An improved method for the recovery of mycoplasmas from the external ear canal of goats.

The efficacy of ear canal flushing and ear canal and mouth swabbing methods for the isolation of mycoplasmas was investigated in 39 goats. Of the 19 goats positive for Mycoplasma spp., 14 (73.7%) were positive with the ear canal flushing method, 4 (21.0%) were positive with both ear canal flushing and mouth swabbing methods, and 1 (5.3%) was positive by the mouth swabbing method. Mycoplasma arginini, M. mycoides subsp. mycoides, and M. mycoides subsp. capri were identified by direct immunofluorescence and growth inhibition tests. Previous reports on the isolation of M. arginini from the ear canal of goats were not found in the literature.