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Vetdle Archive

Archive Case #46: Bovine Infectious Keratoconjunctivitis

Cattle veterinary case - Easy - April 18, 2026

Clinical Clues

  1. A weaned calf is brought in because one eye is streaming tears and kept tightly shut.
  2. Several calves in the mob have shown similar eye irritation during a season with heavy fly pressure.
  3. The conjunctiva is reddened and the cornea has a central white opacity.
  4. Blepharospasm and photophobia are marked.
  5. The lesion is consistent with bacterial corneal disease commonly associated with Moraxella bovis.
  6. This contagious condition of cattle typically causes lacrimation, painful eyes, and corneal ulceration.

Diagnosis

Bovine Infectious Keratoconjunctivitis

This case is most consistent with Bovine Infectious Keratoconjunctivitis because the calf has a painful tearing eye with a corneal lesion in a group setting with face flies. The most important clues are the blepharospasm, corneal opacity, and herd pattern, which strongly support pinkeye.

Learning review

Review the case evidence

Use the paired clues to explain how the evidence in this cattle case supports the provided diagnosis, Bovine Infectious Keratoconjunctivitis, then compare your reasoning with the case explanation.

Evidence checkpoints

Clues 1-2

  1. Clue 1: A weaned calf is brought in because one eye is streaming tears and kept tightly shut.
  2. Clue 2: Several calves in the mob have shown similar eye irritation during a season with heavy fly pressure.

Clues 3-4

  1. Clue 3: The conjunctiva is reddened and the cornea has a central white opacity.
  2. Clue 4: Blepharospasm and photophobia are marked.

Clues 5-6

  1. Clue 5: The lesion is consistent with bacterial corneal disease commonly associated with Moraxella bovis.
  2. Clue 6: This contagious condition of cattle typically causes lacrimation, painful eyes, and corneal ulceration.

Self-review prompts

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

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.