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Vetdle Archive

Archive Case #188: Ovine Paratuberculosis

Sheep veterinary case - Medium - September 7, 2026

Clinical Clues

  1. Month after month, a mature ewe loses body condition despite continuing to eat.
  2. The same slow wasting pattern is emerging in several older ewes.
  3. Diarrhoea is absent or only very mild compared with the body condition loss.
  4. Routine drenching has not improved the problem.
  5. Ancillary testing is supportive of MAP infection within the flock.
  6. This chronic granulomatous enteric disease can cause ill thrift and wasting in sheep.

Diagnosis

Ovine Paratuberculosis

This case is most consistent with Ovine Paratuberculosis because the ewe has chronic wasting with poor response to parasite treatment and supportive MAP testing. The most important clues are the long course and flock pattern, which make a simple worm burden less likely.

Learning review

Review the case evidence

Use the paired clues to explain how the evidence in this sheep case supports the provided diagnosis, Ovine Paratuberculosis, then compare your reasoning with the case explanation.

Evidence checkpoints

Clues 1-2

  1. Clue 1: Month after month, a mature ewe loses body condition despite continuing to eat.
  2. Clue 2: The same slow wasting pattern is emerging in several older ewes.

Clues 3-4

  1. Clue 3: Diarrhoea is absent or only very mild compared with the body condition loss.
  2. Clue 4: Routine drenching has not improved the problem.

Clues 5-6

  1. Clue 5: Ancillary testing is supportive of MAP infection within the flock.
  2. Clue 6: This chronic granulomatous enteric disease can cause ill thrift and wasting in sheep.

Self-review prompts

  1. After clues 1-2, what evidence from this sheep case shaped your initial interpretation?
  2. When you compare clues 3-4 with clues 1-2, what changed in your reasoning about Ovine Paratuberculosis?
  3. How do clues 5-6 align with the case explanation for Ovine Paratuberculosis?

Educational Use

Vetdle archive cases are educational veterinary games for diagnostic reasoning practice. They do not provide veterinary advice, diagnosis, treatment, or professional medical guidance.