various species of dipterans are known as possible causes of infection in animals , such as livestock , wildlife , and even humans . myiasis - producing dipterans can be divided into 3 groups : specific , semi - specific , and accidental myiasis - producing dipterans . the myiasis caused by these 3 groups is known as obligatory , facultative , and accidental , respectively . facultative myiasis is caused by flies that normally choose breeding sites , such as dead bodies or vegetable matter , but occasionally develops in the tissues of living humans and animals . the female flies are attracted by the stinking discharge from inflammatory regions , wounded skin , or diseased organs , and lay or drop their eggs and larvae on these areas . several cases of human myiasis involving facultative myiasis have been reported in korea [ 513 ] . in the veterinary field , various cases were frequently mentioned between veterinarians comprising small - animal clinicians , but also wildlife veterinarians ( personal communication ) ; however , only 1 case has been currently reported , and it lacks species identification . the purpose of the present study is to report a second case of canine myiasis in korea . in addition , we provide morphological and molecular identification of the causative agent , lucilia sericata . a canine in the form of an 8-year - old male siberian husky was referred with anorexia , vomiting , and diarrhea to the chungbuk national university veterinary medical center , cheongju - si ( city ) in july 2013 . the wound was filled with maggots and pus - like fluid with an intense odor ( fig . all maggots were removed using forceps , and the affected area was sponged with gauzes and disinfected with 70% alcohol and a povidone - iodine solution every day . due to the wide range of skin and tissue loss , wound closure was not available . they were preserved with 70% ethyl alcohol and transferred to a parasitology laboratory for identification . after measuring their body size , the fixed maggots ( n=10 ) were skinned off via a longitudinal incision on the ventral side . for detailed morphological observations , the skins were immersed in 10% aqueous koh for 24 hr for maceration , mounted with polyvinyl alcohol , and then observed under a light microscope . morphological identification of the maggots was based on a key to species provided by james . the maggots were all third - instar larvae , with an average length of 11 mm and width of 2 mm . the body was whitish - beige color , and internal contents were observed as somewhat red . the rear ends of each segment were covered with numerous tiny single - pointed spines that formed a spine band . the pseudocephalon had 2 antennae with a sensory papilla on each antenna , and 2 well - developed hooks were observed in the buccal cavity . anterior spiracles were located at the anterolateral part of the body and were fan - shaped with 68 lobes . posterior spiracles were located at the posterior end of the body , and were round shaped with a button , which was surrounded by a peritremal ring with no gap . the distances between the dorsal , median , and outer papillae of the 12th segment were almost similar ( fig . genomic dna was extracted from the internal contents using a primeprep genomic dna extraction kit from tissue ( genet bio , daejeon , korea ) . the genomic dna was utilized for pcr using the protocols of zhang et al .   with primer sets as follows : forward primer of 5-cctttagaattgcagtctaatgtca-3 and reverse primer of 5-ccaaagaatcaaaataaatgttg-3. pcr products were sequenced using the sequencing machine , applied biosystems 3730xl dna analyzer ( cosmogenetech , daejeon , korea ) . we obtained 528 bp of cox1 partial sequences and all showed 100% identity with those of l. sericata ( genbank no . they were preserved with 70% ethyl alcohol and transferred to a parasitology laboratory for identification . after measuring their body size , the fixed maggots ( n=10 ) were skinned off via a longitudinal incision on the ventral side . for detailed morphological observations , the skins were immersed in 10% aqueous koh for 24 hr for maceration , mounted with polyvinyl alcohol , and then observed under a light microscope . morphological identification of the maggots was based on a key to species provided by james . the maggots were all third - instar larvae , with an average length of 11 mm and width of 2 mm . the body was whitish - beige color , and internal contents were observed as somewhat red . the rear ends of each segment were covered with numerous tiny single - pointed spines that formed a spine band . the pseudocephalon had 2 antennae with a sensory papilla on each antenna , and 2 well - developed hooks were observed in the buccal cavity . a pigmented accessory oral sclerite was absent . anterior spiracles were located at the anterolateral part of the body and were fan - shaped with 68 lobes . posterior spiracles were located at the posterior end of the body , and were round shaped with a button , which was surrounded by a peritremal ring with no gap . the distances between the dorsal , median , and outer papillae of the 12th segment were almost similar ( fig . genomic dna was extracted from the internal contents using a primeprep genomic dna extraction kit from tissue ( genet bio , daejeon , korea ) . the genomic dna was utilized for pcr using the protocols of zhang et al .   