Outdoor pig production offers significant welfare benefits through freedom of movement and natural behaviour expression, but also presents specific challenges around climate exposure and parasite management.
Outdoor rearing meets many of pigs' core behavioural needs — rooting, foraging, wallowing, and normal social groupings. Key welfare risks include sunburn in white-skinned breeds without adequate shade or wallow access, internal parasite burden without rotation management, and piglet cold stress in wet conditions. Welfare monitoring protocols for outdoor systems include body condition scoring, lesion scoring, and parasite burden assessment.