{"id":338813,"date":"2026-06-16T20:03:08","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T20:03:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/338813\/"},"modified":"2026-06-16T20:03:08","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T20:03:08","slug":"as-screwworm-spreads-in-texas-tennessee-expert-urges-awareness-not-panic-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/338813\/","title":{"rendered":"As screwworm spreads in Texas, Tennessee expert urges awareness, not panic"},"content":{"rendered":"

The discovery of New World screwworm cases in Texas<\/a> has raised concerns among farmers, ranchers and pet owners across the country.<\/p>\n

But a University of Tennessee expert says there’s one important thing people should know.<\/p>\n

An infected animal can recover.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn infested animal is not a death sentence,\u201d said Becky Trout Fryxell, a professor of medical and veterinary entomology at the University of Tennessee.<\/p>\n

New World screwworm is not actually a worm.<\/p>\n

It’s the larval stage of a fly.<\/p>\n

The adult fly lays eggs in an open wound, and the maggots feed on living tissue as they grow.<\/p>\n

Those wounds can become larger and more serious if left untreated.<\/p>\n

Cases have recently been confirmed in cattle and goats in Texas, prompting renewed attention on a pest that was largely eradicated from the United States decades ago.<\/p>\n

The fly has not been detected in Tennessee.<\/p>\n

Fryxell said good animal care remains one of the best defenses.<\/p>\n

Whether it’s a cattle producer checking livestock after calving or a pet owner treating a cut on a dog’s paw, she said monitoring wounds and seeking treatment early can prevent bigger problems.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sooner you detect it, though, is going to be the best response,\u201d Fryxell said.<\/p>\n

The concern extends beyond cattle.<\/p>\n

The flies can affect many mammals, including pets, wildlife and humans.<\/p>\n

Still, Fryxell stressed that human cases are uncommon and typically involve situations where wounds go untreated.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf your animal’s happy and healthy, things will be okay,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The recent cases have also fueled concerns about cattle supplies and beef prices.<\/p>\n

Fryxell said the flies themselves are not what drives the market.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m not an ag economist,\u201d she said. \u201cI don’t think the flies control the market.\u201d<\/p>\n

What gives researchers confidence is that this is not a new threat.<\/p>\n

The United States has successfully eradicated New World screwworm before, including a 2016 outbreak in Florida that affected endangered Key deer.<\/p>\n

Fryxell said officials already know how to respond.<\/p>\n

If a case is detected, affected animals can be treated, quarantine zones can be established and sterile flies can be released to stop the population from reproducing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe animal doesn’t have to be put down, the herd doesn’t have to be put down,\u201d Fryxell said.<\/p>\n

She said cooperation between farmers, veterinarians and government agencies will be key if additional cases are found.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody’s doing anything on purpose to have New World screwworm on their properties,\u201d Fryxell said. \u201cIt’s something that happens, we recognize it, but we’ll respond to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

For now, Tennessee remains free of New World screwworm, but experts encourage livestock owners and pet owners to stay informed, inspect animals regularly and contact a veterinarian if they notice anything unusual.<\/p>\n

Depend on us to keep you posted.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The discovery of New World screwworm cases in Texas has raised concerns among farmers, ranchers and pet owners…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":338731,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[27,29,28],"class_list":["post-338813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338813","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=338813"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338813\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/338731"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=338813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=338813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=338813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}