Veterinary Parasitology 146 (2007) 376–378

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Short communication
Cochliomyia hominivorax myiasis in a colony of stray cats
(Felis catus Linnaeus, 1758) in Rio de Janeiro, RJ
Flavya Mendes-de-Almeida a,*, Norma Labarthe a, Jorge Guerrero b,
Gabriella Landau-Remy c, Daniela Prado Rodrigues c,
Gonzalo Efrain Moya Borja d, Maria Julia Salim Pereira d
a
Departamento de Patologia e Clı́nica, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Faculdade de Veterinária,
Rua Vital Brazil 64, Niterói, RJ 24230-340, Brazil
b
Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania,
3800 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
c
Fundação RIOZOO, Pq. Quinta da Boa Vista s/n, São Cristóvão, RJ, Brazil
d
Departamento de Parasitologia Animal, Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Seropédica, RJ, Brazil
Received 21 December 2006; received in revised form 16 February 2007; accepted 16 February 2007

Abstract
Cochliomyia hominivorax infestation in domestic cats of an urban colony in the city of Rio de Janeiro is described. The overall
prevalence over the period 2001–2005 was 12.5%. Only adult cats were found infested and among these, most cases were observed
in males (28%) ( p  0.05). The most frequently infested areas of the cats’ bodies were the face and nape of the neck. Most lesions
were found on the front part of the body of adult males (80%), suggesting that myiasis occur in consequence of competitive fighting
wounds.
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Keywords: Cochliomyia hominivorax; Myiasis; Screwworm; Stray cats; Felis catus

1. Introduction commonly observed infesting domestic cats, the same

There is little information available in the literature
about the prevalence of diseases in populations of free-
roaming cats (Yamaguchi et al., 1996; Mendes-de-
Almeida et al., 2004). These cats however are
susceptible to infections and infestations by parasites
even though often these animals do not display clinical
signs. While some ectoparasites such as fleas (Cteno-
cephalides felis), lice (Felicola subrostratus) and
scabies (Sarcoptes scabiei and Notoedris cati) are
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +55 21 22952052;
fax: +55 21 22952052.
E-mail address: fma@centroin.com.br (F. Mendes-de-Almeida).
does not apply to other ectoparasites like ticks and fly
larvae (Moriello, 1994; Scott et al., 1996). Adult
individuals of the species Cochliomyia hominivorax
oviposit on fresh wounds of the host (Guimarães et al.,
2001; Alexander, 2006), the larvae hatch during the first
24 h and penetrate into wounds caused by accidents,
fights, engorged tick bites or surgical interventions. The
larvae release proteolytic enzymes that digest tissues
and produce extensive lesions (Soulsby, 1987; Scott
et al., 1996; Alexander, 2006). The diagnosis of
screwworm myiasis can be done easily, based on
identification of the maggots and on the characteristic
offensive smell of the wounds of the infested animals.
Massive infestations are common and can lead to death
if not treated in an early stage (Soulsby, 1987).

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doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2007.02.021
 F. Mendes-de-Almeida et al. / Veterinary Parasitology 146 (2007) 376–378 377

While cases of body cavity myiasis are frequently

reported in domestic animals, mainly livestock and dogs
(Cramer-Ribeiro et al., 2002; Moya-Borja, 2003;
Alexander, 2006), and in wild animals from the
Tropical Americas (Urquhart et al., 1990; Guimarães
et al., 2001; Moya-Borja, 2003), no reports are found on
the occurrence of this disease in colonies of domestic
cats.

2. Material and methods

An urban colony of 96 stray cats (Felis catus

Linnaeus, 1758) (41 males—5 kittens and 55 females—
11 kittens) was submitted to surgical population control
and monitored during 4 years (Mendes-de-Almeida
et al., 2006). The animals’ age was estimated based on
dentition, considering the permanent incisors and
canines eruption (Dyce et al., 1990) and animals less
than 24 weeks of age were considered kittens; all the
others were considered adults. Whenever fly larvae
were observed on an animal, this animal was captured
and submitted to detailed clinical examination. Sex, age
and the site of the lesion were recorded. The animals
received treatment (ivermectine 50 mg/kg, SC –
Ivomec1; Lab. Merial Saúde Animal Ltda – single
dose and penicillin + streptomycin 30,000 IU/kg, IM—
Agropen LA1; Virbac do Brasil Indústria e Comércio
Ltda) besides manual larval removal and local dressing.
In most cases the animals were kept in the clinic until
they recovered completely or were submitted to
euthanasia. The larvae were collected, fixed in 70%
alcohol and classified at specie level according to keys
reported by Furman and Catts (1982). The significance
of association between infestation and sex of the
animals was evaluated by x2 test.
3. Results
The prevalence by C. hominivorax larvae during the
period of observation of the colony was 12.5% (12/96).
Fig. 1. Adult domestic cat showing massive Cochliomyia homini-
vorax larvae infestation in the nape of the neck.
Only adult animals were found infested with larvae and
among them, considerably more cases were observed in
males (10/36) and at the front areas of the body (7/10)
(Table 1, Fig. 1).
From the 12 cats found with cavity myiasis, two died
due to the extent of their lesions and four were
submitted to euthanasia for the same reason or because
of the difficulty of treatment, totalizing six deaths (five
males and one female).
4. Discussion
The higher incidence of lesions in the front part of
the body of adult males associated to the high number of
myiasis-infested cats that were concurrently infected by
feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) which is mainly
transmitted through bites (83%—the highest known
prevalence in the colony was 76% (Mendes-de-Almeida
et al., unpublished data) suggests myiasis to be a
consequence of competitive fighting wounds. Diagnosis
and treatment of diseases in stray cats are known to be
difficult. Besides avoiding the contact with humans,
sick animals often hide in places of difficult access,

Table 1
Myiasis (Cochliomya hominivorax) in adult stray cats (Felis catus Linnaeus, 1758) of a colony in Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil according to sex and
location of lesions
Sex n/N Location of lesions
Face Nape of neck Tail Abdomen Foreleg Ear Oral cavity
a
, 2/44 0 0 0 1 (2.3%) 0 1 (2.3%) 0
< 10/36b 3 (8.3%) 3 (8.3%) 2 (5.6%) 0 1 (2.8%) 0 1 (2.8%)
Total 12/80 3 (8.3%) 3 (8.3%) 2 (5.6%) 1 (2.3%) 1 (2.8%) 1 (2.3%) 1 (2.8%)
n: Number of affected cats; N: total number of adult cats in the colony. Values within columns having different superscripts (a and b) are significantly
different ( p < 0.05).
378 F. Mendes-de-Almeida et al. / Veterinary Parasitology 146 (2007) 376–378
aggravating the lesions provoked by the fly larvae and
making a treatment in due time difficult or impossible.
The occurrence of feline myiasis is rare despite of the
arthropoda species. There are scarce reports of myiasis by
Cuterebra spp. (Dvorak et al., 2000; Wyman et al., 2005;
Stiles and Rankin, 2006) or Cochliomyia (Cramer-
Ribeiro et al., 2002) which could be consequent to the
fact that myiasis develop quickly and the affected
animals tend to hide, hampering the diagnosis. Since the
colony was constantly monitored, any missing animal or
behavioral change elicited a search for the reason, which
probably lead to the prevalence rate found (12.5%). This
should be a warning for veterinary clinicians of small
animals, who should advise their clients on preventive
measures to be taken, mainly with outdoors cats.
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