New World Screwworm in Dogs: Your 60-Second Wound Check

New World Screwworm in Dogs: Your 60-Second Wound Check

You are cleaning Buddy up on Saturday morning after a romp in the backyard on Saturday morning which you had not observed on Tuesday, and you have a scab on the back of his ear. We would all shake it off. The shrug is now associated with an added danger, a flesh-eating fly larva that was killed off in the U.S. decades ago has come back this year. This is a quick routine that only lasts approximately a minute and may help save your dog a lot of serious damage.

Quick Answer: Yes. On June 3, 2026, USDA confirmed a calf in Texas and a pet dog in New Mexico, had been infected with screwworm. FDA asserts that the danger of most American dogs is not very high. The best preventive is to have a quick weekly skin examination of open sores, foul odors or wriggling larvae and call your vet right away should you find any. Never leave a sore to be cured which is suspicious.

Is Screwworm Back in the US 2026? What Dog Owners Need to Know

Short answer: yes. In 1960s, the last incidence in the U.S. had been recorded in the young calf in Zavala County, Texas. On June 8, 2026, a dog in Lea County, New Mexico, was diagnosed in a pet dog. (Source: USDA reporting through Swine Health Information Center)

Here's how the pest works. Adult flies lay eggs on wounds left open. The eggs are hatched and the larva bites into the body of living animals. (Source: USDA APHIS) That is a big difference with the maggots that one would find on a dead animal. They eat healthy flesh, and they will make a small scrape a serious wound in a few minutes.

Now the soothing bit. According to FDA, the dogs and cats in the U.S. are at a low risk currently, the cases reported are concentrated in a small area. (Source: FDA) Low risk isn't zero risk, though. Dogs used in the Southwest should be given special attention in hunting, hiking, boarding and traveling.

The numbers of cases vary rapidly. USDA also updates their dashboard of U.S. determinations on a weeklyday evening, so make sure to check it out before traveling. (Source: USDA APHIS)

How to Examine Dog Skin During Grooming: The 60-Second Plan

You are already brushing, bathing and clipping nails. Skin check is virtually free and it will help you to identify hot spots, cuts, ticks and lumps early too. Combine it with your usual program out of our dog grooming and hygiene manuals and you have it automatic.

Your Dog Wound Check Routine, Step by Step

Prepare a flashlight (you can use your phone flashlight) and some treats. Next follow the 4 steps below:

1. Set up (10 seconds). Keep your dog on a non-slip mat in a well lit place. Provide them with a snack to make them relaxed.
2. Head to tail (30 seconds) eyes to hands. Stick your fingers in the fur, and look in at the skin, not just the coat. Examine ears, corners of eyes, nose, lips and under collar or harness.
3. Check the secret places (15 seconds). Look at armpits, belly, belly button, tail base and in between toes. Remember about the genital and anal areas.
4. Sniff and record (5 seconds). Red flag is a sweet or rotten odor or an off odor. Take a picture of something strange to notice its transformation with your vet.

This is more convenient using a headlamp and a fine-tooth comb. Our pet product and pet equipment manuals contain grooming equipment that is worth possessing.

Where Flies Like to Lay Eggs

Flies like moist, cracking skin. Please note:

• Scrapes, lacerations and recovery of surgical lesions.
• Bites by insects or ticks that are scratched open.
• Hot spots and folds of the skin which remain moist.
• Ear tips, noses and paw pads on dogs outside.
• Belly button of puppies being born.

Outside dogs, hunting dogs, the elderly and dogs with skin allergies are the most likely to possess a sore without their knowledge. Check them more often, once they have been out on adventures.

Signs of Fly Strike in Dogs: What to Watch For

The whole concept of the routine is to detect trouble in its early stages. There are signs that are apparent. Some of them are like an ordinary sore initially.

Maggots in Dog Wound: What You Might See

Live larvae are the most evident: they are pale, creamy, worm-like beings, wriggling in or around a sore. You will find, too, in clusters, small eggs on the fur. Among the infestations in FDA include visible maggots and foul odor of wounds or body openings and advises seeking veterinary care immediately. (Source: FDA)

In addition to the warning signs noted, there are others such as:

• A sore which seems to grow daily.
• Dark, bloody or foul discharge.
• Frequent licking, biting or scratching at one spot.
• Jiggling, hiding or squealing when touched.
• Fever, weariness or a dog that will not eat.

Dog Wound Not Healing Signs

Within a few days, a normal scrape begins to appear better. Call your vet when the sore is not healed in about a week, is still bleeding, or is redder, warmer or swellier. Another indication is fur that remains matted and wet in an area. A sore which is not healing may be infected, or an object may be residing in it.

