Fly strike - questions

[chubbydog811]

I think I have a ewe the might have fly strike. She had nasty runny poop last week, but got over it. She cleaned herself up pretty well (grass and chewing) so I wasn't too worried. I noticed yesterday she was itchy, and today she has a large bald spot. I didn't get to check her up close before losing the light to see, so I'm preparing for the worst...Unfortunately I can't do anything about it until tomorrow afternoon (working from 6am to 4pm of course)
Here is my plan of action:
Shave her back end completely down - from hip to tail. If there are maggots, flush them all out, and drench with 7% Iodine.

Anything else I can really do for fly strike? I'm new to sheep, and have never dealt with it. She is still acting completely normal - eating, drinking, running around, ect.

 

[jhm47]

If she's got a bad case of maggots, and you wait nearly 24 hours to treat it, you very likely will lose her. It has been my experience that when a sheep gets a bad case like this, the maggots spread rapidly throughout the wool, and the resulting injury to the skin causes the sheep to "weep" body fluids. This quickly causes the sheep to become dehydrated, and they quickly die. Of course, this enables the maggots to take over the entire carcass, and they quickly eat the whole thing, which makes millions of new flies. I would treat with a permectrin product to kill the maggots, and then a generous application of a product like udder balm or bag balm if she's still alive when you get around to her. The oily products will discourage flies from laying more eggs, and will help healing.

 

[aggieterpkatie]

I'd recommend using something other than 7% iodine, like betadine solution instead. The 7% iodine is really harsh and will irritate raw tissue (and will hurt like heck). Screw worm spray is also good after the area is cleaned.

 

[SheepGirl]

I had a ewe lamb get fly strike back in May after I banded her tail. The maggots ate off her tail (or chewed off enough it fell off) and were eating into her tail/spinal tissue and her vulva. Because she was a baby, I was able to just hold her and pick out all the maggots and cut most of the eggs out of her wool (she was less than a week old so she really didn't have much wool to begin with). After I picked out the maggots I sprayed her bum with water and put her in a dog kennel in my house until my mom got home. When my mom got home, one of us held her and the other sprayed her with iodine (to kill any maggots still left and it also helps to dry up the wound just like it helps to dry up umbilical cords) and she was also sprayed with screw worm spray (to kill eggs & maggots and prevent them from coming back). It made her butt green, but by morning she had cleaned most of it off. The next day her butt was mostly scabbed over and I think two weeks later there was just a small scab left. A week or two ago I went and held her and looked at her butt and it was completely healed. She doesn't really move her tail much, like her sister (I assume because nerves or something were eaten away), but it doesn't hurt her. When she was having her fly strike treated, she was all hunched up and she would just stand there for me to pick at her with tweezers--you could tell it hurt her a lot.

 

[chubbydog811]

I'm assuming she doesn't have full on fly strike, otherwise, I would have been rushing more to get to her. She isn't irritated at all. Only reason I'm assuming is a bald spot (no blood/open wounds) and flies around her. She isn't acting in pain or severely irritated at all.
I just got home and am going to go out and deal with her now. I'll use betadine instead of 7% iodine if she does by chance have any open wounds. Like I said, I was just planning for the absolute worse.

Thanks!