Dung beetles are essential ecosystem engineers that cycle nutrients, aerate soil, and reduce parasite loads. Veterinary antiparasitic drugs that persist in dung are decimating populations globally.
Veterinary drugs that persist in dung kill dung beetle larvae developing within dung pats, causing mass reproductive failure. Adult beetles that feed on treated dung show impaired navigation, reproduction, and survival. The collapse of dung beetle populations cascades into reduced soil health, increased fly populations, and greater parasite burdens for livestock — ironically undermining the very outcomes the drugs were meant to achieve. Welfare-focused farming considers the full ecological impact of veterinary drug use.