Dung beetles perform essential ecosystem services and are severely harmed by veterinary antiparasitic drugs that persist in animal waste.
Dung beetles occupy an unusual position in welfare consideration: they are insects whose individual sentience is uncertain, but whose ecological function is essential for the welfare of countless other animals who depend on healthy soil ecosystems. The collateral damage of veterinary antiparasitic drugs on dung beetle populations represents an externalized welfare cost of livestock medicine that affects entire ecosystems. More targeted drug treatments, pasture rotation, and selective use of persistent antiparasitics can reduce dung beetle harm.