List of animal welfare organizations

Animal welfare groups are organizations arguing for greater protection for animals, usually those in human usage. Concerns include the way animals are treated when they are to be used for food, dairy milking, companions, vivisection etc. Animal rights groups are a specific kind of animal welfare group, arguing that animals should be accorded rights in law; it is controversial within moral philosophy whether this position is logically defensible. Groups describing themselves as concerned with "animal rights" rather than "animal welfare" tend to be more strongly activist. They argue for different kinds of rights and protections for animals. Their demands range from the prevention of suffering to the equation of humans and animals (especially great apes) before law.

Several 'extreme' animal rights groups support the use of violence and intimidation against people they see as opposing their beliefs, for example medical researchers, abbatoir workers or meat delivery drivers. As it may be seen as hypocritical to support animal rights by abusing human rights, the list has been divided into groups known to support or use violence against people, and groups that do not.