Translocation of African wild dog packs for conservation management requires careful welfare attention during capture, transport, and reestablishment.
Wild dogs in translocation operations experience welfare stress from anesthesia, separation from pack members, holding in pre-release enclosures, and adaptation to new territories. Anesthesia recovery stress is reduced by keeping pack members together or reuniting them quickly. Extended holding in boma enclosures causes anxiety visible in restless pacing. Post-release vulnerability from unfamiliarity with predator locations and prey patterns causes higher mortality. The welfare cost is justified for conservation but requires rigorous best practice protocols.