Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28728387›Full record

ArticleAsian-Australasian journal of animal sciences2019

Effects of environmental enrichment on behaviour, physiology and performance of pigs - A review.

Mbusiseni Vusumuzi Mkwanazi, Cypril Ndumiso Ncobela, Arnold Tapera Kanengoni, Michael Chimonyo

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Asian-Australasian journal of animal sciences, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 38 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
38citing papers in PubMed
5.8field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

38 citing papers in PubMed, 84 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Feeding of Undocked Pigs: Effects of Feed Components and Feed Composition.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2026
    Review
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Article
  13. Review
  14. Swine industry perspectives on the future of pig farming.Animal welfare (South Mimms, England) · 2024
    Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Review
  19. Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Mbusiseni Vusumuzi MkwanaziAnimal and Poultry Science, School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 3209, South Africa.
Cypril Ndumiso NcobelaAnimal and Poultry Science, School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 3209, South Africa.
Arnold Tapera KanengoniVeterinary Services and Research Department, Joburg Zoo, Private Bag X 13, Parkview 2122, South Africa.
Michael ChimonyoAnimal and Poultry Science, School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 3209, South Africa.
University of KwaZulu-Natal · ZAUniversity of South Africa · ZA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This paper aims to critically analyse and synthesise existing knowledge concerning the use of environmental enrichment and its effect on behavior, physiology and performance of pigs housed in intensive production systems. The objective is also to provide clarity as to what constitutes successful enrichment and recommend when and how enrichment should be used. Environmental enrichment is usually understood as an attempt to improve animal welfare and to a lesser extent, performance. Common enrichment objects used are straw bedding, suspended ropes and wood shavings, toys, rubber tubings, colored plastic keys, table tennis balls, chains and strings. These substrates need to be chewable, deformable, destructible and ingestible. For enrichment to be successful four goals are essential. Firstly, enrichment should increase the number and range of normal behaviors; secondly, it should prevent the phenomenon of anomalous behaviors or reduce their frequency; thirdly, it should increase positive use of the environment such as space and fourthly it should increase the ability of the animals to deal with behavioral and physiological challenges. The performance, behavior and physiology of pigs in enriched environments is similar or in some cases slightly better when compared with barren environments. In studies where there was no improvement, it should be borne in mind that enriching the environment may not always be practical and yield positive results due to factors such as type of enrichment substrates, duration of provision and type of enrichment used. The review also identifies possible areas that still need further research, especially in understanding the role of enrichment, novelty, breed differences and other enrichment alternatives.

Indexed as

ExplorationInstinctive BehavioursIntensive Production SystemsNoveltyPig Welfare

Identifiers

PMID28728387
PMCPMC6325398
OpenAlexW2711725057

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.