Natural disasters including floods, droughts, and wildfires cause catastrophic welfare harm to farmed animals. Preparedness planning and emergency response systems are critical for disaster welfare mitigation.
Disaster welfare for farmed animals is a chronically neglected area of emergency planning. When floods or fires strike, millions of farmed animals may be unable to escape, drowning, burning, or dying from heat stress and thirst. Emergency response systems are designed primarily for human welfare with animal welfare afterthought. Basic preparedness measures including emergency water systems, evacuation routes for livestock, and pre-positioned welfare supplies dramatically reduce disaster welfare harm. Climate change is increasing the frequency of extreme weather events that cause these welfare emergencies.