Giraffes have more complex social lives than once thought. Translocation for conservation management must account for their social needs to minimize welfare harm.
Giraffe welfare during translocation requires understanding their social structure. Capturing individual giraffes without their preferred social partners causes stress beyond the capture process itself — the social disruption has welfare consequences. Best practice involves translocationg social units where possible and providing transition holding with visible conspecifics. The physiological stress of capture and transport causes cardiovascular complications that are a leading cause of translocation mortality in giraffes. Minimizing transport distance and time, ensuring adequate shade and water during transport, and post-release monitoring that allows social reintegration all improve welfare outcomes.