Ivory poaching is devastating elephant populations; individual animals killed suffer terribly and survivors experience trauma with lasting behavioral effects.
Elephants killed for ivory often die from poisoned arrows or multiple gunshot wounds, suffering prolonged deaths. Surviving family members, especially young calves, experience acute trauma and exhibit behavioral disorders resembling post-traumatic stress disorder for years afterward. The combination of population decimation and individual trauma makes poaching one of the most severe welfare issues in wildlife conservation.