Polar bears are facing accelerating welfare harms from climate change as sea ice declines force longer fasting periods, reduce hunting success, and increase human conflict encounters.
Polar bear welfare is being degraded in real time by climate change in ways that are directly visible — starving animals with poor body condition, mothers losing cubs to insufficient milk production, and bears forced into human settlements by desperation. The acute welfare harms of starvation include muscle wasting, impaired thermoregulation, cub abandonment, and ultimately death. Climate-driven range shifts are bringing polar bears into contact with grizzly bears, adding new competitive pressures. Managing the symptoms through conflict intervention programs is important welfare work, but the fundamental welfare solution for polar bears is climate action that slows sea ice loss. This makes polar bear welfare one of the clearest examples of the link between climate policy and animal welfare.