Pecos County restricts animal movement after New World screwworm case

Pecos County officials have restricted animal movement in Crockett, Pecos and Terrell counties after a New World screwworm case was reported in a dog, widening Texas’s containment response in West Texas.

The order, announced July 2, comes as state and local animal-health officials try to stop a parasite that can infest warm-blooded animals and cause severe tissue damage. A July 2 report said the restriction remains in effect until lifted by the Texas Animal Health Commission.

The Pecos County Sheriff's Office said New World screwworm threatens livestock, exotic livestock, fowl and exotic fowl in Texas. The county said the fly lays eggs in wounds or soft tissue, and the larvae burrow into living tissue, causing myiasis and potentially fatal infections.

County order

The latest restriction adds a local containment step to the state response that has already been unfolding across Texas this summer. The Pecos County announcement applies to Crockett, Pecos and Terrell counties, but the material reviewed did not spell out every movement limitation.

That uncertainty leaves ranchers, animal owners and transporters waiting for more detail on which movements are covered and how the order will be enforced. The broad goal, however, is clear: limit the chance that the parasite spreads through animal movement or contact with untreated wounds.

How Texas got here

Texas’s broader screwworm response began June 4, when USDA confirmed the first Texas case in a calf in Zavala County. By June 8, state and federal officials had confirmed additional Texas cases and expanded quarantine and surveillance measures.

On June 30, Webb County officials said their county remained free of confirmed screwworm infections while continuing surveillance near nearby zones. The Pecos County action now extends the containment footprint farther into West Texas.

Governor Greg Abbott had already issued a statewide disaster proclamation on January 29, 2026, over the screwworm threat. Since then, Texas officials have leaned on quarantine zones, surveillance and movement controls as part of the response.

Why it matters

New World screwworm is a livestock parasite with broader risks for pets, wildlife and other warm-blooded animals. It becomes a concern when flies lay eggs in wounds, and the larvae feed on living tissue.

That makes the pest more than a routine animal-health nuisance. For ranchers in particular, the stakes include injury, infection and possible death in livestock, along with added transport limits and economic pressure if restrictions spread or stay in place.

The Pecos County Sheriff's Office described the parasite as a threat to livestock, exotic livestock, fowl and exotic fowl in Texas. Those categories matter in a region where animal movement can quickly connect multiple counties and livestock operations.

What remains unclear

The main open question is whether the Texas Animal Health Commission has published a formal order or zone map for the Pecos County restriction. Another unresolved issue is whether state or federal animal-health authorities have independently confirmed the canine case.

Officials are also watching whether neighboring counties add surveillance or impose their own controls. For now, the Pecos County order is the latest sign that Texas’s screwworm response is still expanding as new detections emerge.