found magot on bunny

Question
Dear Dr. Krempels,

  I am writing because I just pulled a maggot out of my bunny Purity right under one of her teats on her upper chest area.  (I didn't know that is what I was pulling out until I saw it.) Obviously I was horrified.  So I read some information, and gave her a vinegar bath, to get rid of any more possible eggs.  Now she is sneezing quite a bit, and I am worried.  My husband says it is because she doesn't like the smell of vinegar, and she is acting fine in all other respects.  She is eating and going to the bathroom, and hopping all about.  I was just worried, and am scared of the vet, because of my last experience which resulted in the death of my other bunny Buckles about a month and a half ago.  I put a lot of Hydrogen Peroxide on the area that I pulled the maggot out of.  
   Any help you could give would be great.  The maggot was not alive.

Answer
Dear Kimberly,

If the maggot was encysted, and there was only one, you may have found a Cuterebara (botfly) larva that died in situ.  You might be surprised, but a botfly is a much better thing to find than *blowfly* maggots, which can quickly devour a rabbit to the point of death.

A botfly will encyst in the deep layers of the skin, develop until, it's ready to pupate, then drop out and pupate to become an adult.  It generally does not kill the host:   it's a parasite, not a predator.  

Blowfly maggots, on the other hand, are horrible predators.  It's good that you took the precaution to check for more eggs, but I would never bathe a rabbit in vinegar!!  Nasty and very harsh on the delicate rabbit skin!  I hope you did rinse him well with water before drying him off.  If not, then I would still do this, though bathing a rabbit is almost never a good idea.

When we "dust for fly eggs" as a precaution, we use a commercial baby cornstarch product.  This desiccates the eggs, and you just work it through the fur and brush out the excess.  (We rarely find eggs, but a fine flea comb will reveal them--and you have to go deep to the skin, being very gentle).

Blowfly maggots generally head for the urogenital region, and hide in the folds of skin there, where they begin their horrible work.  If not discovered in a timely fashion, the bunny's rear end can practically be eaten away to the point of inducing shock and death.

I hope all you found was a botfly.  But if there's one, there could be more, so do keep an eye out, give your bunny frequent groomings, and check for any unusual bumps.  If you find them, then it's off to the vet!  

www.rabbit.org/vets

I hope this helps.

Dana