Effects of straw provision, as environmental enrichment, on behavioural indicators of welfare and emotions in pigs reared in an experimental system

Marcet-Rius, Míriam; Kalonji, Galice; Cozzi, Alessandro; Bienboire-Frosini, Cécile; Monneret, Philippe; Kowalczyk, Izabela; Teruel, Eva; Codecasa, Elisa; Pageat, Patrick

doi:10.1016/j.livsci.2019.01.020

Cited by 12 publications

(15 citation statements)

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“…Finally, regarding tail movement duration, we found that the duration was significantly longer after play than after the control conditions. Some studies showed a link between an increase in tail movement duration in pigs and play behaviour or the interaction with some types of enrichment material [ 33 , 34 , 37 ]. In the present study, this behaviour was significantly higher after playing, not during it, which is a new finding.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the present study, this behaviour was significantly higher after playing, not during it, which is a new finding. It has also been suggested to be an indicator of positive emotions (or an indicator of emotions with a positive valence or outcome) by several studies conducted in different conditions [ 33 – 35 , 37 , 46 , 47 ]. The present significant difference supports the previous results about the other parameters, suggesting that the pigs were in a more positive state after playing during the strange person test than after a control situation based on the increase in tail movement duration.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this study, whether the provision of toys to solicit play behaviour in pigs was associated with a change in the human-animal relationship was investigated in an experimental setting with the use of a preliminary test called the ‘strange person’ test with minipigs, a model of domestic industrial pigs [ 11 , 36 ]. Our hypothesis was that the pigs could be in a more positive affective state after playing and then the valence of the human-animal relationship could be improved.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The provision of toys to pigs can improve the human-animal relationship

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It is now widely recognised that a positive human-animal relationship is beneficial not only for farm animals’ welfare but also for productivity and the quality of products. A better understanding of animal emotions is an important goal in disciplines ranging from neuroscience to animal welfare science, but few reliable tools exist for measuring these emotions. In this study, whether the provision of toys to solicit play behaviour in pigs is associated with a change in the human-animal relationship and the emotional state of pigs was investigated. We involved a group of sixteen mini-pigs housed in an experimental setting and the use of a preliminary test called the ‘strange person’ test. After a Control and a Play session (with medium-sized dog toys, balls with ropes), the strange person test was performed. During the test, a person wearing a colourful overall, a hood, a mask, gloves and boots (unknown person with an odd appearance) entered the pen, where 2 mini-pigs were housed, for a 2-min video recording. The strange person test results after the Play and Control sessions were compared. The results showed that the latency to approach the person (duration in seconds) and the duration for which the pig was distant from the strange person (duration in seconds) were significantly lower after the Play session than after the Control session (Degrees of Freedom =30; Statistic of the F test =39.1; p < 0.0001 and Degrees of Freedom =15; Statistic of the F test =54.3; p < 0.0001, respectively). The duration of direct contact (duration in seconds) (Degrees of Freedom =15; Statistic of the F test =14.8; p = 0.002), the need to separate the pig from the strange person (frequency) (Degrees of Freedom =30; Statistic of the F test =9.3; p = 0.005) and the duration of tail movement (duration in seconds) (Degrees of Freedom =15; Statistic of the F test =12.6; p = 0.003) were all significantly higher after the Play sessions than after the Control sessions. Overall, the results suggest a change in the human-animal relationship after the Play sessions: the pigs seemed to be less fearful and more inclined to interact with the strange person, showing a more positive emotional state. This preliminary study suggests that the provision of toys, and more precisely, the opportunity to perform object play behaviour, and sometimes, spontaneously, social play behaviour, can improve the human-animal relationship. Additional research to explore this topic thoroughly may yield interesting results because a positive emotional state of the animals and a good human-animal relationship are essential to ensure good quality of life of farm animals.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The provision of toys to pigs can improve the human-animal relationship

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“…Existen diversos tipos de EE, por ejemplo el social, que incluye interacciones animal-animal y humano-animal, el ocupacional, el físico, que involucra la calidad y cantidad de espacio disponible, y el sensorial que implica la estimulación de los sentidos (Young, 2013). Estudios en el cerdo indican que el EE incrementa la aparición de comportamientos propios de su especie como el exploratorio (Yang et al, 2018) y de juego (Martin et al, 2015), mientras que disminuye estados negativos como la agresividad (Marcet-Rius et al, 2019) y el estrés prenatal (Brajon et al, 2017), además de favorecer habilidades de aprendizaje (Jansen et al, 2009;Douglas et al, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionunclassified

“…There are diverse types of EE, for instance social EE, including animal-animal and human-animal interactions, occupational EE, physical EE, involving the quality and quantity of available space, and sensorial EE, implying senses stimulation (Young, 2013). Studies in pigs indicate that EE increases the incidence of behaviors typical from the species, such as exploratory behavior (Yang et al, 2018) and playing behavior (Martin et al, 2015), while it decreases negative states such as aggressiveness (Marcet-Rius et al, 2019) and pre-natal stress (Brajon et al, 2017), in addition to fostering learning abilities (Jansen et al, 2009;Douglas et al, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Introducción La Organización Mundial de Sanidad Animal (OIE), que cuenta con más de 150 países miembros, considera que un animal está en bienestar cuando éste está sano, cómodo, bien alimentado, seguro, es capaz de expresar su comportamiento y no sufre estados desagradables como el dolor, miedo y angustia (OIE, 2008). Desafortunadamente, la producción intensiva de animales para beneficio de los humanos ha mermado la capacidad de las unidades de producción para proveer bienestar animal (AW). En el caso particular del cerdo, la alta demanda en el consumo de su carne ha generado un incremento en su producción y en la forma en la que estos son alojados durante su cadena productiva (USDA-FAS, 2019). En granjas con sistemas de manejo semi-intensivo e intensivo, los cerdos son constantemente expuestos a eventos aversivos como el manejo agresivo por parte de los trabajadores (Tallet et al., 2018), destete precoz (Siegford et al., 2008), la formación de nuevos grupos o mezcla de animales de diferentes edades (Colson et al., 2012), (Verdon et al., 2016), exposición a temperaturas extremas (Parker et al., 2010), y alojamientos con poca o nula estimulación social y sensorial (Merlot et al., 2012; Brajon et al., 2017). Estudios indican que este tipo de condiciones genera estrés en los animales y como consecuencia un pobre bienestar. Uno de los graves problemas del estrés, entendido como una respuesta ante una amenaza real o percibida que altera la homeostasis de un organismo, (McEwen, 2000), es que si ocurre de manera prolongada o continua pueden tener graves efectos negativos. Algunos de los efectos attempts to enter into open arms and risk assessment. In the second experiment, 60 piglets were divided into 4 groups: 1) received enrichment during pregnancylactation, 2) enrichment during weaning, 3) enrichment during pregnancy-lactation-weaning and 4) without enrichment. On post-natal day 70, pigs were exposed to an elevated plus maze. Results showed that pigs from group 1 showed less anxiety during the test compared with groups 3 and 4. This suggested that environmental enrichment during pregnancy-lactation positively impacted the ability of piglets to regulate anxiety.

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