Although leptospirosis is not the threat to our livestock industry that it once was, we can’t forget about this organism. Leptospirosis is prevalent in all domestic animals, as well as wildlife populations such as skunks, opossums and raccoons.
This organism will not survive by itself in the environment. Animals that recover from leptospirosis may become carriers, and the organism may be shed in the urine for various periods of time.
The susceptible animal ingests this organism, usually through feed or in water contaminated by animals shedding the organism in their urine.
Clinical signs in infected cattle are, for the most part, not observed. A particularly observant herdsman may notice a day or two of lowered feed consumption, and in the case of milk cows, lowered milk production. The most frequent clinical sign of leptospirosis is an abortion in the last trimester of gestation. Red colored urine due to hemoglobinuria may be seen also.