Position on Swine CastrationMaria BeluContext:Swine castration is a long-standing practice in the United States and has recently come under scrutiny as welfare issues have become more important. The castration of male piglets was carried out to address a phenomenon known as "boar taint". When male pigs reach puberty, they secrete a pheromone known as Androstenon and an intestinal product, Skatole, which give the meat an unpleasant odor that many consumers find intolerable (AVMA, 2013). Castration alleviates this problem but because it is commonly performed without analgesia or anaesthetic, it causes acute and prolonged pain and stress (Carrol et al, 2006). Below I will briefly discuss several scientific articles that discuss the advantages and disadvantages of physical castration, current possible alternatives, and my recommendations. My recommendations are not only based on what can be achieved practically by the pig industry, but also provide the best welfare for pigs. Good well-being can be defined as minimizing pain, decreasing stress, and increasing productivity, which is a sign of good health. The welfare of pig castration: The main disadvantage and concern with the welfare of castration is pain and stress. The pain felt by the piglet during castration was studied and reviewed by Carrol et al. (2006) who confirmed what researchers Prunier et al., (2005) had previously investigated, namely that castration causes physiological and behavioral signs of pain and stress. Markers of these were increased cortisol, lactate and heart rate. Piglets exhibited pain-specific behaviors after castration, including vocalizations, tremors, and twitching. Castrated piglets spend more time at the teat, which is known to help the animals cope with stress (Moya...... middle of paper ...... performance, body composition, behavior and protein acute phase. Animal Husbandry Sci. 132 (1-3):53-59. Guay, G., Salgado, G., Thompson, B., Davis, A., Sapkota, A., Chaya, W., McGlone, J.J. 2013. Behavior and management of physical problems - and immunologically castrated market pigs on farm and destined for market. surgery on behavior and acute responses of 5-day-old piglets. Applied Animal Behavior Science 133-145. Effects of castration, tooth resection, or tail docking on pigs. Plasma metabolites and stress hormones in young pigs 8, 189-194.