# Maggots



## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

uke: As mentioned in the Tick Bite thread, we discovered 2 tiny larvae on Pablo's coat on Saturday. Took him to the ER Vet because his little bite location started to ulcerate and also told the Vet about those nasty larvae (2-3 mm long). We came to the conclusion, that he must have scooped it up with his hair somewhere in the grass/woodsy area here. It definitely wasn't tapeworms. 
I get home and take him out for a quick potty break before I had to head out. Well guess what plops out right after his poop drops. A more mature looking 'larva' (5mm, black tip, very motile, cut off looking butt, segmented). I picked it up with a zip loc and compared it to hookworms, tapeworms and also maggots. :jaw: I thought it looked A LOT like maggots and called the ER Vet again. They told me, it's unlikely that it's a maggot if it moves because they don't survive in the GI-tract and the acidic juices. Phew, OK, so I'm relieved yet puzzled as what else it could be. Let me tell you that I only slept 3 hours and dreamed DH had 3 of those creatures on his pillow, pulled it from under his head and through it on the floor.
So I call the Vet and they tell me to bring the stuff in. I did and the assistant came back  'you were right, it IS a maggot'. So I dropped the maggot pooper off, they are going through every mm of his coat (which I do on a daily basis), check his anal glands, bathe him in medicated stuff and give him Capstar which is a flea killer also inofficially used against maggots.

I'm in shock. From my understanding, maggots infest necrotic (dead) tissue which he obviously has none of. I read online again and it seems that sometimes when dogs have diarrhea/sticky poop that stays in their hair for a little too long (talking about second-minutes), flies can lay eggs on it and maggots can arise. Pablo (like any other Hav) does have poopy butt every now and then, but I usually either clean/rinse it off right away if I have water/wipes on me or back home we go for an immediate butt bath. 

I'm devastated, I'm so paranoid about him being bug free, clean, not drinking/eating anything off the ground, etc. and yet this occurred. One more thing to put on the 'to worry about'-list.

Please learn from my experience clean your Hav poopy hair INSTANTLY, especially if you live in a green/woodsy and warm area like we do. 

Will keep everyone updated, sorry if I grossed you out.


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## Me&2Girls (May 11, 2007)

Oh Maryam, I can't believe that he could get these. I had no idea that a fly could lay a egg for a maggot that fast. I'm sure Pablo will be fine but oh yuck just the thought. It's a good thing you were persistent and caught one of those nasty things to prove to the vet you were right.


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## pjewel (Apr 11, 2007)

Oh Maryam, how awful. Who would have thought it was possible. Please keep us updated. I'll be inspecting all butts in this house after that.


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Geri, I could cry, cause I even inspect Pablo's butt (on the outside) every single day. There was NOTHING.


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## Jane (Jun 2, 2007)

maryam187 said:


> I read online again and it seems that sometimes when dogs have diarrhea/sticky poop that stays in their hair for a little too long (talking about second-minutes), flies can lay eggs on it and maggots can arise. Pablo (like any other Hav) does have poopy butt every now and then, but I usually either clean/rinse it off right away if I have water/wipes on me or back home we go for an immediate butt bath.


Hi Maryam,
My Lhasa that I had as a kid also had this happen to her and we were equally as horrified. The vet was also surprised that this could happen to such a well-cared for dog (which she was, of course). With all that long hair back there, it wasn't easy to see. I can't remember what meds the vet put her on, but she was fine after that and it never happened again. :hug: to Pablo!


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## mckennasedona (Feb 20, 2007)

Oh Marayam, yuck! I can't imagine... I would have nightmares too. Hopefully Pablo will be fine very soon. I've never heard of maggots on a healthy dog. I'm glad I have light colored dogs. I can see every last bit of fecal matter on them and now that you've shared this I'm going to be examining them even more closely than I already do and I check them often. Yikes.

Hugs to you and Pablo!


