Farm Animal Welfare

Pig Social Hierarchy and Mixing Aggression

Pigs establish social hierarchies through aggression, and management practices that minimize unnecessary mixing reduce welfare-compromising fights.

Key Facts

Hierarchy establishment fights cause wounds, stress, and competitive exclusion from resources
Mixing unfamiliar pigs at weaning, transfer, or restocking causes intense aggression
Large groups reduce individual aggression intensity but may increase overall conflict
Providing adequate space and resources during mixing reduces injury severity
Management protocols like providing straw and avoiding mixing near feeding reduce fights

Welfare Considerations

Unnecessary social mixing causes preventable suffering. Stable groups with adequate resources can develop functioning social structures, but management that repeatedly disrupts groups fails pigs' social welfare needs.

What You Can Do

Support farms with stable group management policies
Advocate for management protocols that minimize unnecessary pig mixing
Choose pork from welfare-certified farms with better social management