Whale and dolphin strandings cause enormous suffering; rapid response networks and euthanasia protocols minimize pain while maximizing information for conservation.
Stranded cetaceans experience severe physical distress - their weight crushing internal organs, skin drying and cracking in air, dehydration, and pain from whatever caused the stranding. The impulse to refloat and release is understandable but often not in the animal's welfare interest. Evidence-based triage that rapidly identifies animals likely to survive versus those for whom euthanasia is most humane minimizes suffering.