Farm Hen Infectious Bronchitis: Respiratory Welfare

Infectious bronchitis is a highly contagious respiratory disease of chickens causing significant suffering and productivity losses in poultry flocks worldwide.

Key Facts

Infectious bronchitis virus spreads extremely rapidly through poultry flocks via airborne transmission
Affected hens experience respiratory distress, nasal discharge, and reduced egg production
Kidney-tropic strains cause severe nephritis with high mortality in some flocks
The virus mutates rapidly, making vaccine matching a continuous challenge
Dense housing conditions in intensive systems accelerate disease spread
Poor ventilation is a major risk factor for severe IBV outbreaks

Welfare Considerations

Infectious bronchitis causes genuine suffering: affected hens breathe with difficulty, show signs of distress, and in cases of kidney-tropic strains, experience the pain of organ failure. The crowded conditions of industrial poultry production create perfect conditions for rapid virus spread, meaning an outbreak can affect tens of thousands of birds simultaneously. Better ventilation, lower stocking densities, and effective vaccination programs are key welfare interventions that also benefit farm economics.

What You Can Do

Support poultry welfare standards that mandate adequate ventilation and lower stocking densities
Choose chicken products from farms with higher welfare certifications
Advocate for regulation of minimum air quality standards in poultry housing
Support research into broadly protective IBV vaccines
Reduce chicken consumption to lower demand from intensive poultry operations