Measuring positive emotional states in pigs is advancing rapidly. Tools that assess positive affect rather than just suffering absence transform how pig welfare is evaluated and improved.
Positive pig welfare assessment is transforming how farm welfare is understood. Measuring only the absence of suffering misses the dimension of what makes animal lives worth living: positive experiences, agency, and expression of natural behaviors. Farms that score well on positive affect measures tend to provide enrichment, social stability, outdoor access, and human-animal relationship quality that produces genuinely good pig welfare rather than merely adequate welfare.