Loading unfit cattle onto transport vehicles is a significant welfare failure that causes injury and death, yet fitness-for-transport assessment remains inconsistently applied across the global livestock industry.
Transport fitness assessment represents a welfare gate that prevents animals already in compromised health from being subjected to the additional stressor of transport. The welfare harm of transporting unfit animals is compounded: an already suffering animal is subjected to motion, unfamiliar companions, temperature extremes, and handling on top of its existing health problems. The solution — assessing fitness before loading and providing on-farm euthanasia or veterinary treatment for unfit animals — requires both training to recognize fitness criteria and cultural willingness to act on them rather than defaulting to transport. Handler training and clear regulatory standards with enforcement are the primary tools for welfare improvement in this area.