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It is one agent responsible for ovine campylobacteriosis or vibriosis, which causes disease in sheep and to a lesser extent in cattle and goats.
Infection in ewes can cause abortion in the last 6 weeks of pregnancy, premature lambing, stillbirths, fever, diarrhea, depression, and vaginal discharge before parturition. Campylobacter fetus is transmitted orally. It is very contagious in ewes that are confined. Once the ewe is exposed by ingestion of infected material the organism may move from the intestinal tract to invade the uterus and fetus. Fetal infection is common in the last 2 months of pregnancy.
It is another agent of ovine campylobacter abortion. In sheep it causes placental and fetal infection, and in other species it causes enteritis and diarrhea. It has been occasionally associated with abortion in cattle and goats. A Campylobacter jejuni infection is nearly indistinguishable from a Campylobacter fetus infection. Since the symptoms are similar a culture should be taken to identify the causative agent.
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Vibriosis, vibrionic abortion, and epizootic abortion of sheep, all refer to abortions caused by Campylobacter infection. Roughly 4.2% of ovine abortions are due to vibriosis. However it is difficult to get an accurate diagnoses of cause. About 58% of ovine abortions go undiagnosed. (Radostits)
In a herd that has never been exposed to Campylobacter, abortion outbreaks may occur. Infected animals acquire limited immunity and a ewe that aborts usually will not do so again for the next 3 years. However any new replacement ewes introduced to the herd will be exposed and abortion storms may begin again if enough of the herd has been replaced.
To prevent such outbreaks sanitary precautions should be taken. Although the bacteria are ubiquitous in the environment, a herdsman can limit the ewes' exposure somewhat through good management practices. Aborted tissue is infectious to sheep and other animals, including humans. All aborted tissues, fetal membranes, and discharges should be cleaned up and removed to prevent the spread of infection. Even the discharges from a normal delivery of a lamb to an infected ewe can have high bacterial counts. It is important to protect the water supply from contamination
These abortion outbreaks can be controlled with daily antibiotics given intramuscularly. Even though the antibiotics may stop an outbreak, it cannot prevent future outbreaks or protect the herd from reinfection. Just one abortion equals 12 months loss of productivity for one ewe. As the percentage of abortion increases, the profits are rapidly destroyed. Vaccination of yearly replacement ewes and of ewes that have never been exposed to the bacteria can prevent later losses due to abortions. Vaccinating ewes can provide immunity and hinder the spread of the disease before it causes losses due to abortions, and weak lambs.
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