Integrating One Health and veterinary professionals into emergency management enhances wildlife welfare during disasters.

Embedding veterinary professionals within Incident Command Systems improves wildlife welfare outcomes across all disaster management phases.

This article addresses the critical gap in emergency management regarding wildlife welfare during climate change-driven disasters, which are increasing in both frequency and severity. The authors argue that wild animals, despite being among the most vulnerable disaster victims and generating significant public concern, remain systematically underrepresented in emergency management frameworks. Veterinary professionals are identified as uniquely positioned to bridge this gap due to their expertise in animal welfare, population health, and the One Health approach, which recognizes the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health. A central recommendation is that veterinary professionals be fully integrated into Incident Command System (ICS) structures—not merely as peripheral technical advisors, but as credentialed, deployable members of Incident Management Teams with formal roles and authority. The authors apply a One Health framework to outline specific veterinary contributions across all four phases of the disaster management cycle: mitigation and planning, preparedness, response, and recovery. This structured integration is proposed as a means to meaningfully improve wildlife welfare outcomes during disasters. The article is paired with a companion piece published in AJVR (July 2026) that explores the knowledge gaps and systemic barriers currently hindering wildlife welfare integration into disaster management, suggesting this work is part of a broader, ongoing policy and practice discussion within veterinary medicine.

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