Water buffalo are used for dairy, draft work, and meat across South and Southeast Asia. Their welfare varies enormously across these contexts and across different production intensities.
Water buffalo welfare varies dramatically by system. Smallholder buffalo in South Asia often live outdoors with access to wallowing and reasonable freedom of movement, but may experience poor veterinary care and harsh working conditions. Industrial dairy systems deny natural wallowing behaviour, causing thermoregulatory stress. Male calves are often killed shortly after birth as an economic by-product of dairy production. Working buffalo face many of the same welfare issues as working donkeys and horses in low-income settings.