Tick-borne diseases including louping ill, babesiosis and Lyme disease affect cattle welfare in tick-endemic regions, requiring integrated management approaches.
Tick-borne diseases cause acute and severe welfare harm. Babesiosis (redwater) causes red urine, anaemia, fever and death within days. Louping ill causes neurological disease and death in young cattle on infected pastures. Prevention through strategic acaricide treatment, grazing management and vaccination where available protects individual cattle from these preventable welfare harms.