Lindsay Peters, an Extension Specialist at the Iowa Pork Industry Center, and Dr. Anna Johnson, Professor of Animal Welfare at Iowa State University, summarized a peer-reviewed journal article about a study that employed an innovative method for improving both attitudes and behaviors in those who take care of pigs on farms.
While caretakers generally want to treat animals well, they may not always know how to respond to challenging situations. This study explored providing caretakers with best practices and a way to anticipate multiple situations on a swine farm, then tested how the training influenced both caretakers and pigs.
Major Finding
Researchers tested a training program on a sow farm to improve caretaker attitudes and behavior by using cognitive behavioral intervention. Cognitive behavioral intervention is a process by which individuals learn to become experts in their own behavior.
The research found that caretakers who took a training program focused on pig behavior had fewer negative behaviors towards pigs compared to caretakers who did not take the training. Training programs that focused on modifying caretaker attitudes and behaviors led to increased reproductive performance and decreased pig fear, ultimately increasing pig welfare. In addition, caretakers who completed the training were more likely to remain employed on the pig farm six months after the training than caretakers who did not.
Why It Matters
Humane pig handling is an expectation from farm to fork. Therefore, developing effective training programs for caretakers to understand pig behavior is essential to improving pig welfare.
How the Research Was Conducted
A training program was tested to determine if training could increase pig welfare by improving caretaker attitudes and, thus, their behavior towards the pigs. In the study, one group of caretakers received the training, and the other group did not. Researchers collected data using four questionnaires which measured caretaker attitudes toward their job, behavioral beliefs (items relating to beliefs about the caretaker’s own behavior), pig behavior, and caretaker behavior. Caretakers completed the questionnaires both before and after the training. The study informed the researchers that the training program was effective for a wide range of caretakers working in a variety of situations on pig farms.
Learn More
To learn more about how researchers employed this training to modify swine caretaker behaviors and attitudes, read the full peer-reviewed journal article.