Advances in Pig Welfare

Advances in Pig Welfare, Second Edition continues its complete coverage of the field with fully updated information and analysis of current issues in the key areas of pig welfare assessment, management and improvement. It is a comprehensive survey covering both recent developments and reviews of historical welfare issues. The book has been expanded with 12 new chapters addressing the most relevant and significant issues in industry with a more global perspective. The book is still divided into sections, starting with an introduction to pig welfare research. Section two moves on to review the needs of pigs, including chapters on the physical environment and the social and emotional needs of the animals. The third section covers the key welfare issues in the pig’s lifecycle from birth to slaughter with coverage of weaning, aggression, and pig-human interactions. Emerging topics such as prenatal stress, individual differences and organic farming are the focus of section four. The fifth section covers assessment of pig welfare and the attitudes towards pig welfare amongst farmers and other stakeholders. Written by an international team of leaders in the field, the book continues to be a useful resource for practicing vets involved in welfare assessment, welfare research scientists and students, and indeed anyone with a professional interest in the welfare of pigs. Provides the most recent research applications in pig welfare Analyzes on-farm assessments of pig welfare, an extremely important marker for the monitoring of real welfare with impacts and implications for changes in other husbandry systems Includes factors that affect pig welfare, how to practically control these factors, and the impact that these factors have on animal health New chapters include topics on economics, husbandry, environment, climate change, and precision livestock