of flystrike. Head twitching, skin twitching, feet stomping and running around like they are “disturbed” or “sulking” and isolating themselves from their mates are the tell-tale signs.
- Even if you don’t find any flystrike, come and get the preventative product and apply it asap.
