The welfare of rehabilitated wild animals after release is as important as their care in rehabilitation, and poor release site selection or preparation significantly reduces post-release survival and welfare.
Rehabilitation that ends in a poor release outcome represents a welfare failure at the final hurdle. Animals that have been successfully treated and recovered medically may still face post-release welfare challenges from habitat unfamiliarity, loss of social context, or habituation to humans that impairs survival behaviour. Best-practice release protocols include release site assessment for habitat quality and prey availability, soft release with acclimatisation enclosures where practical, and post-release monitoring to identify struggling individuals. Species that require social learning - such as corvids - need to be released where conspecifics are present.