Welfare Science

Pig Welfare and Welfare and Measuring Animal Emotions 2026

Measuring animal emotions is a frontier of welfare science, with new tools enabling assessment of positive and negative emotional states in pigs.

Key Facts

Cognitive bias tests assess emotional states by measuring optimism or pessimism in judgements
Ear position and body posture provide real-time emotional state indicators in pigs
Vocalisation analysis can detect positive and negative emotional valence in pig calls
Facial action coding systems adapted for pigs detect emotional expressions reliably
Positive emotional states including play and anticipation are now measurable welfare indicators

Welfare Considerations

Measuring animal emotions enables assessment of welfare states beyond absence of pain. These tools are transforming welfare assessment from harm reduction to positive state promotion.

What You Can Do

Support research on animal emotion measurement as a welfare priority
Advocate for positive welfare assessment tools in pig certification standards
Engage with the science of animal emotions to inform your welfare advocacy