Pigs are highly intelligent animals requiring environmental enrichment to prevent boredom, stress behaviors, and serious welfare problems like tail-biting in commercial systems.
Pigs deprived of mental stimulation develop chronic stress and abnormal repetitive behaviors. Tail-biting, bar-chewing, and belly-nosing cause physical harm and reflect profound behavioral needs going unmet. Welfare science demonstrates that even simple, cheap enrichments like straw, compost, or hanging objects dramatically improve pig wellbeing and are economically neutral or positive.