Development of a topical treatment to replace surgical mulesing in sheep (2007-2010)

Flystrike is a devastating disease of sheep with high mortality that substantially reduces wool production. Mulesing is a surgical operation on the breech of sheep that prevents flystrike particularly in Merinos but it is cruel and must be phased out by 2010. Several non surgical alternatives are under development but they are not ideal. A simple treatment applied to the skin to replace mulesing is needed. This project will establish factors affecting the movement of molecules across sheep skin and devise a topical formulation to penetrate and painlessly kill the skin to satisfy welfare concerns, yet maintain the viability of the wool industry.'',