1

Start with the right story

Not every compelling experience needs to become public content. Begin by deciding whether a story is necessary, appropriate, and likely to help people understand an animal welfare issue.

A strong story can help audiences understand an animal welfare issue, recognize lived experience, see the impact of a program or policy, or identify a realistic opportunity for change.

Avoid choosing a story only because it is the most shocking, saddest, photogenic, or likely to perform well online. Emotional power should not be the sole reason a person or animal is exposed.

2

Build understanding, not just emotion

Stories involving neglect, illness, poverty, loss, trauma, or crisis require context. Suffering may be part of the story, but it should not become the entire story.

A useful story structure helps audiences understand what happened, why it matters, what changed, and what still needs to change.

3

Let people tell their own stories

The most ethical storyteller is sometimes the person who lived the experience.

When appropriate, consider handing over authorship, narration, or editorial control to the client, caregiver, community member, or other person whose experience is being shared.

This might mean publishing their words with minimal editing, inviting them to write or record the story themselves, or creating a collaborative piece in which their perspective leads and the organization provides context.

Center lived experience; do not extract it.

When handing over the mic is not possible

A person may not want to write or record independently. They may need interpretation, accessibility support, safeguarding, privacy, or help combining their experience with animal welfare or professional context.

In those situations, ethical practice still means preserving the person’s meaning, choices, and agency. Support needs should not become a reason for the organization to take ownership of the story.

Do not promise complete editorial control if the organization cannot offer it. Be clear about what the participant can change, what the organization is responsible for, and what will happen if you disagree.

4

Represent animals as individuals

Animals should not become props, symbols, case numbers, or fundraising devices. Their individuality and welfare should remain central.

Consider:

• What the animal experienced
• What is known about the animal’s behavior and needs
• How the animal’s circumstances shaped their behavior
• The animal’s relationships and preferences
• The animal’s current welfare
• What remains uncertain
• Whether publication could affect the animal’s safety

Share credit accurately

Your organization may have played an important role, but the story may also involve caregivers, veterinary professionals, foster homes, volunteers, trainers, community members, other organizations, public services, and the animal’s own adaptation and agency.

5

Address systemic bias and wider systems

Ethical storytelling requires more than treating each participant kindly. Organizations also need to examine how their stories may reproduce systems of power and bias.

A story can be respectful in a one-to-one interaction and still reinforce harmful ideas when shared with a broader audience. This can happen when communications repeatedly portray certain communities as irresponsible, uneducated, dangerous, dependent, or incapable of caring for animals.

Systemic racism may be part of the context in which people and animals experience harm or unequal access to care. It can also shape how organizations interpret behavior, define responsible guardianship, allocate resources, select spokespeople, and decide which stories appear credible or newsworthy.

6

Write with context and precision

A story should not ask readers to make assumptions that the organization could explain directly.

Be careful with “before and after” stories

Before-and-after stories can make change visible, but they can also reduce the subject to a transformation, hide setbacks, create unrealistic expectations, or give the organization too much credit.

If you use this structure, include enough context to show that welfare improvement is often ongoing and collaborative.

7

Make the call to action match the story

The story and the action should be connected. Audiences should understand how their response relates to the issue being described.

If the story is about access to veterinary care, the call to action might support affordable care programs, community outreach, policy change, transportation access, preventive services, or direct assistance.

Avoid adding a generic donation request that has no visible relationship to the story. Do not suggest that one donation, adoption, or individual choice will solve a complex structural issue.

8

Handle distressing material with care

Some stories cannot be told honestly without acknowledging suffering. Ethical practice does not require hiding difficult realities, but it does require care.

• Ask whether the distressing detail is necessary.
• Use the minimum amount of graphic detail needed.
• Avoid using shocking images as decoration or thumbnails.
• Add a clear content note where appropriate.
• Give audiences meaningful choice about whether to continue.
• Provide context before presenting difficult material.
• Avoid placing graphic content next to an unrelated donation request.
• Offer a constructive next step.
• Consider how the story may affect participants, staff, volunteers, and audiences.

9

Use a repeatable workflow

A consistent process helps communications teams make ethical decisions even when deadlines are tight.