The presentation focuses on the methodological and theoretical premises of a zoosemiotics of the freed animal (ZFA), a possible development for zoosemiotics with both ethological and (bio)ethical implications, stemming from the emerging research area of the Ethology of the Freed Animal (Celentano-Martinelli 2022), and part of the umbrella concept of "sanctuary-based research" . Unlike existing zoosemiotic research, ZFA does not focus on the observation of non-human animals (NHA) in a natural condition of freedom, nor on situations of captivity. Rather, ZFA consists of a comparative study of NHA that are removed from a condition of captivity, from the status of “living tool” of human beings and from any form of exploitation – instead relocated in an environment fairly (and hopefully) appropriate to their species-specific and individual characteristics. Ideal places for this study are animal sanctuaries and parks/reserves where a previously captive NHA can be reintroduced in their natural habitat or, when this proves impossible, in a context appropriate to their characteristics and needs. Even though both a zoosemiotics and an ethology of the freed animal exist already, as de facto practices of the personnel running sanctuaries and parks, these fields still lack a recognizable scholarly paradigm, and are not yet acknowledged at institutional/academic level, nor were their moral implications thoroughly discussed. Consequently, one important aim for ZFA is the establishment of an active interaction between the two parties involved (researchers and sanctuaries/parks operators).