As summer ends and fall begins, the season for infestation of the Cuterebra fly, commonly called the bot fly, is in its prime, said Dr. Mark Finke with Tender Care Veterinary Center in Falcon. He said this yearís infestation is worse than years past.The warm environment encourages the fliesí breeding, Finke said. ìFlies like to lay their eggs on rotten things, like fecal matter,î he said. ìDogs and cats like to eat rotten things or roll in it, and that is when they can get the eggs on them.îAccording to an article written by Dr. Beck Lundgren posted at http://verterinarypartner.com, the Cuterebra fly is an opportunistic parasite that does not actively seek out an animal host; instead, it lays its eggs in places where animals frequent. When an animal passes by, the eggs attach to the animalís fur and hatch in response to the animalís body heat.ìOnce a larva hatches, it can be licked and swallowed during grooming, enter the body via the mouth or nostrils or it may enter the body through an open wound,î the article states.Once inside the body, the larva creates a subcutaneous space in which it lives, Finke said. ìThey drill a little hole called a fistula so they can breathe,î he said. ìThat is usually when people will notice it because they see something moving around under the skin.îTeresa Damron, a Falcon resident, said she first noticed the larva on her 9-month-old Shitzu when the dog hopped onto Damronís bed for a belly rub. ìWhen she rolled over, I saw a bump with what looked like a scab the size of a pea,î she said. ìI started to mess with it, and then thought I would keep an eye on it. I sprayed some hydrogen peroxide on it and then let it go for an hour.ìThen when I looked at it, I could see something moving and realized it was not a scab. Half the larva was out, and I got some tweezers to remove the whole thing.îFinke said the bump Damron saw is typical of a larva under the skin of its host. ìPeople will notice swelling with a hole in the skin and sometimes a discharge that dries to the hair,î he said. ìMost dogs and cats lick at those areas pretty aggressively. Owners always want to have the pet checked out by a vet. Do not pop them out because then you run the risk of causing an infection and even an anaphylactic reaction.îAlthough a cuterebra larva can migrate to an area of the body that could cause problems, it is rare; and, most often, the danger comes from not removing the entire larva, he said ó the reason the vet should do the extraction.Cuterebra infestations tend to occur on smaller breed dogs because the eggs can attach readily to their fur, Finke said.Matt Watkins, a Falcon resident of 13 years, said he noticed that same trend after having both large and small breed dogs. ìWe have had a plethora of dogs in the time we have lived here, but all the big dogs have never had it, he said. However, both his Australian Silky and Yorkshire terriers became infested at different times, Watkins said.Finke said there is no definitive method to prevent cuterebra infestations. ìGetting rid of fecal matter and rotten things is the best way to decrease the occurrence,î he said. ìThis summer, the environmental factors just allowed for increased breeding of the flies.î
