TAYLORSVILLE, Utah — The Utah State Veterinarians Office on Thursday warned of an outbreak of trichomoniasis in cattle herds.
The office said in a statement that they had identified several cases of Trich-positive bulls from a beef cattle herd in Box Elder County. This herd had grazed the summer of 2021 at a grazing association in southern Idaho with several other herds, including at least six herds from Utah.
The office said are ten potentially exposed cattle herds that are awaiting test results; five herds belonging to the aforementioned grazing association and five herds that neighbor the affected properties.
“It is concerning to have this large of an outbreak of Trich in Utah cattle herds,” said Dr. Dean Taylor, Utah State Veterinarian. “Our office is working closely with local veterinarians to conduct testing and are taking measures to stop the spread of this disease.”
Trich is a venereal disease of cattle caused by a protozoa (microscopic parasite). It is spread between cattle during breeding. Cows generally abort the fetus from this breeding and then clear the infection, but bulls remain infected for life. There is no treatment for Trich and this disease can be economically devastating to cattle herds.
The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food said they were taking steps to quarantine affected animals and stop the spread of the disease.
Utah requires yearly testing of all bulls for Trich, with the exception of dairy cattle who are kept in confinement and bison bulls.
People who leased a bull from the Box Elder County area and are concerned it could affect their cattle herd should contact the Utah State Veterinarian’s office by emailing statevet@utah.gov.