Screwworm vs Regular Maggots Dog Wound: Can You Tell the Difference?

Not always at home, nor you need. The two cases require a vet immediately. However, knowing the difference can enable you to understand the reason behind the concern of authorities over this pest.

The two are similar to the naked eye. Only a lab can say for sure. Larvae may be picked up by your veterinarian and reported to the state animal health authorities about a suspected case. USDA requests animal owners to communicate with their state animal health officer or USDA area veterinarian in case they suspect screwworm. (Source: USDA APHIS)

Dog Wound Smells Bad: What to Do Right Now

The nasty odor of your dog is his painful message informing you that something is amiss. It can be a bacterial infection, an abscess or larvae. It is not a wait and see but an option.

Do this:

• Relax and do not have your dog lick or chew the area. It will be a cone or a loose, snug T-shirt.
• Get a nice picture with a lot of light.
• A call to the vet or an emergency clinic and explain what you see and smell.
• On the same day go it.

Don't do this:

• Do not pour bleach, peroxide, kerosene and other home remedies on it.
• Don't try to pick out larvae yourself. You can hit some and injure your dog.
• Don't give human pain medicine. A large number of them are dog toxins.

Our pet health and wellness library has more information on early diagnosis of illnesses.

Tick Bite Wound Dog Infection: The Sneaky Entry Point

Ticks never make great holes but scratching of dogs. To flies that is an invitation. (Source: USDA APHIS)

After hikes or camping outing, rub hands on your dog especially around ears, neck and armpits. Carefully pick out with the fine tipped tweezers any tick, straight up and then wash the area. Take a couple of weeks to watch it. Red, inflamed, hot, or discharge: it is time to go to the vet with the pet.

Screwworm Prevention Dogs Can Count On (and What's Still Unproven)

In the recent past, pet owners were not provided with a federally approved way of preventing infestation. This is no longer the case in this month.

On September 3, FDA granted an emergency use authorization to use Capstar tablets and generic nitenpyram to prevent and treat screwworm in dogs, puppies, cats, and kittens that are 4 weeks old or older and weigh 2 pounds or more. (Source: FDA) Read our Capstar guide and what it does to dogs and how this product fits into the care of your dog.

And what of the flea and tick that is already chewing many dogs? NexGard and Credelio were approved by FDA to treat infestations. The head of a veterinary infection-control team at the University of Guelph has penned that dogs living on them are also likely to be safeguarded. (Source: Ontario Veterinary College) That is an opinion of the master, not a formal statement of prevention, so check with your vet as to what is reasonable to your dog.

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Habits are good:

• When it is not a scrape, wash and wrap up any wound as soon as possible and call your vet.
• Also, be sure to keep the standard parasite products of your dog (stocked over the year).
• Test your dog after traveling, being boarded or in contact with livestock.
• To prevent brush-and-briar scrape with your pup, take the tips in our dog care and training articles.

Screwworm Treatment for Dogs: What Your Vet Can Use

That is something your vet should do. They will strip away larvae, wash up the tissue and select medicine. The federal situation with dogs is the following:

The lists available on the FDA are updated in response to the new products being approved, and therefore, consult their page. Have a young puppy? Our new pet owner takes us on walks, introduces us to the vet world and the basics of parasites and your vet can recommend the tiniest of pups.

The Bottom Lines:

Screwworm again but the danger to most dogs is not high and a simple check-up once a week is a simple method of keeping ahead of it. Always carry a light, know where to be careful and call your vet when you think anything is wrong or stinky. Love extra grooming behaviours, which are health check-ups? Next read our grooming and hygiene manuals of the dog.

References:

1. USDA APHIS, "USDA Confirms Presence of New World Screwworm in the United States," June 3, 2026.
2. USDA APHIS, "Animal Health Officials Respond to Second Detection of New World Screwworm in the United States," June 2026.
3. Swine Health Information Center, "USDA Confirms New World Screwworm Detections in Texas and New Mexico in June 2026" (summary of USDA confirmations, including the New Mexico dog case).
4. FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine, "Animal Drugs for New World Screwworm" (current list of approved, conditionally approved, and emergency-authorized products).
5. FDA, news release on the Emergency Use Authorization for Capstar and nitenpyram tablets, September 3, 2026.
6. Oklahoma State University Extension, New World Screwworm Information (USDA dashboard update schedule; livestock entomology background).
7. Dr. Scott Weese, University of Guelph Ontario Veterinary College, Worms & Germs blog (expert commentary on isoxazoline products).
8. National Library of Medicine (PubMed Central), "The New World Screwworm in the United States: A Narrative Review" (eradication history).