Sea otters recovered from near-extinction after the fur trade but now face new threats from pollution, prey depletion, and shark bites, with their welfare closely tied to kelp forest ecosystem health.
Sea otter welfare is deeply intertwined with ecosystem health. Prey depletion in areas with degraded kelp forests forces otters to spend more time and energy foraging, reducing caloric surplus and affecting reproductive success. White shark bites cause painful, often fatal injuries — females with pups are particularly vulnerable as caring for young reduces their escape response. Toxoplasma infection from terrestrial cat fecal runoff causes encephalitis and death in a species with no evolutionary exposure to this parasite. Oil spill response for sea otters requires intensive rehabilitation — decontamination, warming, and behavioral retraining — that is welfare-intensive but has saved hundreds of animals.