How to design a pig house for efficient flow and better animal welfare

Why pig house design matters

Designing a modern pig house is about much more than fitting the required number of animals into a building.

The layout influences how pigs move, rest, eat and interact. It also affects how easily staff can inspect animals, carry out daily tasks, clean the sections and manage feeding, ventilation and manure.

A good pig house should therefore be designed as one connected production system.

The aim is to create a logical flow for pigs and people while providing an environment that supports animal welfare, hygiene and efficient daily management.

Start with the production flow

A pig house should be designed around the way pigs move through the production system.

Depending on the farm, this may include:

Breeding → gestation → farrowing → weaning → nursery → growing → finishing

Each stage has different requirements, and the transitions between stages need to be considered from the beginning.

A good layout can reduce unnecessary movement and handling while making it easier to maintain clear groups and predictable routines.

This becomes particularly important on larger farms, where a small inefficiency in the layout can be repeated hundreds of times every day.

Good pig flow starts with good planning.

Design sections around the animals

Different categories of pigs have different requirements for space, flooring, feeding, temperature and management.

A modern pig house should therefore be divided into logical sections that reflect the production cycle.

This makes it easier to:

• Keep groups together
• Move pigs efficiently
• Adapt feeding to the production stage
• Control the climate in each section
• Clean and prepare sections between batches
• Monitor animals
• Carry out daily routines

European legislation already distinguishes between different pig categories and sets specific requirements for floor space and flooring according to animal type and weight.

But legal minimum requirements should be regarded as a starting point rather than a complete design specification.

Space is about more than square metres

Space allowance is obviously important, but the way space is organised is just as relevant.

Pigs need areas where they can rest, eat, drink, move and interact without unnecessary competition.

European research on growing-finishing pigs has shown that both space allowance and pen size can influence behaviour, welfare indicators and performance. In one Dutch study, higher stocking density and larger group size had unfavourable effects on several welfare and performance indicators.

This illustrates an important design principle:

The question is not simply how much space is available, but how effectively that space works for the animals.

Create functional areas within the pen

Pigs naturally use different areas of their environment for different activities.

The design of the pen can help encourage this separation.

For example, the location of:

• Resting areas
• Feeders
• Drinkers
• Solid and slatted flooring
• Gates
• Enrichment
• Ventilation inlets

can influence how pigs use the available space.

Research from Wageningen University & Research highlights the importance of pen features and functional areas in influencing pig behaviour, cleanliness and ammonia emissions. The design of floor, roof and other pen features can encourage pigs to separate resting and elimination areas.

This is an important connection between animal behaviour and building design.

A well-designed pen should work with the pig's natural behaviour rather than against it.

Flooring connects welfare and hygiene

Flooring is one of the most important elements in pig house design.

The floor needs to provide:

• Good grip
• Stable footing
• Appropriate resting conditions
• Effective drainage
• Safe movement
• Practical manure management

European legislation requires floors to be smooth but not slippery and suitable for the size and weight of the pigs. It also specifies requirements for slatted floors, including maximum opening widths and minimum slat widths.

But good flooring design goes beyond compliance.

The relationship between solid floor, slatted floor, temperature, ventilation and pen layout can influence whether pigs keep the resting area clean or use it for elimination.

This means flooring should be considered together with the overall pen design, rather than selected as an isolated component.

Feeding should be part of the layout

The feeding system should be integrated into the pen design from the beginning.

The position and capacity of feeders can influence:

• Access to feed
• Competition
• Animal movement
• Congestion
• Cleaning
• Daily staff routines

The same applies to drinking points.

EU legislation requires pigs over two weeks of age to have permanent access to sufficient fresh water, while group feeding systems must ensure appropriate access to feed.

The practical objective is simple:

Animals should be able to access feed and water without unnecessary competition, while staff should be able to inspect and maintain the equipment easily.

This becomes even more important when the farm uses phase feeding or individual feeding strategies.

Design for group housing

Group housing requires careful consideration of movement and social interactions.

When animals are mixed, competition and aggression can occur, particularly around resources.

Research on group-housed pregnant sows has shown that increased space allowance can reduce aggressive behaviour and injuries after regrouping.

This does not mean that simply making pens larger solves every problem.

The layout of the pen, the location of resources, group size, feeding system and opportunities for animals to move away from each other all interact.

EFSA's European welfare assessment also identifies social stress and restriction of movement among important welfare consequences that need to be considered in pig housing.

Good group housing gives pigs enough space and a layout that allows them to use that space effectively.

Farrowing areas require a different approach

Farrowing is a good example of why there is no single ideal pen design for every stage of production.

The sow needs space and suitable conditions for resting, feeding, drinking and nest-building, while the piglets need protection and access to the udder.

European legislation requires loose farrowing pens to include measures to protect piglets, such as farrowing rails, and requires an unobstructed area behind the sow to facilitate natural or assisted farrowing.

European research also shows that alternative farrowing systems can be designed in different ways, including systems that allow the sow to divide the pen into functional areas.

This makes farrowing-pen design a balance between:

sow movement + piglet safety + hygiene + management + welfare

Staff flow matters too

A pig house is also a workplace.

Every day, staff need to:

• Inspect animals
• Feed and water pigs
• Move animals
• Clean sections
• Check equipment
• Treat sick animals
• Handle manure systems
• Monitor climate
• Maintain feeding and ventilation equipment

The layout should make these tasks as straightforward as possible.

Long unnecessary routes, difficult-to-access equipment or complicated animal movements can increase labour requirements and make routines harder to follow consistently.

The best layout is one that makes the correct daily routine the easiest routine to perform.

