Disease Basics Spread of the Taylorella equigenitalis organism is by the venereal route, primarily through natural breeding or artificial insemination. Timoney also mentioned the possibility of a carrier teaser stallion being a means of spreading the disease on a farm. As mentioned before, transplacental transmission of Taylorella equigenitalis can occur in pregnant mares. Disease is limited to the reproductive tract in mares, and there has been no evidence of systemic illness in affected animals. The incubation period is from two to 12 days.
Mares typically develop an odorless, grayish-white mucopurulent vulvar discharge of uterine origin.
In some mares, the extent and severity of the inflammatory response are not readily assessable unless the reproductive tract is examined with the aid of a speculum. Whether or not the mare has outward clinical signs following infection, most will fail to conceive afterward. The infertility has been found to be short-lived, however, usually lasting only a few weeks. No long-term infertility problems have been reported in mares infected with Taylorella equigenitalis . Abortion is a rare sequel to infection in the pregnant mare.