Gilts, or young female pigs before their first litter, face specific welfare challenges related to social housing, body condition management, and the transition into the reproductive cycle in commercial pig farming.
Gilt management is a welfare-sensitive phase of pig production because young female pigs are navigating rapid physical development, social transitions, and preparation for reproduction simultaneously. Aggressive mixing of gilts with unfamiliar animals without adequate space and resources creates welfare harms that also undermine farm productivity through injury and stress. Welfare-positive gilt management involves careful introduction protocols that minimize aggression, provision of rooting materials to satisfy foraging motivation, appropriate body condition scoring to avoid over- or under-conditioning, and gradual integration into breeding herd social groups. Gilts that receive good welfare during development show better reproductive performance, lower first-parity culling rates, and more sustainable productive careers, demonstrating that gilt welfare and farm economics are aligned rather than in conflict.