Natural disasters and armed conflicts create acute welfare crises for animals that are frequently inadequately addressed in emergency planning and humanitarian response frameworks.
Disasters and conflicts create sudden, severe welfare crises for animals that are frequently invisible in emergency response frameworks focused on human needs. The separation of people from their animals during evacuation creates suffering for both. Animals left in disaster zones face starvation, dehydration, injury, and trauma. Farm animals in conflict zones lose access to feed, water, and veterinary care. Integrating animal welfare into emergency planning is not a luxury but a humanitarian and practical necessity — the human-animal bond means that effective disaster response for people requires accounting for their animals.