Gödselbadande hos gris – ett djurvälfärdsproblem?

Despite the pig’s natural tendency to keep clear of its feces and defecate away from its nesting site, pigs in modern meat production sometimes defecate and urinate in their resting area and lay in their own feces. The purpose of this bachelor thesis was to investigate if this behaviour poses a threat to animal welfare, how it relates to animal welfare legislation, why it occur and to what frequency. A questionnaire was distributed to Swedish pig farmers and reports from animal welfare controls requested from the Swedish country governments. The results show that temperature is the main factor influencing feces wallowing in pigs as shown from the questionnaire. Farmer’s state that their pigs do wallow in feces relatively often and that ventilation often is not enough to maintain an appropriate climate for the pigs during the summer months. The majority of the pig farmers say that the temperature in their production system would need improvement. Results from animal welfare controls reveal that legislation relating to cleanliness in pigs and the pig’s availability to a clean and dry resting area did not meet the requirements in about 10 % of the cases. It was also discovered that not all cases of potential feces wallowing in pigs was corresponding with a non-compliance during an animal welfare control. Swedish animal welfare legislation to date does not require pig production systems to accommodate for the pig’s natural behaviour to wallow in mud, although it aims to allow outlet for natural behaviour and wallowing in mud is part of the pig’s behaviour repertoire to maintain an appropriate body temperature. Further research is needed to give answers to how important wallowing in mud is to the pig, how willing they are to work for wallowing opportunities, under what circumstances wallowing is required, what preferences pigs have in relation to wallows and how best to integrate wallowing or wallowing like facilities in modern pig production. The government’s new proposal for an update of the Swedish animal welfare legislation states that where there is a strong motivation to perform an animal’s natural behaviour and the behaviour give forth a functional feedback when performed, the behaviour therefore should be accommodated by the legislation. This study indicate that the pigs motivation to wallow in mud may be included among those behaviours and also that situations where pigs wallow in feces seems to impose some degree of suffering and decreased animal welfare

Social Support in a Novel Situation Aimed for Stunning and Euthanasia of Pigs May Be Increased by Familiar Pigs-A Behavioural Study with Weaners

Simple Summary None of the approved methods for stunning pigs prior to slaughter is ideal from an animal welfare viewpoint. A method involving use of high-expansion foam to encapsulate nitrogen gas has recently been proposed as an alternative humane stunning method. The method is effective, but the foam itself induces some distress to individually exposed pigs. This study evaluated the effects of companionship from a familiar or unfamiliar conspecific during air-filled foam exposure on pigs' behavioural response. Companionship was found to be related to lower activity levels and fewer escape attempts. When comparing companionship with familiar and unfamiliar conspecifics, it was found that pig pairs with familiar individuals spent more time in physical contact during foam exposure, possibly seeking social support. The results highlight the importance of contact with conspecifics when studying animal welfare and demonstrates the potential benefits of maintaining stable familiar pig groups up to the point of stunning at slaughter. The common method of stunning pigs using high concentration carbon dioxide prior to slaughter poses an animal welfare issue, as the gas is aversive. Proof of concept for using nitrogen gas encapsulated in high-expansion foam as an alternative non-aversive method for stunning pigs has recently been presented. However, the individually tested pigs showed distress-related responses to foam exposure, regardless of whether it was nitrogen- or air-filled. This study examined the effect of companionship from a familiar or unfamiliar pig on behaviours in 72 nine-weeks old pigs during exposure to air-filled foam. Escape attempts were observed by 75% of solitary pigs, 42% of pigs with unfamiliar conspecifics, and 33% of pigs with familiar conspecifics. Familiar pig pairs clearly preferred social contact during foam exposure, whereas this was not as clear in unfamiliar pig pairs, and their motivation for social contact could have multiple explanations. The results from this study highlight the importance of contact with conspecifics when studying animal welfare and suggest that familiarity between pigs is important for social support, thus emphasizing the importance of maintaining social groups to reduce distress in pigs at slaughter

Familiarity and personality affect social support in juvenile pigs in a foam stunning situation

Animals in distress can experience an attenuation of their stress response if provided companionship. This thesis studied the social support phenomenon in 72 nine-week old juvenile pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) of the crossbreed Yorkshire/Hampshire. Pigs were placed either alone or with a familiar or an unfamiliar age-matched conspecific of the opposite sex in a stunning box. Half of the groups were exposed to an air-filled foam inside of the box and the other half was exposed to an empty box. All pigs underwent an individual behaviour assessment at eight-weeks of age for a personality evaluation. The results of this thesis indicate that pigs were startled by the foam exposure as suggested by changes in activity, escape attempts and vocalisations. Indications of social buffering were found with regards to performance of escape attempts, altered activity patterns and engagement in affiliative social behaviours. Differences were observed in the social behaviour of familiar and unfamiliar pig pairs, suggesting that familiarity between pigs should be preferred from a welfare perspective. Correlations between possible personality traits and the pigs’ behaviour in the foam box study can be understood within the coping style framework. The results suggest that pigs show variation in their need for social support and that personality could have been a bias in interpreting the pigs’ behavioural response to the foam stunning situation. This thesis provide support that the welfare of pigs during foam stunning may be improved if pigs are stunned in groups of familiar individuals

Familiarity and personality affect social support in juvenile pigs in a foam stunning situation

Animals in distress can experience an attenuation of their stress response if provided companionship. This thesis studied the social support phenomenon in 72 nine-week old juvenile pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) of the crossbreed Yorkshire/Hampshire. Pigs were placed either alone or with a familiar or an unfamiliar age-matched conspecific of the opposite sex in a stunning box. Half of the groups were exposed to an air-filled foam inside of the box and the other half was exposed to an empty box. All pigs underwent an individual behaviour assessment at eight-weeks of age for a personality evaluation. The results of this thesis indicate that pigs were startled by the foam exposure as suggested by changes in activity, escape attempts and vocalisations. Indications of social buffering were found with regards to performance of escape attempts, altered activity patterns and engagement in affiliative social behaviours. Differences were observed in the social behaviour of familiar and unfamiliar pig pairs, suggesting that familiarity between pigs should be preferred from a welfare perspective. Correlations between possible personality traits and the pigs’ behaviour in the foam box study can be understood within the coping style framework. The results suggest that pigs show variation in their need for social support and that personality could have been a bias in interpreting the pigs’ behavioural response to the foam stunning situation. This thesis provide support that the welfare of pigs during foam stunning may be improved if pigs are stunned in groups of familiar individuals