Research consistently demonstrates that pigs have cognitive abilities comparable to or exceeding those of dogs. This evidence has profound ethical implications for the intensive systems in which most pigs are kept.
The ethical implications of pig intelligence for intensive farming practices are significant. The same cognitive capacities that make pigs interesting research subjects - memory, learning, social awareness, problem-solving - also mean they have rich inner lives that can be enriched or impoverished by their environment. A pig in a barren, confined space experiences boredom, frustration, and social deprivation in ways that are meaningful given what we now know about their cognition. The contrast between how we treat pigs in agriculture and how we treat dogs - animals with similar cognitive profiles - represents one of the most striking ethical inconsistencies in human-animal relationships.