An accurate diagnostic method is to test-breed heifers and then examine them for infection, but this is seldom practical. More often, the preputial cavity and fornix are either scraped and aspirated with an infusion pipette or infused with buffered sterile saline, and the prepuce is massaged vigorously in the area of the fornix. The aspirate or sheath washing is then examined using a fluorescent antibody test and culture. C fetus will survive for only 6–8 hr after collection, but inoculation into Clark’s or similar media will allow survival for >48 hr. For maximum accuracy, bulls should be sampled twice, ~1 wk apart.Caution should be exercised when Campylobacter spp are isolated from the placenta because of the possibility of contamination by nonpathogenic fecal Campylobacter spp. Conversely, failure to successfully isolate C fetus from an infected aborted fetus or placenta often results from overgrowth of the colonies by contaminating organisms or the lethal effects of atmospheric oxygen.