Pigs seem less stressed if their barn is scented with lavender

Farmed pigs appear to find life less stressful when they can sniff the scent of lavender a few times a day.

When it is sprayed into the pigs’ pens, lavender oil leads to less aggression and self-directed tail biting, as well as more time spent lying down, a study has found. This suggests the plant extract might help young pigs cope with the constraints of commercial farming better, says Alberto Elmi at the University of Pisa in Italy.

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