Flystrike — the infestation of live sheep with blowfly larvae — is one of the most painful welfare problems in British sheep farming and is entirely preventable.
Flystrike causes acute suffering: fly larvae eat into living tissue, creating progressively larger wounds that smell of decomposition while the animal is still alive. Affected sheep show agitation, biting at affected areas, separation from the flock, and depression. Without treatment, death occurs within days from tissue destruction and toxaemia. The condition is preventable through preventive chemical treatment, wool management, and regular flock checking — making every undetected case of flystrike a preventable welfare failure.