MAGGOT FLIES 645 



damage by laying their ova, during warm weather, on any 

 part of the wool which has been wetted or soiled with solid 

 or liquid animal excreta or certain inferior forms of dip 

 material. In a few hours after the sheep are thus " fly- 

 blown " or " struck," if the day be hot, the maggots are 

 hatched, and immediately find their way to the skin, 

 which they devour. They grow rapidly, and, if not de- 

 stroyed, they are able to cause death within a few days. 

 The presence of maggots may be easily detected by the 

 wool on the parts attacked becoming damp on the surface 

 and dark in colour, and by the restless and uneasy move- 

 ments of the sheep including turning round and attempt- 

 ing to bite the affected part, lying down often, then rising 

 and running a little, and taking shelter away from the 

 rest of the flock at the back of a wall or among rank 

 undergrowth. A sheep may at times clear itself of its 

 tormentors by rubbing in a loose sandy bank or " scaur " ; but 

 the shepherd has usually to dress each animal carefully, at 

 least twice, with a strong-smelling solution which destroys 

 the maggots without injuring the raw parts of the skin. No 

 ordinary dipping material used for the destruction of the 

 insect parasites previously described is strong enough to 

 kill maggots. Sores should be kept soft and in a healthy 

 healing condition by the application of carbolic oil. The 

 spirit- or oil-of-tar is very useful, if there be no broken skin, 

 to prevent a second attack in very bad cases, by sprinkling 

 the top of the wool or any soiled part with it ; but it darkens 

 the wool, and it also causes much irritation on a raw or 

 maggot-wounded surface. Maggot flies may be almost 

 certainly prevented from striking the fleece if sheep are 

 kept clean by clipping away all dirty wool in the region of 

 the tail, and by dipping them at times with a strong-smelling 

 solution containing a quantity of carbolic acid and sulphur. 

 When it is important to have the scrotum well covered with 

 wool, as is the case in certain breeds of sheep, ram lambs 

 are not kept in the dipping-tank the usual time, as prolonged 

 submersion has a tendency to make the wool fall off those 

 parts. They are frequently not dipped in the usual way, 

 but a concentrated solution of dip material, with a strong- 

 smelling fly-powder added, is rubbed over the backs with a 

 scrubbing brush. Sprinkling the backs with a mixture from 



