Dover sole supports important commercial fisheries and experimental aquaculture. Their benthic lifestyle and sensitivity to handling create specific welfare management needs.
Dover sole welfare in commercial capture involves significant stress from trawl capture, handling during sorting, and prolonged air exposure on deck. Their flattened body form and substrate-resting behaviour means tank conditions for aquaculture must provide appropriate substrate for settling behaviour. Stress responses to inadequate substrate in holding tanks have been measured through cortisol indicators. Electrical stunning before slaughter has been developed and shown effective for sole, providing a welfare improvement over live CO2 asphyxiation.