Wildlife

Live Animal Trade and Welfare in Transport

The international live animal trade causes enormous welfare suffering during capture, holding, and transport; regulation and enforcement remain inadequate relative to the scale of suffering involved.

Key Facts

For every bird arriving alive in the exotic pet trade, several die in transit
CITES regulates species protection but welfare standards during legal trade are often inadequate
Confiscated animals frequently die from stress and disease before rehabilitation
The legal and illegal wildlife trades are interconnected through laundering mechanisms

Welfare Considerations

The welfare costs of the live animal trade extend through the entire supply chain: capture methods may involve leg-holds or nets causing acute injury; holding facilities prior to export are often overcrowded and disease-ridden; transport crates may be inadequately sized and lack food and water. Even legal trade with CITES permits frequently causes extreme suffering that is invisible in the permitting documentation.

What You Can Do

Refuse to purchase exotic species sourced from the wild
Report suspected wildlife trafficking to enforcement authorities
Support organisations monitoring and campaigning against live animal trade welfare abuses