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## hartman studio (Feb 14, 2008)

Oh, Maryam- I'm so sorry to hear about that. I'm sure Pablo will be fine. What a terrible few days (and nights) you've had. You're going to be ready to get out of North Carolina for awhile! Hugs to you and Pablo.


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## isshinryu_mom (Mar 23, 2008)

Yikes!!! Even if it is a "gross" thread I appreciate hearing about this. These are things I didn't even know to look for.... <sigh> I am wondering if I am smart enough to take care of my baby.


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## pjewel (Apr 11, 2007)

Maryam, I would be as hysterical as you are about this. Sending cyberhugs to you and Pablo.


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## ama0722 (Nov 28, 2006)

Maryam- All I can say is hugs! I would be absolutely freaked out if I were you. When Dora got into the ants I was so freaked out for weeks and I was able to rinse her off in a minute of seconds! Would it be better if Pablo received a summer hair cut? I know I don't want to cut my down but maybe this is a good idea?


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Still no call from the Vet's. I thought about cutting his hair short, but we're leaving in 3 weeks and have FAAAAAAR less bug/insect/roach/fly problems in Berlin. I told Joey that I'm ready to move back to Berlin. I'm a City girl and don't deal well with these countryside issues


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## ama0722 (Nov 28, 2006)

<--- suddenly really doesnt want to move to the south!!!


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## Beamer (Jan 29, 2007)

Maryam,

Can you post a picture of this larvae?? Your freaking me out now.. lol

Ryan


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## Poornima (Jun 29, 2007)

That's awful! I feel for you Maryam. I hope Pablo is rid of the bugs soon. I too am dreading the hot weather on LI and all the flea and tick problems I hear. Though excited about exploring the new place, I sometimes wish we weren't moving at all.


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## Tritia (Nov 17, 2007)

Oh my goodness! I'd freak, too. I'm so sorry 
It's these things that make me think..hmm, pet rocks are nice.


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## Leeann (Feb 28, 2007)

Ewww Maryam you poor thing, I'm sure Pablo doesnt care but mom sure does.


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Ryan, tried to find the least nasty pic of maggots. I've only seen pics of huge maggots, but Pablo's larvae (2) were only about 2-3mm long (which means they were just 1 day old) and the one that evidently looked like a maggot that plopped on top of his poop was about 5 mm long.

Amanda&Poornima, I hear you, it's hot and humid here and we're surrounded by ponds, woods, grass, etc. Nice yet horrifying during heat when you own an animal that you like to walk daily.

Pablo didn't care at all, he never scratched, licked, scooted, nothing. I'm glad his hair is black&white in the right areas: the only reason why we saw the 2 tiny white larvae was because they were on top of his black hair on his back. The hair right underneath his anus is white which helps easily seeing poopy hair.


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Sorry, here's the pic.


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Vet just called: they didn't find any more maggots or larvae. He said his anal glands were full but that's it. He also said that with the heat (around 100 F since 5 days) and humidity any dog can get attracted by flies/maggots and with all his hair, poopy butt and full (stinky) anal glands Pablo turned out to be a healthy yet inviting host.
He said it taught them today that if a dog like Pablo can get it, any dog can get it, it all just depends on the 'right' conditions.

On my way to pick my maggot-pooper up


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## Poornima (Jun 29, 2007)

Maryam, great to hear that Pablo has no more maggots. I am sure you will go over his butt with a microspope now. 

I don't know if this would help to kill any bugs that might find Pablo's butt attractive, I recommend a dab of Veterinarian's waterless bath foam on his poop shoot. I do it for both Benji and Lizzie when they do their business every time and then wipe with baby wips. I don't have them in full Butt glory, but trim the coat short for a clean dump. 

I bet you can't wait to fly to Berlin. Hope no more bugs for Pablo!


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## Missy (Nov 6, 2006)

Oh Maryam! i am sorry. I totally understand your nightmares. But what this tells me is that despite all your fears of creepy crawlies-- Pablo gets to be a dog and play out doors...but maggots? Oh thank heavens it was only one and he is AOK.


