Nepal is a country of great biodiversity and deep cultural connections to animals — from Hindu traditions that venerate cattle to Buddhist principles of compassion for all living beings. Yet it also faces significant animal welfare challenges including the world's largest mass animal sacrifice, pervasive street dog welfare problems, and limited enforcement capacity. Nepal's welfare landscape reflects the tensions between tradition, poverty, and an emerging advocacy movement.
Nepal's Animal Health and Livestock Services Act and related regulations provide basic welfare protections, though enforcement is often limited by capacity constraints. The constitution references animal welfare, and Nepal has ratified conventions related to wildlife protection. The Department of Livestock Services oversees farm animal welfare while the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation manages wildlife. Civil society organizations have played an increasingly important role in welfare advocacy.
The Gadhimai festival, held every five years at the Gadhimai temple in Bariyarpur, has been described as the world's largest mass animal sacrifice. At its peak (2009), an estimated 250,000-500,000 animals — primarily buffaloes, goats, chickens, pigs, and pigeons — were killed over two days. Animals were brought from across Nepal and India, with significant welfare harm during transport and through the killing process, which was often prolonged and painful due to the scale and methods used.
Following sustained campaigns by Animal Welfare Network Nepal, Humane Society International, and others, the Gadhimai temple trust announced in 2015 that it would encourage devotees not to bring animals for sacrifice. The 2019 festival saw dramatically fewer animal deaths. Progress continues, though the festival retains religious significance and practices are changing gradually rather than through prohibition.
Nepal, like many South Asian countries, has large populations of free-roaming dogs living in urban and rural areas. Street dog welfare is a complex challenge: dogs face starvation, disease, road injuries, and human-initiated harm (poisoning, beating) in many areas. Traditional culling programs have been used to manage dog populations but are both ineffective and cruel — killed dog populations are replaced by new dogs moving into vacated territory.
Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) combined with rabies vaccination is the evidence-based approach to street dog management. It reduces population growth over time while eliminating rabies risk through herd immunity and is infinitely more humane than culling. Organizations like the Humane Society International and local groups have implemented TNR programs in Kathmandu and other Nepali cities. Scaling TNR across Nepal remains a significant challenge requiring sustained government partnership and funding.
Nepal's mountainous terrain means working animals — horses, mules, donkeys — remain essential for transport in areas without road access. Welfare problems are common: overloading, harness injuries, inadequate veterinary care, and rough handling are documented. Organizations including the Brooke and local partners provide veterinary outreach and owner education to working animal populations in Nepal's rural areas.
Nepal hosts significant wildlife including tigers, rhinoceroses, elephants, and snow leopards. Wildlife conservation programs — including Chitwan and Bardia national parks — have achieved significant population recoveries for several species. The welfare dimension of wildlife management includes human-wildlife conflict (elephants raiding crops, leading to retaliatory killing), poaching (driven by transnational wildlife trade networks), and captive elephant welfare at tourism operations.
Nepal's animal welfare civil society is growing. Organizations including Animal Welfare Network Nepal (AWNN), Kathmandu Animal Treatment Centre (KAT Centre), and various local shelters are building capacity and public awareness. Young Nepalis increasingly engage with animal welfare issues through social media. The religious diversity of Nepal — Hindu and Buddhist traditions that both contain elements of compassion for animals — provides cultural resources for welfare advocacy that can resonate with local audiences.