Parasitism is one of the most pervasive and underappreciated sources of suffering in wild animals.
Parasitism causes chronic suffering in wild animals that is almost entirely invisible to human observers. Mange, tapeworms, liver flukes, and external parasites impose continuous physiological costs — depleting nutrition, impairing immune function, and causing direct physical discomfort. In severe cases, parasites blind, emaciate, or behaviorally compromise their hosts over weeks or months before death. While parasitism is natural, its scale represents a vast source of wild animal suffering that the emerging field of wild animal welfare is beginning to take seriously.