Farm Animals

Pig Welfare: Aggression and Hierarchy Science

Understanding pig social hierarchy and aggression science enables better management of group housing to minimise welfare costs of competitive behaviour.

Key Facts

Pigs establish dominance hierarchies through fighting, with stability reducing ongoing aggression
Hierarchy instability - triggered by regrouping, resource competition, and overcrowding - causes chronic welfare losses
Electronic sow feeding systems allow individual feed delivery that reduces competition without restricting hierarchy establishment
Aggression monitoring using computer vision enables early detection of problematic social dynamics

Welfare Considerations

Pig social behaviour science has advanced sufficiently to enable management approaches that work with rather than against natural hierarchy dynamics. Understanding when and why aggression escalates enables targeted interventions that reduce welfare costs while maintaining group coherence.

What You Can Do

Support pork producers implementing evidence-based group housing management informed by social behaviour science
Advocate for social behaviour monitoring to be included in precision livestock welfare programmes
Engage with research on pig social dynamics and practical aggression management approaches