Welfare science increasingly recognizes that good welfare is not just the absence of suffering but the presence of positive emotional states. Pig research is leading the field in understanding positive welfare.
The welfare science of positive pig emotions represents a paradigm shift from welfare as harm reduction to welfare as the active promotion of positive experiences. Pigs that play, explore, and engage with their environment are not just less miserable than barren-housed pigs — they are genuinely flourishing. This science provides both motivation and tools for welfare improvement: measurable positive welfare indicators give farmers and auditors concrete targets beyond injury and disease reduction. A pig industry that takes positive welfare seriously would not just prevent tail biting but actively design environments that produce the playful, curious, optimistic pigs that the science shows are achievable.