Research into pain and nociception in catfish is advancing, with implications for how the hundreds of billions of catfish farmed annually should be managed and slaughtered.
Catfish possess nociceptors and show avoidance learning responses to noxious stimuli. Their whisker-like barbels are densely innervated sensory organs particularly sensitive to noxious stimulation. Surgical procedures on catfish without analgesia are increasingly recognised as welfare concerns in research settings. Extending this welfare framework to commercial catfish production would affect hundreds of billions of individuals annually. Investment in catfish-specific welfare research is urgently needed given the scale of production.