Responsible antibiotic use in livestock protects both animal welfare and public health. Stewardship programs balance effective disease treatment with resistance prevention.
Antibiotic stewardship in livestock presents a genuine tension between individual animal welfare and population-level public health. Sick animals need effective antibiotic treatment — withholding treatment to reduce antibiotic use is not welfare-positive. However, routine prophylactic use that treats all animals in a group when only some are sick, or growth promotion use, drives resistance without clear welfare justification. The stewardship approach requires maintaining good animal welfare standards that reduce disease incidence, ensuring sick animals receive prompt effective treatment, and avoiding prophylactic use except where epidemiologically justified. Countries that have successfully reduced antibiotic use have done so primarily through welfare improvements rather than treatment rationing.