Welfare Science

Welfare Science: Effective Altruism and Animal Welfare Giving

Effective altruism frameworks applied to animal welfare giving seek to identify the most cost-effective interventions to reduce animal suffering per dollar donated.

Key Facts

Animal Charity Evaluators estimates cost to help one animal ranges from cents to thousands
Farmed animal advocacy is often considered more cost-effective than individual rescue
Corporate cage-free campaigns have been shown to have measurable impact per dollar
Wild animal welfare interventions are less developed but potentially very large in scale
Giving multipliers through donor matching and institutional funding can improve impact

Welfare Considerations

Thoughtful giving decisions can have dramatically different impacts on animal welfare. Evidence suggests that advocacy targeting farmed animals and systemic change delivers more welfare improvement per donation than individual animal rescue. Applying rigorous analysis to animal welfare giving is itself a welfare intervention.

What You Can Do

Review Animal Charity Evaluators recommendations before donating
Consider the scale, neglectedness and tractability of different animal welfare causes
Support organisations that publish transparent impact evaluations
Engage with effective animal advocacy communities for giving guidance