Illinois Voluntary Johne's Certification Program
Johne's Disease Control on Illinois Dairy and Beef Cattle Operations

The Disease

Paratuberculosis or Johne's disease (pronounced "yo-knees") is a disease of ruminants caused by Mycobacterium paratuberculosis. Drs. Heinrich A. Johne and L. Frothingham first isolated M. paratuberculosis in 1895. Johne's is a chronic wasting disease marked by diarrhea which does not respond to treatment. Clinical signs include:

profuse watery diarrhea
weight loss
lowered milk production
appetite is not affected
when diarrhea is prominent
- may have a slight fever
- submandibular edema or "bottle jaw"

The most important factors determining when clinical Johne's disease develops are:

the animals age when infected
the amount of infectious organisms ingested

Animals progress from unapparent infection (beginning at a young age), to shedding of the organism without signs of disease, and to clinical disease becoming more severe over several months. Infection is likely most common from birth to 6 months of age. Clinical disease seldom occurs prior to 2 years of age.

For more information you may either view Dr. Wallace PowerPoint presentation or informational module.

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