By Kitty Block and Sara Amundson
As we enter 2026, the speed at which global events unfold can feel overwhelming and the future can feel uncertain. It is also true, though, that good things are happening: Every day, all over the world, people are giving their voices to the voiceless, taking a stand for animals who cannot advocate for themselves. In that sense, every single day marks progress toward the more humane world we are trying to achieve in every country where our teams are active.
The new year is an ideal moment to reflect on progress achieved for animals and hopes for the future. We recently celebrated a milestone out of South Korea, where the bear bile industry is finally coming to an end. This means moon bears will no longer be bred and kept in tiny cages on bile farms, where their bile is extracted through painful, invasive procedures.
Stateside, several laws across the country mark significant progress for animals of many kinds:
On Jan. 1, 2026, a California law against declawing cats unless medically necessary comes into effect. This law will prevent cats from undergoing a procedure that causes pain and serious long-term harm. This is part of greater momentum, as more states introduce bans and veterinarians refuse to perform the procedure.
Also in California, the dawn of 2026 marks two years since California’s Proposition 12, the strongest law for farmed animals, has been fully in place. We have seen farmers shifting their business models to systems that don’t involve condemning hens to miserable lives in battery cages where they can’t spread their wings or confining pregnant pigs in gestation crates so small they can hardly move, where they have been documented gnawing the bars of the crates until their mouths bleed.
On Dec. 31, 2025, Ohio’s regulations limiting the use of extreme confinement for mother pigs in the pork industry took effect. Established in 2011, the standards provide that for the majority of a breeding pig’s pregnancy she cannot be housed in a gestation crate. As one of the top 10 pig-raising states in the country, this too tells us something about the future: there’s no place for intensive confinement cruelty in this or any country.
We have also seen a backward segment of the pork industry assault the voter-supported California law again and again, failing every time so far in Congress and the courts. With more than a dozen states taking action to eliminate cages and crates, it’s imperative for Congress to keep rejecting federal legislation like the Save Our Bacon Act and the Food Security and Farm Protection Act; these bills pander to the National Pork Producers Council and the other interests trying to stem the tide of compassionate concern for farmed animals.
In Maryland, a new law aims to improve local animal protection by addressing practices associated with cockfighting. By this time next year, the prohibition on keeping a rooster restricted through the use of certain enclosures or tethers will take effect.
In Florida, a new animal cruelty law is now in effect, making it a crime to abandon pets or leave them tied up outside during disasters.
In the last months of 2025, a new law in Washington, D.C., has set the stage for access to safe, affordable housing for residents with pets, removing longstanding barriers that have left many struggling. The Pets in Housing Act supports residents and renters by improving affordability, banning discriminatory pet policies and launching D.C.’s first pet-friendly homeless shelter. And across the river, in Maryland, Prince George’s County repealed a decades-old ordinance that prohibited certain breeds of dogs.
In a few key areas, the U.S. federal government has promised to move in the right direction, too. We’re pleased that we were able to garner bipartisan support for and win some crucial victories during 2025 through the annual appropriations process that funds federal agencies. For example, while many other programs were being slashed, Congress held the line on funding the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act, Horse Protection Act and Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, as well as the Protecting Animals With Shelter (PAWS) grant program that provides emergency shelter for domestic violence survivors with pets, and the student loan repayment program for veterinarians working in designated veterinary shortage areas. We also secured vital provisions to prevent horse slaughter plants from reopening on U.S. soil and to advance non-animal testing methods at the Food and Drug Administration.
In late December, an interview on "My View with Lara Trump" featured U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. In it, they committed to fighting the cruelties of dogfighting, puppy mills and animal testing. We celebrate this commitment and have long advocated for stronger enforcement of all federal animal protection laws, which requires better coordination between the U.S. Department of Justice and USDA.
It is still true, in this case and others, that wherever animals are suffering, there need to be specific, concrete plans made and actions taken to change systems in order to ameliorate and prevent animal suffering. For example, the commitments of Secretaries Rollins and Kennedy to pursue an active program of promoting animal protection and preventing animal cruelty stand in contrast to some recent cuts to staff, including inspectors and veterinarians who were charged with enforcing the Animal Welfare Act. We stand ready to advise and help bring this talk into action in ways that can benefit animals as much as possible.
As long as animals suffer at human hands, through unjust systems that treat them as disposable commodities—whether they are pigs raised for meat in factory farms, mice used by the millions in tests that are often unnecessary, or mother dogs birthing litter after litter in puppy mills—we will be there to advocate for them in the halls of power—and everywhere else. Caring about animals can and should be a non-partisan issue and one for each and every one of us as citizens, wherever we live and whatever our stations in life. Our natural fascination and love for animals should bring people together rather than dividing them—that’s something we firmly believe. And the solidarity that can be formed around creating a more humane world for animals is a powerful one; it is motivated by the vision of a world that is a kinder, better place for us all, now and for future generations.
It's thanks to the diligence and dedication of every donor, team member, volunteer and supporter that this progress has been made possible. In 2026, we will continue working to create a more compassionate world for animals. You can join us.
Kitty Block is president and CEO of Humane World for Animals. Follow Kitty Block on X. Sara Amundson is president of Humane World Action Fund.
Related:
2025 brought us closer to a world without animal testing and research
Our top 10 wins for dogs against cruel puppy mills this year
Good news to start 2025: These state laws are now in place for animals in the U.S.
