Pigs are cognitively sophisticated animals whose intelligence creates welfare needs that simple physical enrichment cannot fully address.
Pig intelligence creates welfare obligations that go beyond physical enrichment. An animal that can solve problems, remember experiences, and exhibit emotional states calibrated to their environment requires environmental complexity that challenges their cognitive capacities. Problem-solving enrichment — foraging challenges, puzzle feeders, novel objects requiring manipulation — engages pig intelligence and produces positive emotional states not achievable through physical enrichment alone. The welfare frontier for pigs is not just space and substrate but cognitive engagement.