Freshwater river dolphins are among the world's most endangered mammals. Gillnet entanglement, habitat degradation, and vessel strikes create severe individual welfare harms for these intelligent cetaceans.
River dolphins drowned in gillnets experience acute suffocation - a distressing death for air-breathing mammals. The small population sizes of remaining river dolphin species mean individual suffering and death has population-level consequences. Vessel strikes injure dolphins that survive with wounds that may cause prolonged pain. River pollution including heavy metals and pesticides accumulates in top predators like river dolphins, causing chronic health effects. Conservation measures including gillnet exclusion zones, vessel speed limits, and water quality improvement directly reduce individual animal suffering.