As animal welfare standards face increasing public scrutiny, one persistent challenge remains: how can zoos and conservation facilities securely manage, share, and verify animal health records across institutions?
Animal welfare concerns—from inadequate living conditions to
fragmented healthcare oversight—highlight the need for stronger systems that support continuous, accessible, and trustworthy health data management.
What this research explores:
• A blockchain-based framework for tracking zoo animal health records
• Secure sharing of healthcare
histories across zoos and conservation facilities
• Use of Hyperledger Fabric to support data accessibility and continuity
• Improved visibility for regulatory authorities
• Potential to strengthen treatment decisions, care coordination, and welfare oversight
Rather than treating animal health records as isolated institutional assets, this work examines how decentralized infrastructure may help create shared, verifiable, and longitudinal healthcare records for animals across care environments.
The broader significance of this paper extends blockchain’s relevance beyond human healthcare—into animal welfare,
conservation medicine, and regulatory governance.
Why this is worth watching:
• Supports improved continuity of care across facilities
• Explores compliance and oversight applications
• Strengthens conversations around ethical stewardship
and data governance
• Demonstrates how healthcare innovation models may apply across species and ecosystems
For leaders in animal welfare, zoo management, conservation, veterinary systems, blockchain, and healthcare data governance, this research offers an intriguing perspective on how emerging technologies may contribute to more accountable care
systems.
As expectations for ethical care continue to rise, infrastructure that improves transparency and medical continuity may become increasingly important.
Read the full article DOI https://doi.org/10.30953/bhty.v9.403
Authors:
Annabelle Mousley, BEng
Melissa Lyons
Reza Vatankhah Barenji