Introduction

The control of bovine trichomoniasis has proven to be challen-
ging despite aspects of the disease that make it amenable 
to control and eradication. There are several reasons for the 
lack of control in some areas of the US. One of the primary 
challenges is in not having an educated and organized approach 
to keep trichomoniasis out of a herd or eliminate it should 
the herd become infected. The following narrative describes 
the steps to create an overall control plan for trichomoniasis, 
explains the use of a web-based assessment tool, and offers 
suggestions for further research that may aid in the control 
of this disease.

Control

The following 4 steps (education, risk evaluation, plan 
development, and execution), outline a coordinated series 
of actions necessary to effectively control this devastating 
disease.

Education

To quote H.P. Harding, “In conclusion, may I say that it is my 
opinion that if more care was taken in the sale and purchase 
of barren cows, in the purchase of bulls of breeding age, and 
if the farmers could be sufficiently educated to the unique 
opportunities for control that this disease offers, then its total 
elimination should be practicable in the quite near future.”1 
Educating producers and veterinarians to distinctive features 
of T. foetus that include venereal transmission, typical tran-
sient infection in females, and a predilection for the prepuce 
in chronically infected older bulls. This will provide a basic 

Management and control of bovine trichomoniasis 

Jeff Ondrak 
6U Ranch, Steele City, NE

Abstract

Bovine trichomoniasis has been recognized as a cause for bovine reproductive failure since the late 1800’s. Description of the causative 
organism, Tritrichomonas foetus, led to its control. However, effective control has not occurred in many parts of the US. The purpose of 
this discussion is to provide steps to have an effective control plan for this disease, present a tool to develop a plan, and outline future 
research opportunities that may strengthen our knowledge of this disease and aid in its control.

Keywords: Tritrichomonas foetus, biosecurity, microbiome

understanding of trichomoniasis so that a practical and a 
sound plan for control is recognized as essential, developed, 
and implemented. 

Risk evaluation

Evaluating a cattle herd’s risk of trichomoniasis exposure is 
necessary to determine the level of preparedness an operation 
should achieve. Knowing the prevalence in a specific locale 
is important in determining if the herd is at no, low, or high 
risk for trichomoniasis. However, determining accurate and 
current prevalence estimates is difficult, as many of the preva-
lence estimates in the literature are quite dated and most are 
specific to a region or state that may not be comparable to 
most producer’s location.

Plan development

After assessing the risk of trichomoniasis in a cattle herd, an 
informed, practical plan should be developed. The following 
6 aspects of a biosecurity program should be addressed to 
ensure there are no gaps.

Recordkeeping

Accurately tracking reproductive performance can provide 
indications of reproductive failure that may be an early 
indication of trichomoniasis and allow an organized 
investigation into the cause. Records of animal location 
and movement may also allow strategic testing of specific 
management groups in multi-unit operations that may also 

Clinical Theriogenology 2021; 13: 235



lead to an early diagnosis of the disease before it spreads 
into uninfected units within the operation.2 

Isolation

Isolate cattle if unplanned commingling with neighboring herds 
has occurred. Females should be isolated from the rest of the 
herd until end of breeding season and their pregnancy status 
can be confirmed. Bulls should be isolated and tested to ensure 
that they are T. foetus-negative before being allowed to return 
to breeding. Any new additions, whose T. foetus status is ques-
tionable, should be isolated until they are confirmed negative.

Testing

Routine, systematic testing of bulls for T. foetus can provide early 
detection of a disease incursion and is a key component of a 
trichomoniasis prevention program for herds in trichomonia-
sis-endemic areas, herds neighboring T. foetus-positive herds, 
or herds recovering from a recent outbreak. The decision to test 
and which testing protocol to utilize should be guided by the 
local prevalence of trichomoniasis, the herd owner’s aversion 
to the risk of a disease incursion, and balancing the cost and 
benefits of testing. 

Generally, surveillance testing occurs sometime between the 
end of a breeding season and the beginning of the next and 
includes a single test of all bulls in the herd. The advantage of 
surveillance testing closely after the breeding season is early 
detection of infection that allows time to develop and implement 
a complete trichomoniasis control program before the next 
breeding season. Bulls tested under this program must not be 
exposed to cows prior to the next breeding season. Alternatively, 
all bulls may be tested immediately before the breeding season, 
as that has the advantage to time the test to coincide with an 
annual breeding soundness examination, thereby reducing the 
number of times the bulls must be handled. However, this may 
not allow sufficient time for appropriate management of the 
disease before the start of the breeding season. 

Before any surveillance testing is undertaken, the issue of 
false-positives should be fully explored. In populations of bulls 
with a very low prevalence of trichomoniasis (e.g. virgin and 
yearling bulls) there can be occasional unexpected positive 
test results. Owners and veterinarians should be prepared to 
interpret these results in a way that minimizes the impact of 
these false-positive tests.

