What would you do if you happened to see a helpless kitten in pain? Would you help? I would. One good Samaritan stumbled upon a kitten in a parking lot that was in distress in Florence, Kentucky. The kitten had some big sores on her ear and neck.
The kitten was immediately taken to a nearby vet. The vet instantly knew what the problem was as soon as the kitten came in.
They needed to anesthetize the kitten to help her relax. Inside the wounds were larvae from the Cuterebra fly (North American botfly). The eggs from the fly are quite often laid on blades of grass – then the eggs hatch.
When an unsuspecting animal happens to walk by and brushes up against the grass, the larvae grab on and start to make its way into the animal’s nose, mouth, or through a skin wound. The unfortunate kitten had one larva in its neck and the other near its ear!
Even with the anesthesia, the kitten was howl in pain. If you have the stomach for it, you can see the vet get those larvae out of the kitten in the video below.
Be sure to keep an eye on your pets this spring for signs of the larvae infestation.
Some of the symptoms of this include bumps or other skin abnormalities. If you do indeed suspect that your feline is infected, take them to the vet to have the larvae removed, as it is important that the larvae are removed whole.
Watch the video here!
