Marine mammal rehabilitation for stranded seals, sea lions, and cetaceans requires careful welfare management to maximize recovery while preparing animals for successful release.
Marine mammal rehabilitation involves genuine welfare tensions between the needs of animals during care and the need to prepare them for wild survival. Animals that become too comfortable with humans and feeding routines make poor candidates for release. Reducing human contact, encouraging natural foraging behavior, and providing social contact with conspecifics where possible all improve post-release welfare outcomes. The welfare of animals during rehabilitation itself requires careful pain management, appropriate feeding, and housing that minimizes stress from confinement. Deciding when an animal is ready for release versus when continued captivity or euthanasia is more welfare-positive requires experienced judgment that good facilities develop through transparent outcome monitoring.