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## EstrellaVila (Nov 30, 2007)

Oh my god I am so sorry about this. I can't believe it. Hugs to Pablo.


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## marjrc (Jan 13, 2007)

EEeewwwwww!! Oh my gosh, Maryam, I feel for you, hon! It is pretty gross, but what can you do? You were very vigilant and caught it - good for you! Thank you for sharing, in spite of grossing us out, lol - as it will help us all be extra careful about this. "Maggot pooper", I love it! lol ound:


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## suzyfrtz (Nov 12, 2007)

Maryam,

So so sorry to learn about your bug troubles. The maggots are horrible! They just make me sick. I have had two wonderful dogs years ago that had injuries and maggots got into them, a sign that the end was near for them. I sure didn't know maggots could attach themselves to healthy dogs and will be checking Cazzie closely. I do so hope that Pablo will be in tip-top shape for his upcoming trip.

Hugs,
Suzy


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## Julie (Feb 8, 2007)

Thanks for the info Maryam-----I have to say,I will be looking at my dogs butts now in a whole new way!uke:uke:


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## SMARTY (Apr 19, 2007)

Oh My Goodness.......this has to be the worse.........I am normally very calm in most situations, but if our "Bed Buddy" gets maggots I will freak out.:attention::faint::bolt: I would never trust her butt again :bathbaby:


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## good buddy (Feb 20, 2007)

Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww uke: Maryam, I am feeling for ya! Yuckies! I'm sure I am no more grossed out than you are. I only pay attention to the bummer when we have a messy poo, but I check all doggie poops as I do pick up for anything strange. Through the years with birds and dogs I thought I've become accustomed to every possible color and content of poop, but I've not seen maggots before! Good for you being right on top of things and getting him in to the vets! Now you can both rest easy. Well he can, you MIGHT still have the willies for a couple days! :fear:


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Hope DH will be able to sleep on his pillow tonight and not have to scoop it up off the floor at 5 a.m., LOL.


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## irnfit (Nov 21, 2006)

I think you will all sleep better tonight. Glad little pablo is OK. The only experience I have with maggots is when they got into my trash because there was chopped sirloin I had to throw away.


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## ivyagogo (Sep 11, 2007)

Maryam - I've been so busy I haven't been out here in days. This is the first thread I opened and I'm sorry I did! Yuck! I'm way skeeved out now. I hope Pablo is okay.


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## Melissa Miller (Aug 2, 2006)

Im glad I already had dinner. I guess its not possible he ate something with maggots on it? Like something dead... and they just went through the system? I dont know if this is even possible. THanks for the heads up and I hope you can forget about it before bed time tonight.


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## Dawncon (Jun 3, 2008)

Ok, this is the first time that I have posted. My puppy doesn't even come home to me until this Sunday, and this thread has me in a panic!!! I live just a few hours from you, so I am wondering what my little puppy and I are going to be up against. I feel for you and Pablo.


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Ivy, you're funny, what did you expect when you saw the title of the thread? :laugh:

Melissa, apparently maggots don't survive the journey through the GI-Tract because of the digestive juices. 

Dawncon, :welcome: to the forum! Sorry your first post had to be in this uke: thread. Please don't worry about maggots, this really happens RARELY, we were just 'lucky'. Besides, by the time your new puppy's hair is long enough to catch poop it's going to be wintertime anyway and the flies will be less active  There are a few of us living in NC and we plan on having a playdate this Fall after Pablo&I return from Germany. So stick around, there are MANY much nicer topics on this forum


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## moxie (Feb 6, 2008)

thanks so much for giving us all the heads up, maryam. the scenario makes sense to me - icky - but one of nature's more unpleasant "ways."

we are all much the wiser and prepared for the worst thanks to your sharing.... this is definitely in the downside category of pet ownership! but still the reality, of course.


