Sea otters face threats from oil spills, fishery entanglement, shark bites and disease, with conservation programs in California and Alaska working to maintain recovered but still fragile populations.
Sea otter welfare is shaped by the intersection of their extreme metabolic demands and the threats they face from human activities. Oil spill contamination destroys the insulating properties of their dense fur — unlike seals and whales, otters lack blubber and rely entirely on trapped air in their fur for thermal insulation. An oiled otter dies of hypothermia within hours unless recovered and cleaned. Shark bites cause severe injuries that may be fatal or leave lasting impairment. Entanglement in crab trap lines can cause drowning. Despite these threats, sea otters in well-protected areas live relatively high-welfare lives — their characteristic grooming, tool use and mother-pup behaviors represent a rich behavioral repertoire expressed in a relatively natural ocean environment. Protecting that environment is the primary welfare and conservation priority.