The Amur leopard is the world's rarest wild cat — fewer than 100 remain — making every individual's welfare critical to species survival.
With so few individuals, every Amur leopard that suffers or dies from preventable causes has an outsized welfare and conservation impact. Snare injuries — usually intended for deer or boar — cause severe trauma; leopards caught in wire snares suffer for days before dying or being found. Human-leopard conflict, when leopards prey on domestic animals, sometimes results in retaliatory killing. Inbreeding depression reduces immune function and reproductive success, increasing susceptibility to disease. Each individual's health directly affects species-level viability, meaning welfare interventions — anti-snare patrols, veterinary monitoring, prey management — are simultaneously welfare and conservation actions.