Farm Animal Welfare

Pig Welfare and Positive Human-Animal Relationships

The relationship between stockpersons and pigs significantly affects pig welfare and productivity. Positive human-animal relationships reduce fear and improve welfare outcomes.

Key Facts

Pigs handled calmly and positively during routine management are less stressed at weighing and loading
Fear of humans is negatively correlated with growth rate and reproductive performance
Stockperson personality traits including patience and empathy predict welfare outcomes
Positive interactions such as stroking and play improve pig welfare indicators
Training programmes improving human-animal relationships exist and show measurable results

Welfare Considerations

The human-animal relationship on pig farms is a potent but undervalued welfare determinant. Training stockpersons in empathetic, calm handling techniques is a high-impact intervention.

What You Can Do

Advocate for stockperson welfare training in farm certification standards
Support animal welfare science education in agricultural colleges
Choose welfare-certified pork from farms that invest in stockperson training