Livestock Welfare During Natural Disasters

Natural disasters including floods, fires, and droughts create acute and prolonged welfare crises for livestock. Emergency preparedness and rapid response capacity significantly affect animal welfare outcomes.

Key Facts

The 2019-20 Australian bushfires killed or injured an estimated 1 billion animals including millions of livestock
Flooding traps and drowns livestock in low-lying agricultural areas globally each year
Heat dome events cause mass livestock mortality when cooling infrastructure is inadequate
Emergency livestock feed and water delivery programmes save lives during extended drought events
Pre-disaster evacuation planning for livestock is inconsistent and frequently inadequate in vulnerable areas
Insurance frameworks for livestock disasters are underdeveloped in many lower-income countries

Welfare Considerations

Natural disasters inflict enormous welfare suffering on livestock populations that lack the mobility or decision-making capacity to self-rescue. Pre-disaster preparedness, including evacuation planning, feed storage, and water security infrastructure, is the most effective welfare investment. When disasters do occur, rapid response capacity with emergency feed, water, and veterinary care reduces the duration of suffering. Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of disaster events affecting livestock welfare, making investment in climate-resilient farm infrastructure an increasingly important welfare priority.

What You Can Do

Support emergency response organisations that include livestock welfare in disaster response capability
Advocate for livestock disaster preparedness to be included in national emergency management frameworks
Encourage farmers in vulnerable areas to develop written livestock emergency plans
Support climate adaptation funding that includes on-farm infrastructure for extreme weather resilience
Donate to disaster relief organisations that provide emergency livestock feed, water, and veterinary care