Cetacean stranding response networks coordinate welfare-focused assistance to stranded whales and dolphins, with response protocols balancing welfare of individual animals against limits of intervention.
Stranded cetaceans face acute welfare emergencies from the combined effects of their condition, dehydration, overheating, and the stress of human handling. Response requires rapid welfare assessment balancing the chance of successful refloating against the welfare cost of prolonged intervention for animals unlikely to survive. Mass strandings create triage situations where welfare decisions must be made quickly for multiple animals. Training response teams in welfare-focused assessment and equipping them with capability for humane euthanasia when intervention cannot help is essential for welfare-positive stranding response.