Proposals to reintroduce wolves to Scotland raise significant welfare questions for the wolves themselves, for deer populations, and for livestock. Evidence-based welfare assessment is essential.
Wolf reintroduction raises multi-species welfare questions. The wolves themselves face significant stress during capture, translocation, and settlement in novel territory - veterinary protocols for minimising this are well established but imperfect. Deer welfare may improve if wolf predation reduces overgrazing and associated starvation. Livestock predation raises clear welfare concerns for affected animals. A welfare-centred approach to any reintroduction would require robust compensation schemes, non-lethal deterrents, and long-term monitoring of all affected species.