outbreak of malignant catarrhal fever in young rusa deer (Cervus timorensis)

On the basis of clinical signs and histological findings eight 9‐month‐old male rusa deer (Cervus timorensis) were diagnosed with sheep associated‐malignant catarrhal fever. Following a variable course involving rectal temperatures around 40.5°C, depression, inappetence, diarrhoea, corneal opacity and hypopyon all animals died or were euthanased over a 5‐week period. Severe multifocal vasculitis, mainly periglomerular and in the arcuate vessels were consistent histological findings which in the past have been adequate to confirm clinical diagnosis of sheep associated‐malignant catarrhal fever. A nested poly‐merase chain reaction test has been used to detect a sheep associated‐malignant catarrhal fever PRC product, 238 base‐pairs in size, in DNA extracted from lymphocyte preparations. The result supported the diagnosis of sheep associated‐malignant catarrhal fever in these deer.