Murphy, E., Nordquist, R. E., van der Staay, F. J. 2014. A review of behavioural methods to study emotion and mood in pigs (Sus scrofa). Applied Animal Behaviour Science 159, 9-28.

The study of emotions in animals is of increasing importance to a number of disciplines such as animal welfare science and affective neuroscience. Pigs are a common farm animal species, most often reared in intensive systems. Moreover, they are increasingly being used in laboratories. To accurately understand the welfare needs of these animals, we need to be able to study emotion, the assumption being that positive emotional states contribute to good welfare, while negative states result in reduced welfare. A variety of methods have been proposed to study emotions in animals through behaviour, many of which have been applied to pigs. This review will focus on the methods by which behaviour can be used to study emotion in pigs.