Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) causes abortion, calf death, immunosuppression and chronic illness, and national eradication programmes are delivering measurable welfare improvements.
BVD causes widespread suffering - PI calves experience chronic immune suppression and often develop fatal mucosal disease, while their mothers may have suffered abortion or bear multiple PI calves. National eradication programmes that identify and remove PI animals break the transmission cycle, preventing enormous ongoing welfare harm. Countries that have achieved eradication report significant reductions in cattle disease across many conditions.