Pigs are among the most cognitively sophisticated farmed animals, with problem-solving abilities, emotional complexity, and social intelligence that have profound implications for how we assess and address their welfare needs.
The cognitive complexity of pigs demands that their welfare be assessed beyond simple physical health metrics. A pig in a barren concrete pen with adequate food and water may be physically healthy but psychologically suffering — showing stereotypies, aggression, and negative emotional states that reflect an environment fundamentally inadequate for their mental needs. The more we understand about pig cognition, the clearer it becomes that intensive confinement systems cause a form of suffering that goes beyond pain and includes boredom, frustration, and the deprivation of meaningful social and environmental interactions that matter to pigs.