Breeding boars are frequently kept in isolation or highly restricted conditions despite their social nature, creating significant welfare challenges.
Breeding boar welfare is often overlooked compared to sow and piglet welfare. Individual housing of social animals causes chronic welfare compromise through isolation, movement restriction and lack of behavioural opportunities. Boars in sterile, unstimulating environments develop abnormal behaviours indicating negative welfare states. Welfare-conscious boar management includes maximising space within commercial constraints, providing enrichment, enabling limited social contact with neighbouring animals, and using positive reinforcement to make necessary procedures less stressful.