Chytridiomycosis, caused by the fungal pathogens Bd and Bsal, has devastated amphibian populations worldwide. This disease causes painful death and represents one of the largest wildlife disease crises in recorded history.
The welfare dimension of chytridiomycosis is often overlooked in conservation discussions. Infected amphibians suffer a slow, painful death over days to weeks as the disease compromises their skin function. For the hundreds of millions of individual animals affected, this represents a massive welfare burden alongside the conservation crisis. Probiotic treatments, antifungal interventions, and habitat management can help, but the scale of the problem requires coordinated international action on both the pet trade and captive assurance breeding.