Bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) causes significant welfare suffering in cattle through reproductive failure, mucosal disease, and immunosuppression.
Cattle infected with BVD suffer from diarrhoea, respiratory disease, and reproductive failure. PI animals develop mucosal disease with severe oral and gut ulceration, causing profound suffering before death. Non-PI cattle with BVD infections experience immune suppression that worsens welfare from secondary pathogens. Eradication through testing and removal of PI animals eliminates the most severe welfare outcomes and improves herd health holistically.