Biosecurity and bovine respiratory disease

There are many forms of respiratory disease in cattle. The most common is Bovine Respiratory Disease Complex, which is a multifactorial infectious disease that ultimately manifests as bacterial bronchopneumonia. Prevention of this common and costly disease problem requires an integrated management approach that improves animal resistance to infection and decreases animal exposure to pathogens. Biosecurity management is one aspect of respiratory disease prevention, but there are several biosecurity principles that have been historically underutilized. Improving biosecurity management of BRD should help reduce the prevalence and cost of this problem. This paper will focus on bovine respiratory disease although the principles discussed are equally applicable to other food animal species.