Transportation and Mobility as a social determinant of health
Access to animal health care can be complicated and depends on many things. Social determinants are everyday factors that people live with, as individuals and as members of society, that can affect how well animals are cared for. One of these factors is transportation and mobility, which means being able to safely move an animal to get veterinary care, regular checkups, or emergency help.
Transportation includes things like cars, trailers, and pet carriers, as well as roads and other systems that help people travel. Small animals and large animals face different challenges when being transported, and some animals handle travel better than others.
Things like road quality, available vehicles, family income, travel rules, and where people live (such as in cities or rural areas) can all affect whether animals can get the care they need.
Transportation issues for Small and Large Animals
Being able to get animals to a veterinarian on time is very important for keeping them healthy. If animals cannot get care, they may miss regular checkups, treatment, or help for injuries and illnesses. For example, pet owners who have a car and live close to a veterinary clinic can usually get care easily.
However, people without their own transportation often face big challenges. In cities, many public transportation systems do not allow pets, except for service animals. This makes it hard for people who rely on buses or trains to take their pets to the vet. A Canadian study found that problems like transportation and long travel distances make it difficult for people to access veterinary care, even aside from cost. People with lower incomes are more likely to depend on public transportation, which limits their options. In rural or northern areas, the problem is even bigger because the nearest clinic may be very far away. In these cases, animals may miss regular or preventive care because help is hard to reach, not because their owners do not care.
Companion animals and large animals have different needs and challenges when it comes to transportation, and understanding these differences helps explain why access to care can be limited.
By recognizing these challenges, we can better understand the need to talk about animal transportation with governments, veterinarians, and the public. These conversations can help create solutions that make it easier for animals to travel safely and receive the veterinary care they need.
Emergency Situations and Animal Evacuation Challenges
In emergencies, pets may be left behind if owners do not have a way to transport them during sudden evacuations. Moving large animals is even harder because it requires special trailers, equipment, and trained helpers. For farm animals, the high cost of veterinary care is also a major reason animals do not get help right away, so veterinarians often only see them when the situation has become very serious.
Natural disasters are happening more often and causing more damage, which shows why animal safety needs to be included in emergency planning.
The 2025 Canadian wildfire season, one of the worst on record, is a clear example of this problem. There were very few organized plans to evacuate animals, which led groups like Humane Canada and the Vancouver Humane Society to ask for better emergency plans that include pets. One petition noted that over 60% of Canadian homes have a dog or a cat, yet there are not enough pet-friendly supports during emergencies like wildfires.
In Conclusion
Many animals still have trouble getting the care they need because transportation can be hard, and small and large animals have different challenges. We need better planning, fair rules, and more awareness so animals can be cared for safely by having access to transportation, especially during emergencies.
Additional Resources:
Play a classroom KAHOOT based on this article: Click Here!