Make animals easy to observe

Good design should also make it easy for staff to see the animals.

A well-planned pen and corridor layout can improve visibility and make it easier to identify:

• Sick or injured pigs
• Changes in behaviour
• Problems with feeding or drinking
• Dirty or wet areas
• Aggression
• Differences in body condition

This is particularly important in group-housed systems, where individual animals can otherwise be more difficult to observe.

Design should therefore support not only animal movement, but also human observation.

Integrate ventilation into the building design

Ventilation should not be treated as something added after the building layout has been decided.

Building dimensions, room volume, pen arrangement, air inlets, exhaust points and internal partitions all affect the way air moves through the building.

The objective is to provide the pigs with appropriate temperature and air quality while avoiding harmful drafts and large differences between areas.

Housing design can also influence emissions.

Research from Wageningen University & Research has developed models for designing pig housing systems with lower ammonia emissions by considering emission sources such as manure channels, slatted floors and solid floors.

This is another example of why the different parts of the building need to be designed together.

Design for cleaning and maintenance

A good pig house should also be easy to clean and maintain.

This means thinking about:

• Accessible surfaces
• Drainage
• Pen partitions
• Gates
• Feeders
• Drinkers
• Slatted floors
• Manure channels
• Technical equipment

before construction begins.

If equipment is difficult to reach, cleaning becomes more time-consuming. If water cannot drain efficiently, drying becomes more difficult.

Small design decisions can therefore have a large effect when repeated across an entire farm.

Good design makes good management easier.

Keep the production flow logical

The most efficient layout is rarely the one with the shortest distance between every individual point.

It is the one that creates a logical overall flow.

For example:

Feed delivery → storage → feeding system → animals

and:

Piglets → nursery → growing → finishing → loading

while:

Manure → collection → storage

should be organised so that the different flows interfere with each other as little as possible.

The same principle applies to staff.

The aim is to minimise unnecessary crossing, handling and backtracking.

Design for the complete production system

It is easy to design individual areas independently.

A farrowing unit may work perfectly on its own. A gestation unit may also work perfectly on its own.

But the complete farm can still be inefficient if the movement between the two is poorly planned.

The same applies to feeding, ventilation, manure handling and staff routines.

A modern pig farm should therefore be considered as one connected system:

Animals + housing + feeding + ventilation + water + manure + people + management

When these elements are designed together, the result can be more efficient and easier to manage.

Design with flexibility in mind

A pig house is a long-term investment.

Production methods, labour availability, animal welfare requirements and technology can all change during the lifetime of a building.

Flexibility should therefore be considered during the design stage.

This can include:

• Adaptable pen sizes
• Flexible feeding systems
• Accessible technical areas
• Logical routes for future changes
• Space for additional equipment
• Sections that can be adapted to different production strategies

The goal is not to predict exactly how the farm will operate in 15 or 20 years.

It is to avoid making future changes unnecessarily difficult.

What does an optimal pig house design achieve?

There is no universal blueprint for the perfect pig house.

The optimal design depends on the farm's production system, herd size, building conditions, feeding strategy and future plans.

But a well-designed pig house should aim to provide:

1. Efficient pig flow
   Animals can move between production stages with minimal unnecessary handling.
2. Functional pen layout
   Space is organised around resting, feeding, drinking and movement.
3. Good animal welfare
   The housing environment supports movement, resting and appropriate social interaction.
4. Efficient feeding and watering
   Resources are easy for pigs to access and easy for staff to manage.
5. Good staff flow
   Inspection, feeding, cleaning and handling can be carried out efficiently.
6. Effective hygiene and manure management
   Surfaces, drainage and manure systems are designed for practical daily operation.
7. Integrated climate control
   Ventilation and building design work together.
8. Flexibility
   The farm can adapt as production requirements change.

Good design creates good flow

The best pig houses are not necessarily the ones with the most technology or the largest number of pens.

They are the ones where the different elements work together.

Good design can make it easier to:

• Move pigs
• Observe animals
• Feed accurately
• Maintain good hygiene
• Control the climate
• Clean efficiently
• Reduce unnecessary labour
• Maintain good animal welfare
• Adapt to future requirements

Good pig house design is about creating flow – for the pigs, for the people and for the entire production system.

From concept to complete pig farm

Designing a modern pig farm requires more than selecting individual pieces of equipment.

Penning, feeding, ventilation, flooring, water, manure handling and digital management should be considered as parts of the same production system.

At SKIOLD, we work with complete pig farm solutions where the production flow is considered from the beginning – from the overall farm concept to individual sections and daily management routines.

The right design depends on the farm's production goals, herd size, building conditions and future plans.

A well-designed pig farm should make efficient, healthy and responsible production easier – every day.

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Sources and further reading

European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) – Welfare of pigs on farm
EFSA – Welfare of pigs on farm

European Union – Council Directive 2008/120/EC on the protection of pigs
EUR-Lex – Council Directive 2008/120/EC

Wageningen University & Research – Review on alternatives to farrowing crates
Wageningen University & Research – Review on alternatives to farrowing crates

Wageningen University & Research – A Simple Model as Design Tool for Low-Ammonia Emission Pig Housing
Wageningen University & Research – Low-ammonia pig housing design

Space allowance and pen size affect welfare indicators and performance of growing pigs
Livestock Science – Space allowance and pen size affect welfare indicators and performance

Effects of space allowance on the welfare of dry sows kept in dynamic groups
Applied Animal Behaviour Science – Space allowance and welfare of group-housed sows

European research – Pen design, functional areas and pig behaviour
Animal – Concrete outdoor runs and pig housing design