Liver fluke causes significant production losses and welfare harm in sheep and cattle, with effective control requiring integrated management combining strategic treatment, pasture management, and snail habitat reduction.
Liver fluke causes welfare harm across a spectrum from acute death to chronic insidious wasting. Acute fasciolosis in sheep causes rapid deterioration and death — affected animals show sudden anaemia, abdominal pain, and collapse. The welfare of animals dying from acute fasciolosis is profoundly compromised in their final days as progressive liver destruction causes severe physiological stress. Chronic fasciolosis is equally significant from a welfare perspective, though less dramatic — affected sheep show progressive weight loss, weakness, bottle jaw from protein loss, and reduced immunity to other infections. Flocks with uncontrolled chronic fluke burden contain animals suffering persistent welfare compromise over months. Strategic treatment using appropriate flukicides timed to the parasite's life cycle, combined with pasture management to reduce snail habitat, provides effective welfare protection while minimising anthelmintic use and resistance risk. Regular faecal egg count and antigen testing helps identify flock fluke burden and guides treatment decisions based on evidence rather than routine calendar-based dosing.