Vaccination

A commercial T. foetus vaccine (TrichGuard®, Boehringer Ingelheim 
Vetmedica, Inc., Ingelheim, Germany) is licensed and available 
for use in the US. The vaccine is a killed product that requires 
2 initial doses, with the second dose given ~ 4 weeks prior to 
breeding. An annual booster dose, 4 weeks prior to breeding, 
is required. The vaccine may increase cervical vaginal mucus 

trichomonal antibodies, increase calving rates, and decrease 
duration of infection for vaccinated versus controls. However, 
there is no evidence that the vaccine can eliminate carrier cows, 
and it does not prevent infection and subsequent establishment 
of the organism in the herd. Even with vaccine use, T. foetus 
can become established in a herd without implementation of 
other biosecurity measures.3 

Sanitation

There is evidence that T. foetus can be mechanically transmitted 
from infected to uninfected animals.4 Although this is not 
a common form of transmission, it is important to practice 
good sanitation to avoid transmitting the organism through 
obstetrical instruments, artificial insemination equipment, or 
semen collection devices.

Traffic control

Fences should be monitored closely to rapidly identify when 
unplanned commingling with another herd has occurred so 
immediate steps can be taken to address the problem and 
reduce the risk of introducing trichomoniasis. 

Execution

For a plan to be effective it must be executed correctly. An 
investigation5 into reproductive failure in a cattle operation 
identified T. foetus to be an underlying cause. After a plan was 
created and implemented the herd returned to reproductive 
success indicating the value of not only identifying the problem 
but also following appropriate steps to correct the problem.5

Trich CONSULT

Creating an effective, herd-specific management plan for 
trichomoniasis utilizing steps outlined previously may appear 
overwhelming, especially, in light of the variations among herds 
regarding T. foetus status, risk of exposure, herd owner willingness 
to accept risk, and ability to implement appropriate manage-
ment practices. To facilitate such a process Trich CONSULT 
(Collaborative, Online, Novel, Science-based, User-friendly, 
Learning, Tool) was developed as a web-based trichomoniasis 
assessment tool that incorporates science-based recommen-
dations into an interactive format that mimics a conversation 
with an expert.

Trich CONSULT uses a series of questions to assess the T. 
foetus status and management practices of a herd and uses the 
responses to the questions to provide feedback that allows the 
user to evaluate the impact of their decision. Each question 
also includes a link to additional information and references 
to aid the individual in making informed decisions. After all 
questions have been answered, an optional, customized report 
may be generated that summarizes the questions and responses 
with comments suggesting prudent choices and warnings for 

Clinical Theriogenology 2021; 13: 236



responses that may have negative consequences. Trich CONSULT 
is currently available for use free of charge at the Kansas State 
University Beef Cattle Institute website.

Future opportunities

There are several aspects of bovine trichomoniasis that are 
open to further investigation including improved local and 
regional prevalence estimates, improved sampling protocols, 
and treatment options. However, metagenomics offers the 
possibility of understanding the interaction of T. foetus within 
the microenvironment of the bovine reproductive tract, which 
may provide insights into prevention and treatment strategies.

Trichomonas vaginalis is a human reproductive tract parasite that 
produces symptoms in humans similar to clinical signs of bovine 
trichomoniasis caused by T. foetus. A human study identified 
an interaction between Lactobacillus acidophius and T vaginalis 
in vitro6 whereas others have demonstrated an association 
between the vaginal microbiome of women and their risk for 
developing sexually transmitted diseases including trichomo-
niasis, suggesting that the microbiome of the reproductive tract 
may provide opportunities for prevention and treatment.7-10

With development of next generation sequencing technology, 
the microbiome of the bovine reproductive tract has been 
described11 in an attempt to understand the host-microbiome 
relationship and its influence on the reproductive efficiency of 
cattle.12 Additional studies have explored the specific relationship 
between the vaginal microbiome and reproductive outcomes 
and disease that hold the potential for a better understanding 
of the pathogenesis of reproductive tract disease in cows.13-15 

Although culture-dependent studies have reported routine 
isolates from the preputial cavity of bulls, there is a lack of 
information regarding the preputial microbiome utilizing next 
generation sequencing technology.16 

The path to bovine trichomoniasis infection in males and females 
is most likely multifactorial. However, the findings of the previously 
mentioned studies in human and bovine females and lack of 
microbiome information of the bovine prepuce suggest for an 
exploration of the reproductive tract microflora in cows and 
bulls in association with T. foetus infection, a reasonable step to 
understand this disease.

Conclusion

Trichomoniasis has long been recognized as a disease with 
substantial impact on reproductive performance in infected 
herds and severe financial implications for the farm or ranch. 
Characteristics of the disease lend itself to control; however, 
effective control will only be achieved through education, risk 
assessment, careful planning and meticulous execution of the 
plan. Use of a web-based trichomoniasis assessment tool, Trich 
CONSULT, may be a valuable way to facilitate development of a 

trichomoniasis control plan. Future investigation into multiple 
facets of this disease may also provide valuable insights into 
additional opportunities for its control.

Conflict of interest

None to report.

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	Management and control of bovine trichomoniasis