Porcine respiratory disease complex is the most economically and welfare-significant disease syndrome in modern pig production, causing widespread respiratory suffering that demands integrated prevention and treatment.
Porcine respiratory disease complex imposes widespread, often chronic respiratory suffering on growing pigs in commercial production systems. Pigs with active PRDC experience the distress of laboured breathing — dyspnoea is one of the most aversive welfare states in mammals — alongside fever, weakness, and inability to compete for food and water in group housing. Chronic low-grade respiratory disease that does not cause obvious clinical signs may persist for weeks, causing persistent malaise and reduced quality of life across entire pens. The welfare and health costs of PRDC are closely linked to housing quality: overcrowding, inadequate ventilation, and failure to maintain all-in-all-out management create conditions that amplify disease transmission and severity. Effective prevention through vaccination, biosecurity, good ventilation design, and stable social groups reduces the welfare burden substantially. Prompt identification and treatment of affected animals — combined with separation to reduce competition stress and allow recovery — reduces the duration of individual suffering. PRDC remains a major welfare challenge in intensive pig production that cannot be resolved without investment in housing quality.