Duck welfare in commercial meat production is significantly compromised by the common practice of denying water access for bathing and swimming to species whose biology is fundamentally aquatic.
Duck welfare in meat production is one of the clearest examples of a species-specific welfare need being systematically denied for economic reasons. Ducks are waterfowl - their biology, behavior, and sensory systems evolved around water access. Denying bathing water creates compulsive but frustrated bathing behaviors on drinkers, deteriorating eye and nasal health from inability to clear debris, and chronic frustration from unmet behavioral motivation. The welfare science is unambiguous and has been sufficient to drive legal requirements in some jurisdictions. Consumer willingness to pay marginally more for higher-welfare duck is the primary barrier to broader adoption.