Farrowing crates confine sows during and after birth, preventing them from turning around for up to five weeks. While protecting piglets from crushing, they cause significant maternal welfare costs.
Sows in farrowing crates show repeated attempts to perform nest-building behaviour, high rates of stereotypic bar-biting, and elevated stress markers throughout confinement. The inability to turn around is a fundamental violation of movement needs. Free-farrowing systems have been developed that reduce piglet crushing through pen design rather than sow confinement, demonstrating that alternatives are viable and commercially deployable.