Crowding has been shown to have a negative impact on welfare and productivity of pigs in small groups. Large groups of pigs may be better at using space more efficiently. Space requirements were assessed in large and small groups to see how the pigs were impacted. Both large and small groups were affected similarly through health and productivity variables by crowding. Pigs housed in larger groups were sooner affected by space restriction though the growth depression was much more gradual for them.
Effects of Housing Finishing Pigs in Varying Group Sizes and Space Allocations (full article)
