Leptospirosis in pigs causes reproductive failure, kidney disease, and systemic illness, representing both a significant animal welfare concern and a public health risk.
Leptospirosis imposes welfare costs that range from the acute suffering of systemic illness to the chronic reproductive loss experienced by infected sows. Pigs experiencing acute leptospirosis suffer fever, pain, and organ dysfunction. Sows infected during pregnancy face reproductive failure with associated physiological and potentially psychological costs of lost pregnancies. The chronic carrier state means infected herds perpetuate disease and welfare impacts continuously. Vaccination programs protect individual pig welfare while also preventing transmission to farm workers.