Effective disease monitoring is essential for salmon welfare management. Early detection of health problems allows intervention before welfare deteriorates and mortality increases.
Disease monitoring in salmon farming is the foundation of welfare management. A farm that detects appetite reduction early, triggers veterinary assessment and intervenes before full disease outbreak has dramatically better welfare outcomes than one that monitors only mortality rates retrospectively. The technology for real-time welfare monitoring - automated feeding response systems, underwater cameras, oxygen and temperature logging - is increasingly available and affordable. The barrier is often willingness to invest and the culture of treating monitoring data as a welfare management tool rather than just a production record.