Pigs are among the most cognitively sophisticated animals on Earth. Understanding their intelligence has profound implications for how we design and evaluate farming systems.
The growing body of evidence for pig intelligence has direct welfare implications: cognitively sophisticated animals experience boredom, frustration, and learned helplessness when housed in barren, restrictive environments. Pigs in enriched environments show fewer abnormal behaviours, higher play rates, and positive affective biases in cognitive tests. The welfare bar for pigs should reflect their demonstrated cognitive capacity, not convenience. Housing systems that deny pigs the opportunity to explore, manipulate objects, form stable social bonds, and express their cognitive capacities are inconsistent with what we know about their needs.