Officials turn to unexpected canine helpers in battle against flesh-eating pest: 'Adapt as much as possible'

At Ceacan, shelter dogs are given a second chance to use their superior sniffing senses for life-saving measures. 

Select rescue dogs are participating in a three-month intensive training program under Mexico's agricultural health safety agency, Senasica, the Straits Times recently reported. Trainers are teaching dogs to sniff and identify screwworm, a flesh-eating pest that affects livestock, wildlife, and occasionally, humans. 

The New World screwworm is a green- or blue-bodied fly with orange eyes that deposits its eggs, or maggots, in the soft-tissue wounds of warm-blooded animals. The burrowing behavior of the fly's larvae contributes to its name "screwworm," burying itself deeper into the wound, feeding on flesh, and causing painful infections for the host. The disease typically affects livestock but can also infect humans and pets.

Since 2023, Central America and Mexico have been experiencing an exponential increase in New World screwworm cases, jumping, for example, from 25 cases per year to 6,500 cases per year in Panama, according to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. Forty-seven cases are detected daily in Mexico, per the Straits Times. 

The United States eradicated the screwworm in 1966, though the country's most recent — but successfully contained — outbreak occurred in Florida in 2016, per a University of Florida news release.

Since screwworm cases have emerged in Mexico, the United States has twice closed its borders to livestock imports from Mexico since May, taking precautions to avoid another outbreak in the country. 

Mexico's sniffer-dog training program at Ceacan, Senasica's Canine Training Center, is an important part of Mexico's screwworm eradication strategy. 

The dogs are trained using "cow-sized equipment inside a greenhouse," Ceacan instructor Mayte Tontle described, per the Straits Times. They are trained to perform in real-world situations, such as under extreme heat in places like Chiapas.

"We want our dogs to adapt as much as possible to the real-life conditions," Tontle said, per the Straits Times. 

Currently, six trained screwworm sniffer dogs are working the livestock border, which borders Guatemala — a potential hotspot for contagious screwworm infections. 

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The U.S. is also investing $51 million in a Chiapas facility to produce sterile screwworm flies, effectively reducing the repopulation of the devastating pest.

Mexico's screwworm sniffer dogs are a prime example of how animals can be humanely used to help control the spread of an invasive species not easily detectable by humans, such as the New World screwworm, preventing agricultural and financial losses, and protecting public health. 

In other parts of the world, dogs have been used to sniff out poachers and traps to protect local wildlife, track invasive lanternflies, and sniff out water mold that infects more than 150 plant species across Europe and North America. 

Using animals to help contain the spread of invasive species before it becomes a crisis helps to protect the health and diversity of local ecosystems, supporting native species and preventing the takeover of harmful invasive species. 

You don't need extensive training to take action locally and prevent invasive species from establishing in your area. 

For example, if you find an invasive spotted lanternfly, kill it immediately, helping to curb population numbers. 

In your garden, plant native plants and support a healthier ecosystem for pollinators and local wildlife.

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