US animal welfare policy: new federal measures focus on dogs and research while farm animals remain largely outside the framework

The Trump administration has announced what USDA calls a “new era of animal welfare”, combining stronger enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act for dogs with federal measures intended to reduce the use of animals in biomedical testing. But the initiative does not create new welfare standards for the billions of cattle, pigs and poultry raised for food each year. Official federal proposals published in parallel instead focus largely on companion animals, research animals and slaughter-processing efficiency.

The Animal Welfare Act (AWA) excludes animals used solely for food or fibre production. USDA's own regulations confirm that farm animals used for agricultural purposes fall outside the Act's normal welfare requirements. Poultry species such as chickens and turkeys are likewise exempt when used, sold or transported solely for agricultural purposes.

USDA prepares stronger standards for dogs

The centrepiece of USDA's September announcement concerns dogs. APHIS says it will publish a regulatory proposal in 2027 addressing standards for breeding females and the medical care, exercise, socialisation, recordkeeping and research use of dogs. The agency received 7,522 unique comments during its consultation. USDA has also created an Animal Protection Bureau to strengthen compliance and investigations under the AWA. During 2026, APHIS conducted more than 2,000 inspections of dog breeders and brokers, trained 98 inspectors, denied or terminated eight breeder licences, suspended six and revoked five. USDA's Office of Inspector General also plans to increase the number of special agents working on animal fighting and related cases by 20%.

These are substantial enforcement changes, but their direct reach into commercial livestock farming is limited by the legislation itself.

FDA opens the door to non-animal drug testing

A second federal initiative concerns laboratory animals rather than agriculture. On 21 September, FDA issued a direct final rule clarifying that drug developers may use human-cell systems, organs-on-chips, computer models and other New Approach Methodologies instead of animal testing when scientifically appropriate. The rule changes regulatory terminology from “animal tests” and “preclinical tests” to broader “nonclinical” testing terminology. Animal studies remain permitted, and FDA stresses that safety standards are unchanged. The agency has also released an initial database containing 25 examples of alternative methods already used in regulatory assessments.

Farm animals face a different federal framework

For conventionally farmed animals, federal welfare protection remains concentrated on particular stages rather than conditions throughout the production cycle. The Humane Methods of Slaughter Act regulates slaughter of covered livestock, while the Twenty-Eight Hour Law requires livestock transported for long periods to receive rest, food and water. But enforcement of the transport law has been extremely limited. A 2026 Government Accountability Office investigation found that USDA referred only one potential violation to the Department of Justice between 2013 and 2025, with no subsequent enforcement action.

States therefore provide many of the rules covering housing practices such as sow gestation crates, veal crates and laying-hen cages. A USDA Economic Research Service analysis finding that only 14 states had adopted policies regulating selected livestock-production practices.

Poultry line speeds could increase to 175 birds per minute

One current USDA proposal moves in a different direction from the companion-animal welfare initiative. The Food Safety and Inspection Service has proposed allowing young-chicken establishments operating under the New Poultry Inspection System to run at up to 175 birds per minute, compared with the standard 140-bird limit, and raising the maximum for turkey plants from 55 to 60 birds per minute. FSIS presents the proposal as a means of improving processing efficiency while maintaining food-safety inspection. Animal-welfare advocates cited by Sentient argue that faster lines can leave less time for handling and stunning birds correctly. The official rule itself is primarily framed around inspection effectiveness and processing efficiency rather than establishing new welfare standards.

Two very different directions in federal animal policy

The official proposals therefore reveal a clear division in US animal policy in 2026. Dogs covered by the AWA are receiving stronger inspection, enforcement and potentially stricter care standards, while biomedical regulation is explicitly encouraging alternatives to animal experiments. For food-producing animals, however, there is currently no comparable federal proposal establishing comprehensive on-farm welfare standards. Existing federal protections remain fragmented between transport, slaughter, organic-production rules and state legislation, while broader agricultural policy continues to prioritise production capacity, market access and processing efficiency.

The administration's “new era” represents a significant change for some categories of animals, but it does not extend the same regulatory model to most animals raised for food in the United States.