Bot fly removal techniques

[allegraf]

One of my males got infested with bot flies. Any suggestions on removal? I am thinking of soaking him in lukewarm water to encourage the nasty maggots to come up for air and them picking them out with tweezers, tort allowing of course. Let me be more clear, my husband will be executing this plan as it is grossing me out. Any help or suggestions is appreciated.

 

[wellington]

I can't help you. However, can you post pics and do you know how this happened? It would be very educational if you could fill us in on details. I would never have guessed this could happen.

 

[Madkins007]

Whatever you do, don't watch a YouTube video about it! Yuck!

 

[Yvonne G]

In horses, we use an oral de-wormer, but the bad news is, this particular de-wormer (ivermectin) is fatal to tortoises. I did a 'net search and it looks like the method for getting rid of the maggots in tortoises is picking them out with tweezers.

I'm sorry your poor tortoise is going through this. Give your husband a pat on the back from me. I'd hate to be the one who has to do this.

 

[allegraf]

I can't help you. However, can you post pics and do you know how this happened? It would be very educational if you could fill us in on details. I would never have guessed this could happen.

Give me blood, guts, even poo. Bugs in flash no thanks. The husband is on his own with this and very unlikely I am going to watch, much less take pics. Blech!

 

[mike taylor]

The water thing is not going to work . Get some vasoline and put it over the spot where the fly is and wait he will come out for air and thats when you grab it . Then add some neosporin???? Don't know if that was the right spelling but you get the point . Thats how we get them out of are animals good luck.

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[wellington]

I can't help you. However, can you post pics and do you know how this happened? It would be very educational if you could fill us in on details. I would never have guessed this could happen.

Give me blood, guts, even poo. Bugs in flash no thanks. The husband is on his own with this and very unlikely I am going to watch, much less take pics. Blech!

Can you get pics of what they look like on your tort? I have raised horses, pig, ducks, chickens, dogs, cats, and worked for a vet and I have never had nor seen a fly problem where they would infest my animals. I have had them lay eggs on my horses, but, you brush the coat, they come off and you spray more fly spray. I watched a video on YouTube of them being pulled out of a money's neck. Big holes. However, I can't imagine them on a tortoise and how an infestation happens? It may be gross, but I still think it would help lots of us that have never dealt with something like this. Sorry, animal stuff doesn't gross me out, human stuff does

 

[kimber_lee_314]

I have had the delightful opportunity to remove a bot fly from a rabbit (even more than once!!) Here's what we did for the rabbit. Sometimes we had to open it a little because the skin sometimes grows over the stoma. This doesn't always happen. Then we smother the stoma with vaseline until the larva sticks his head out a little to breathe. Then you can grab it with tweezers. Pull slowly. I don't know about reptiles, but as far as rabbits go, I have heard that if they break open they can release a toxin. So pull slowly and firmly trying not break open the larva. After you get it out you can drop it in some rubbing alcohol to kill it. Sometimes a pocket of puss forms around the larva, so squeeze out any puss. Then use a Qtip dipped in betadine. Actually stick the q-tip right into the hole and clean out any puss that remains. Get way down in there. And that's it - no more bot fly! Hope that has helpful!

 

[pam]

Wow i had no idea this could happen

 

[dds7155]

is this in the U.S.,, can people get them?

 

[mike taylor]

Yes people can get them and yes they are here in the US but not as bad as say the rain forest.

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[Tom]

We get them on the wild rabbits here. They come out on their own as soon as the rabbit is dead.

Never seen one on a tortoise. Freaky...

 

[mightymizz]

Before I do one of those searches on youtube or google where you see the most extreme cases of anything...What exactly are these bot flys?

I understand they are a larva, but what do they turn into? Why don't we hear about them much in the USA on people?

 

[cdmay]

I have had the delightful opportunity to remove a bot fly from a rabbit (even more than once!!) Here's what we did for the rabbit. Sometimes we had to open it a little because the skin sometimes grows over the stoma. This doesn't always happen. Then we smother the stoma with vaseline until the larva sticks his head out a little to breathe. Then you can grab it with tweezers. Pull slowly. I don't know about reptiles, but as far as rabbits go, I have heard that if they break open they can release a toxin. So pull slowly and firmly trying not break open the larva. After you get it out you can drop it in some rubbing alcohol to kill it. Sometimes a pocket of puss forms around the larva, so squeeze out any puss. Then use a Qtip dipped in betadine. Actually stick the q-tip right into the hole and clean out any puss that remains. Get way down in there. And that's it - no more bot fly! Hope that has helpful!

Allegra... the above is what my wife said we did when one of our tortoises had bot flies a long time ago. I thought we soaked her in water but after I thought about it, I remembered that soaking in water is what I had done with a wild box turtle with BFs I had caught in high school.
Barb says (I don't remember) the Vaseline thing was tedious (and gross) but that it did work.
I agree with the others who state that a photographic record of this would be helpful for future reference, but I would also check with a good reptile vet first to see if there is an easier method.

 

[gary27]

I had a Russian two years ago with bot flies. I put a couple of drops of
insecticide in water and poured it over the hole in his leg. They came to the hole and i pulled them out with tweezers. Got 14 total........Gary P.

 

[allegraf]

Ok, it wasn't as gross as I expected. I ended up being the one to pick out the maggots. Soaking in lukewarm water for a few minutes had the bugs poking their heads out and made for easy pickings. He actually did most of the work. Two of the larger ones were in the pocket of his back leg. When I pulled him out of the water, I held his leg out and saw the two poking out. He retracted his leg so fast they came shooting out on their own. Only found three total though, the other holes seemed empty. Jaw is still swollen so I am going to see if the vet thinks he needs any follow up antibiotics or general anti-parasitic. He had been soaking himself in the deep watery-mud holes over the last two weeks so I suspect that the other holes have already been vacated. I am going to soak him again today to make sure I got them all.

I will supplement the pics later after work.

 

[lynnedit]

A pet rabbit of mine (who spent time outside) got them occasionally. The vet suggested pouring hydrogen peroxide into the hole, which made them squirm :O , then we plucked them out with the tweezers. I don't think there is any other way in small creatures to get rid of them.
I believe they prefer warm blooded animals, but 'any port in a storm'.

The vet told me that they enter through a tiny broken area of skin. It is pretty hard to prevent a tortoise from occasionally nicking themselves, as active as they can be.

Yuck.

 

[kanalomele]

Sorry I miseed this thread... woww! When I have to do this I will use duct tape over the hole. They will come for air and often get stuck to the tape and get pulled out when I ease the tape off. I will also have tweezers on hand to pluck any that manage to avoid getting stuck to the tape.

 

[Tom]

The "bot flies" we have here only have one giant maggot per hole. When I say giant, I mean its the size of a man's thumb. You guys have bot flies that leave multiple maggots per hole? Or are you talking about multiple holes?

 

[Peyton]

Put tape over the holes and when they come up for air use tweezers to get them out