Transport to slaughter is a significant welfare challenge for pigs, involving crowding, unfamiliar conspecifics, vehicle motion, temperature extremes, and handling that cause acute stress and sometimes death.
Pigs in transport undergo multiple sequential welfare insults: loading (frightening, unfamiliar), mixing with strangers (causing fighting), vehicle motion (unfamiliar sensory experience), temperature stress (either cold or heat depending on season), and extended periods without food or water on long journeys. The cumulative welfare burden of transport can be substantial even before the slaughter process begins. Mortality in transit — while a small percentage of total transported pigs — represents hundreds of thousands of animals dying through heat stroke, trauma, or cardiac failure annually. Reducing journey times, improving loading procedures through low-stress handling techniques, and providing adequate temperature management and water access represent practical welfare improvements at commercial scale.