Caseous lymphadenitis is one of the most significant zoonotic diseases caused by C. pseudotuberculosis with enormous economic losses in animal industry worldwide. The global burden of its incidence in animal populations remains at an alarming rate. The impact of the disease is multidimensional in nature and not always well understood, therefore, significantly complicating effective policy response. The pathogenesis is complex and governed by several factors working together in synergistic manner. Information related to the epidemiology and pathophysiology is still scarce in the database and control programmes are rarely implemented. Therapy is based on wide spectrum antibiotics with mysterious outcome as pre-existing vaccines appear not promising. Thus, understanding the biological behaviour of the disease becomes a fundamental issue. In this review, we highlight various key aspects of the disease with special reference to the epidemiology and the pathophysiology of the disease in sheep and goat populations.