Seahorses face threats from targeted fishing for traditional medicine, the aquarium trade, and bycatch, with welfare concerns at every stage of capture and transit.
Seahorses in transit for the aquarium trade suffer from crowded temporary containers, temperature fluctuations, and starvation over days to weeks of transport. Their sedentary lifestyle and preference for grasping substrates means bare transit containers cause acute stress and physical exhaustion from continuous swimming. Seahorses that survive transit to aquariums often die within weeks from stress, inadequate diet, and unsuitable environments. Traditional medicine trade collection from wild populations involves mass capture with high mortality. The sentience and individual nature of seahorses is suggested by their complex courtship and long-term pair bonding.