This article was written by Dr. Lisa Sharko (Lead Veterinarian Animal Health and Welfare, OMAFA). This article was originally published in the Spring 2026 issue of the Dairy Goat Digest. Introduction Caprine arthritis-encephalitis (CAE) virus is a Lentivirus that infects a goat’s white blood cells leading to caprine arthritis-encephalitis disease. The virus travels through the body inside infected white blood cells, where it is unable to replicate and stays inactive. During this time, the goat is infected, but the virus is almost impossible to detect via testing and the goat may look and act completely normal for a long time. The virus can remain inactive for months to years, allowing the virus to spread throughout the body like a “Trojan…
