Pig welfare assessment is evolving to include positive indicators alongside disease and injury measures. Play behaviour, tail posture, social affiliation, and exploratory activity provide evidence of good welfare that negative measures alone cannot capture.
Pigs in positive welfare states engage in extensive play, social exploration, and rooting behaviour. These behaviours are suppressed in overcrowded or barren environments even when clinical disease is absent. Measuring positive indicators provides farmers with targets beyond disease avoidance — toward actively creating conditions that support animal flourishing. Research suggests that positive welfare states correlate with better production outcomes, creating economic as well as ethical incentives for positive welfare investment.