Animal welfare assessment has moved beyond measuring absence of negatives to identifying positive welfare states. Positive welfare indicators for pigs focus on play, exploration, and social engagement.
The shift toward positive welfare assessment in pigs reflects a deeper understanding that the goal of animal welfare is not just to eliminate suffering but to enable animals to experience good lives. A pig who plays spontaneously, explores with curiosity, and approaches humans voluntarily is experiencing welfare that goes beyond mere absence of pain or disease. Farms assessed using positive welfare indicators consistently outperform those assessed only by negative indicators, because positive welfare conditions address both the presence of good experiences and the absence of bad ones. Sharing this framework with farmers and the public raises the bar for what welfare means in commercial pig production.