The type of flooring in pig housing profoundly affects pig welfare, with fully slatted floors presenting serious welfare problems compared to alternatives that provide comfort and natural behavior opportunity.
Flooring is one of the most consequential welfare factors in pig farming because pigs spend their entire lives in contact with it. Fully slatted concrete systems, designed for easy manure management, cause physical harm through lameness and injury while simultaneously preventing natural behaviors like rooting, nesting, and substrate exploration. Pigs are highly intelligent animals that experience frustration and distress when unable to express species-typical behaviors. The welfare case against fully slatted systems without bedding is overwhelming in the scientific literature, driving legislative changes in several European countries. Better flooring options exist and are increasingly economically viable.