Farm Animal Welfare

Pig Stockperson Wellbeing and Animal Welfare

Stockperson mental health and wellbeing is closely linked to the welfare outcomes they achieve with animals - supporting stockpeople supports animal welfare.

Key Facts

Stockperson attitudes and empathy scores predict pig fear and welfare outcomes reliably
High workload, isolation, and financial stress reduce stockperson welfare and care quality
Training programmes that improve stockperson confidence improve animal welfare outcomes
Rural mental health services are significantly under-resourced relative to need
Positive workplace culture in farm settings transfers to better animal handling

Welfare Considerations

Animal welfare outcomes depend on the people delivering care. Supporting stockperson wellbeing, reducing isolation, and providing appropriate training and support is both ethically important for stockpeople and beneficial for animal welfare.

What You Can Do

Support rural mental health services and farming welfare organisations like Farm Crisis Network
Advocate for stockperson wellbeing to be considered in farm welfare assessment
Engage with animal welfare certification bodies about training and support requirements