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## MaddiesMom (Apr 1, 2007)

Ewwww....so sorry you had to go through that Maryam. That happened to a lop eared bunny we owned years and years ago. The weather was hot, she had a bout of diarrhea, and a fly laid eggs in her fur. Yucko. uke: I guess flies don't hesitate to take advantage of any chance to quickly lay their eggs. Glad your maggot experience is over.


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## kelrobin (Jan 21, 2008)

Maryam - I am back from my trip and knew I had missed some news, but THIS??? Poor Pablo!!! :sorry: But after the temperatures, I am not surprised at anything - glad he is OK. We came home to spiders and bugs in the house, and I think this heat has brought out some nasty creatures. It was stifling in Savannah and the SC beaches. I think there are any number or ways Pablo could have picked up the maggots. His fur or rear could have brushed over some larvae on the ground who clung and then moved to the anal area. He could have licked something with larvae and then cleaned himself down there . . . or the fly theory. I am definitely thinking of getting Jackson trimmed this week . . . he seems to be having a lot of trouble with the heat and the long fur. The bug issue just compounds the problems, but I'm a nervous nellie about cutting him. Pablo's fur seems to be lighter than Jackson's and he doesn't seem to be as sensitive to the heat . . . I would keep him in full coat if you can for the trip!! lane: Jackson still loves his little maggot pooper friend . . . 

Oh, and welcome to the forum, Dawncon. I am dying to know where you got your puppy :baby: . . . he looks a lot like my Jackson! We can't wait to see more photos. hoto: And I think maggots will be the LEAST of your worries!! :wink:


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## BeverlyA (Oct 29, 2006)

Maryam!! OMG! Maggot pooper! When I saw this thread I was reallllly hoping it wasn't as it appeared. The good news it that you found it and Pablito is on his way to being rid of those little buggers.
I would be having nightmares too. I've been fighting tiny ants in the bathroom and that's enough to cause me nightmares.

Hope you get lots of good sleep tonight!
Beverly


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## ama0722 (Nov 28, 2006)

Maryam,

If anyone was like me, all 3 of my dogs received special treatment tonight <BG> I think Dora with all her hair has some words for you <BG>


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## Dawncon (Jun 3, 2008)

[email protected] said:


> Maryam -
> Oh, and welcome to the forum, Dawncon. I am dying to know where you got your puppy :baby: . . . he looks a lot like my Jackson! We can't wait to see more photos. hoto: And I think maggots will be the LEAST of your worries!! :wink:


Thanks for the welcome. He is from a breeder here in Charlotte. I don't have him yet, he comes home on Sunday. But he is so cute!!! :clap2:Right now he looks like a little Panda. I actually went just meet the breeder and her adult dogs. I thought I was going to get a puppy from her litter that will be born the end of June. But this little guy crawled into my lap kissed my face and curled up and went to sleep. The rest is history. Below is a picture of him and his sister.


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

OOOOOOOHHHHHHHH, he's officially going to be the cutest bunny hopper on our NC playdate :clap2: Pablo and Jackson (the playjunkies) are going to have fun with this little one.


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## Miss Paige (Apr 4, 2008)

Maryam:

OMG is all I can think to say-I just so hate maggots-I used to work in wildlife rescue and we would run across them in a really badly injured animal-I would never have thought about them getting on a healthy dog-this has made me stop & think about cleaning butts now after each potty break-and getting a santi cut on the back side of my girl. My boy has short hair so it's a clear area.

Pat


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## Leslie (Feb 28, 2007)

ama0722 said:


> <--- suddenly really doesnt want to move to the south!!!


Then you just tell Jim he can come visit you at my house (since that's where you and the fur babies can live) any time he wants! :biggrin1:

Maryam~ Thanks for sharing about this. I hate that you're dealing with it but, it will help so many of us...especially those of us with pups w/black behinds. Sending hugs to you and belly rubs for Pablo.