with primer sets as follows : forward primer of 5-cctttagaattgcagtctaatgtca-3 and reverse primer of 5-ccaaagaatcaaaataaatgttg-3. pcr products were sequenced using the sequencing machine , applied biosystems 3730xl dna analyzer ( cosmogenetech , daejeon , korea ) . we obtained 528 bp of cox1 partial sequences and all showed 100% identity with those of l. sericata ( genbank no . although a large number of suspected cases of myiasis are recognized in veterinary fields within korea , the causative agents have not been determined , until the present study . commonly , veterinary clinicians in korea have only focused on treating myiasis , and identification of the pathogen was usually undervalued and not performed ( personal communication ) . however , identification of fly species is important because in some species myiasis can develop into malignant cases . for example , in cases of screwworm infections , like cochliomyia hominivorax and chrysomya bezziana , untreated infections can cause septicemia , secondary infections , and even host death . larvae of fly species literally eat host tissues alive and can invade the vital organs of hosts . identification of dipterans is usually performed with morphological observations . however , when they are in a developmental stage such as eggs , larvae , or pupae , morphological differences between dipteran species are subtle . although morphological characteristics of adult flies are needed for reliable identification , rearing maggots to the adult stage is time - consuming , and sometimes identification is not possible because of maggots death prior to maturation into an adult . even if adult flies are successfully recovered , species - level identification is very difficult without taxonomic knowledge . as a consequence , several human myiasis cases have been reported in korea without detailed species identification , or with identification only to the genus level . to solve this problem , forensic entomologists introduced dna - based identification , a method that allows easy identification of dipterans even if specimens are immature or dead . in the present study , maggots exhibited typical morphological characteristics described in identification keys , and molecular analysis revealed that our specimens had cox1 partial sequences identical with those of l. sericata found in the genbank database . additionally , our skin - offed techniques could be useful when the number of specimens available for identification is either small or limited to only 1 individual . this species is a well - known causative agent of fly strike in sheep of the british isles , south africa , and new zealand , and is known to cause myiasis in cats , dogs , and humans . in korea , causative agents of human myiasis cases were mostly identified or suspected as l. sericata or belonging to the genus lucilia , with the exception of a case involving phormia sp . [ 513 ] . considering these cases , canine myiasis formerly reported in korea was also thought to be caused by this species . in the present case in particular , when animals are raised in a restricted space by fences or a leash with poor hygiene , the site becomes more attractive to flies because it is easily contaminated by accumulation of feces , urine , uneaten food , or other excrements . the attracted flies also cause irritation and scratching , and this could lead to the development of wounds and even infestation . secondly , the dog displayed a poor body condition , and showed several symptoms , including anorexia , vomiting , and diarrhea . in addition , the wound opened near the proximal region of the tail and was therefore difficult for the patient to reach . due to the poor health conditions and location of the wounded site , the patient seemed incapable of cleaning itself . finally , as previously described for cases of canine myiasis in korea , this case also occurred in the summer season . flies display furious activity during the summer season , and it is therefore commonly regarded as the season of highest risk . in summary , we describe a second case of canine myiasis in korea . the species seems to be an important pathogen of myiasis not only for human medicine , but also for veterinary medicine in korea . myiasis in pets is known as a relatively common disease and is a preventable problem . the prevention of myiasis involves proper management of hygiene and health , especially for animals that are raised outdoors during the summer season .
myiasis is a relatively common infection of animals kept as pets , although only 1 case of canine myiasis has been described so far in the republic of korea . in the present study , 
 we report an additional case of canine wound myiasis with identification of its causative agent , lucilia sericata . 
 an 8-year - old male siberian husky dog was referred with anorexia , vomiting , and diarrhea to the chungbuk national university veterinary medical center , cheongju - si ( city ) , chungcheongbuk - do ( province ) , korea in july 2013 . 
 physical examination indicated the patient had a deep wound filled with a maggot swarm as a left gluteal lesion . 
 a total of 216 maggots were removed by forceps , and the wounded area was sponged with gauzes and disinfected with 70% alcohol and a povidone - iodine solution . 
 after daily care and suturing the wound , the patient was discharged at day 19 after admission . recovered worms possessed morphological characteristics similar to those of l. sericata , namely , a sub - cylindrical body with 68 lobed anterior spiracles , round shaped with a button surrounded by a peritremal ring with no gaps , and similar distances between dorsal , median , and outer papillae of the 12th segment . 
 additionally , cox1 partial sequences ( 528 bp ) obtained in the present study showed 100% identity with those of l. sericata ( genbank no . 
 kt272854.1 ) . 
 l. sericata is indicated as a pathogen of myiasis infection not only in humans , but also in animals kept as pets in korea .