Farm Animal Welfare

Farmed Pig Pain Recognition and Stockmanship

Stockperson ability to recognise and respond to pig pain is a fundamental determinant of welfare outcomes on farm.

Key Facts

Pig pain assessment tools include the Porcine Grimace Scale and postural indicators
Studies show significant variation in pain recognition ability between experienced and trained stockpeople
Training programmes improve pain recognition scores significantly in before-after comparisons
Farm visits by trained assessors can calibrate stockperson pain recognition against expert standard
Pigs are stoic prey species that may conceal pain, requiring proactive rather than reactive assessment

Welfare Considerations

Stockperson pain recognition is a human skill that directly determines whether animal suffering is identified and addressed. Pigs that grimace, hunch, shift weight or show abnormal gait are in pain. Training stockpeople to systematically assess these indicators at daily checks ensures pain is not missed through habituation or inadequate observation.

What You Can Do

Support stockperson training programmes that include pain recognition components
Advocate for pain recognition training as a mandatory element of stockperson certification
Share pain assessment tools and training resources with farming contacts
Support research into practical, farm-applicable pig pain assessment protocols