Farm Animals

Pig Positive Emotions and Welfare Assessment

Research on recognizing and promoting positive emotional states in pigs, beyond minimizing negative welfare.

Key Facts

The Five Domains model explicitly includes positive mental states as a welfare goal
Pigs show play behavior when in positive welfare states
Cognitive bias tests can detect positive or negative emotional valence in pigs
Positive welfare indicators include exploratory behavior, social play, and ear posture
Moving from suffering prevention to promoting flourishing requires new assessment tools

Welfare Considerations

Animal welfare science has evolved from focusing only on preventing suffering to actively promoting positive welfare. For pigs, this means providing conditions that allow joy, curiosity, play, and social bonding, not merely absence of pain.

What You Can Do

Support farms and welfare programs that measure positive welfare indicators
Advocate for welfare standards that include positive welfare requirements
Choose pork from producers whose standards address positive emotional states