Livestock play a crucial part in people’s livelihoods throughout the world and when humanitarian emergencies arise, rapid assistance is needed to protect and rebuild the livestock assets of affected communities. The Livestock Emergency Guidelines and Standards (LEGS) are a set of international guidelines and standards for the design, implementation and assessment of livestock interventions to assist people affected by humanitarian crises. LEGS expands the commitment in the Sphere handbook – the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response – towards supporting livelihood assets, by presenting clear and practical options for supporting livestock during and following disasters.

LEGS provides guidance on the identification of appropriate livestock responses, followed by detailed information on a number of interventions, namely: destocking, veterinary services, the provision of feed, the provision of water, livestock shelter and settlement, and restocking. Each technical chapter contains minimum standards, key indicators, and guidance notes, together with decision-making tools and a discussion of key cross-cutting issues.

LEGS should be read by donors, programme managers and technical experts designing or implementing livestock interventions in disasters.

About the authors

LEGS was developed by a steering group of professionals from the Feinstein International Center of Tufts University, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the African Union and Vétérinaires sans Frontières, Belgium, working with a team of technical writers and contributors from around the world.

Table of contents

Introduction to LEGS

Chapter 1: Livelihoods-based livestock responses in emergencies

Chapter 2: Assessment and Response

Chaper 3: Minimum standards common to all livestock interventions

Chapter 4: Minimum standards for destocking

Chapter 5: Minimum standards for veterinary services

Chapter 6: Minimum standards for ensuring supplies of feed resources

Chapter 7: Minimum standards for the prevention of water

Chapter 8: Minimum standards for livestock shelter and settlement

Chapter 9: Minimum standards for the provision of livestock