Research into farm animal cognition reveals complex emotional and social intelligence that strengthens the welfare case for treating farm animals as sentient beings deserving protection.
Farm animal cognition research fundamentally challenges the view that farm animals lack the mental complexity to matter morally. Evidence that pigs, cattle, sheep, and chickens have sophisticated social cognition, emotional lives, and problem-solving ability creates a stronger welfare imperative for their protection. The gap between what we know about farm animal sentience and the conditions in which most farm animals live is stark. Communicating farm animal cognitive complexity to the public and policymakers is an important advocacy strategy - people who understand that pigs are cognitively comparable to young children respond differently to information about intensive pig farming.