The quality and type of enrichment materials profoundly affects pig welfare outcomes. Substrate-based enrichment significantly outperforms suspended objects in meeting behavioral needs.
The science of pig enrichment materials has reached clear conclusions that industry practice has been slow to implement. Pigs have a strong behavioral motivation to root and explore malleable substrates — this motivation is not satisfied by fixed, non-destructible objects like chains that they can mouth but not meaningfully manipulate or consume. Research consistently shows that even small amounts of straw or other substrate materials produce dramatic improvements in tail biting rates and abnormal behavior prevalence compared to bare or chain-only enriched systems. The economic case for better enrichment is also strong — reduced tail biting eliminates associated antibiotic treatment costs, welfare assessors costs, and productivity losses from injured animals. Legislative enforcement of enrichment quality rather than just presence requirements is the most impactful policy lever for improving commercial pig enrichment.