Pulmonary mycoplasmosis in farmed white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

An outbreak of respiratory disease at a fanned cervid facility resulted in isolation and identification of Mycoplasma bovis in four affected white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) fawns. Microscopically, pulmonary lesions similar to those associated with M. bovis infections in calves, including lymphoplasiflacytic peribronchiolar cuffing and caseonecrotic bronchiectasis, were present. Arcanobacterium pyogenes was recovered from lung tissue as well. This report indicates that M. bovis can be associated with respiratory disease in white-tailed deer.