Pigs rapidly habituate to enrichment items - rotating novel materials maintains engagement and sustains welfare benefits over time.
Enrichment rotation is the practical solution to the habituation problem in pig welfare. New objects and materials trigger investigation and play, but familiarity reduces engagement. Producers who rotate a variety of enrichment materials on a regular schedule maintain welfare benefits that static enrichment loses within days. The most welfare-effective enrichments combine rooting opportunity with manipulable material - straw is the gold standard but alternatives including compost and bark also show good engagement.