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## Lina (Apr 26, 2007)

Maryam, I think I would have FREAKED out! SO gross!!! I'm glad you were able to see it, though, and got it taken care of. I guess this means you will enjoy Berlin a little more since you will be getting away from the countryside for a bit.


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## ama0722 (Nov 28, 2006)

Okay I think this story beyond had me a bit freaked. Last night I took Dasher man out to do some training down the street so he had some distraction. On the way back Dash stopped to body and I will say since this thread I have been inspector Amanda. I look down and I see a rolly polly thing in Dash's mess. I totally flip out and take him home right away. I bring the mess back home and tell my husband he needs to find out what it is. I swear I thought it was a maggot and we need to take Dash to the vet. So Jim takes it outside and inspects. He comes back in to totally laughing and says I need to calm down. Apparently Dash man ate one of Belle's yellow tiny scrunchie fuzzy top knots and I need to quit being a freak!!! I swear it looked totally like some wormy wrinkly bug!

Maryam- this is your fault!

Amanda


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

ound: Now imagine what *I* went through! I must say, I like Dasher, he's full of fun stuff :biggrin1:


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## JanB (Oct 26, 2007)

Oh Lordy, me too! I was freaking out over Tessa's poop until I figured out the little white things in it were some plastic pieces of a toy she chewed up that had little white "bumps" all around it. Tessa ate every bump.

Thanks Maryam, LOL!!


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## ama0722 (Nov 28, 2006)

Maryam- I don't even want to imagine!!! I freak out when it rains and worms are outside so the idea of them beyond freaks me out<hence So Cal is great!>


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## Sissygirl (Aug 8, 2007)

Maryam,

So sorry you had to experience that. Did the vet say that was a rare thing??? I hope so..


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Marie, yes, the Vet was VERY surprised to see that happen to my well-groomed and healthy Pablo. But he said that they learn something new every day and that it just goes to show, that flies don't necessarily need dead tissue to dump their eggs in. He said Pablo's anal glands were full and that could have been stinky enough and/or tiny left-over poop on his hair. Despite the maggot horror, I refuse to run around with wet wipes and clean his butt the moment he poops. I can't do that for the next 15 years. I just hope that it was a freak coincidence and that's it. I always look for poop on his butt right after he poops and if there is some, I try to get it off with the poop-bag and he gets a butt bath as soon as we're back home. I trim the hair around his 'area' and I always wipe his feet, schniedel and butt when we come home, every single time. There's only so much one can do.


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## Lilly's mom (Aug 10, 2007)

maryam187 said:


> Marie, yes, the Vet was VERY surprised to see that happen to my well-groomed and healthy Pablo. But he said that they learn something new every day and that it just goes to show, that flies don't necessarily need dead tissue to dump their eggs in. He said Pablo's anal glands were full and that could have been stinky enough and/or tiny left-over poop on his hair. Despite the maggot horror, I refuse to run around with wet wipes and clean his butt the moment he poops. I can't do that for the next 15 years. I just hope that it was a freak coincidence and that's it. I always look for poop on his butt right after he poops and if there is some, I try to get it off with the poop-bag and he gets a butt bath as soon as we're back home. I trim the hair around his 'area' and I always wipe his feet, schniedel and butt when we come home, every single time. There's only so much one can do.


Maryam I am not looking that one up (I can guess), but it did make me laugh. ound:


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## Missy (Nov 6, 2006)

maryam187 said:


> ound: I must say, I like Dasher, he's full of fun stuff :biggrin1:


Ha ha ha. When Jas was a puppy I kept taking in poop sample after poop sample to be tested because there was always this yellowish rice grain looking stuff. Worms right? ALways came back negative, Finally I figured out that it was from these booda chews I was giving him...stopped giving them to him, and the poo was grain free again.


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## nancyf (Nov 6, 2007)

What a nightmare you went through. What symptoms did Pablo have?


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

N-O-N-E


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