Pangolins are the most trafficked wild mammals globally, and rescuing, rehabilitating, and releasing them requires specialised welfare expertise given their unique biology and stress sensitivity.
Pangolin welfare in rescue and rehabilitation is extraordinarily challenging due to their extreme stress sensitivity, dietary specialisation, and unsuitability for captivity. Rescued pangolins frequently die in care not from their injuries but from chronic psychological stress — they curl into a defensive ball and may remain in this state for days, refusing to eat and deteriorating rapidly. Minimising handling, providing dark enclosed spaces that replicate hollow tree interiors, maintaining quiet environments, and attempting to offer live termites or ant pupae as rapidly as possible are all critical early interventions. Longer-term rehabilitation requires access to natural foraging environments where possible, gradual reintroduction to outdoor conditions, and careful pre-release health screening. The welfare case for early release — even with some remaining health concerns — is often stronger than prolonged captive care. International coordination of rescue protocols through networks like the Pangolin Specialist Group has improved survival rates, but pangolin rehabilitation remains one of the most technically demanding wildlife welfare challenges.