Natural disasters and emergencies create acute welfare crises for animals that are often overlooked in emergency response planning.
The welfare dimension of disaster response has been largely absent from emergency planning. Animals trapped in floodwaters, wildfires, and earthquakes experience acute fear and suffering. Livestock abandoned during farm evacuations may suffer for days. The link between human and animal welfare in disasters is practical: when animal welfare is ignored, people make risky choices to remain with their animals, creating human casualties.