Ruminations: A Pig's Ear Really Is a Silk Purse ... Social Harmony in the Pigsty

"Pigs are highly social, and they have a very complex and high cognitive capacity to recognize familiar individuals."
"The nose is very important for pigs not just for communication and exploration, but for social interaction."
"[A victim['s anxiety levels notably decreased after contact, whereas] when the third party contacted the aggressor, we can detect a reduction in the frequency of the aggression directed at the other victim."
Giada Cordoni, PhD in Evolutionary Biology, University of Turin

"When a third person comes in, it's an opportunity for someone to hear you. In a conflict, the other person isn't understanding your perspective. The third party is going to at least understand your perspective."
"The third party contains the conflict and the emotions associated with it ... We automatically regulate and behave better when someone else is there."
Louisa Weinstein, conflict mediation specialist, Conflict Resolution Centre, London

Piggy in the Middle! A bizarre new study has revealed that when two porkers are fighting, a third bystander pig can intervene to cut the tension

It is no secret that in the animal kingdom some animals are seen to be more intelligent than others. Pigs are among the intelligent groups. And now a recently published study confirms that they're also empathetic conflict interveners. Pigs, according to the study, appear to possess cognitive capacity sufficient in measure to be aware of and empathize when two other pigs reach a disagreement. Upon which the third pig will intervene to reduce tension levels.

It was observed by the study participants that bystander pigs occasionally intervene following a conflict through approaching one of the two disagreeing parties to initiate physical contact by the calming effect of their snouts, rubbing either of the parties with their ears or sitting up against one of the opponents. A pig was also seen to place its entire head over the body of one of the two combatants, an effective calming affect.

Anxiety levels diminish when a victim is given physical contact following a fight, while aggressors that might be approached are then less likely to attack the victim -- or other members of the group -- again. This resolution strategy involving a third pig is described as a "triadic conflict mechanism". This is the first time such intervention has been observed in the species. Though the propensity to intervene in disputes has been identified previously in humans, wolves, primates and birds.

Researchers observed and recorded interactions between pigs from June to November 2018 and noted aggressive behaviours such as head-knocking, pushing, biting and lifting of a victim

Italian researchers in 2018 observed 104 pigs for six months on a farm near Turin in northern Italy. There, the pigs were free to forage through a 213-hectare woodland area where they could move and behave naturally. In the process, hours of video data were collected and analyzed. It was found that domestic pigs can take to a wide array of post-conflict strategies minutes following a fight.

This leads the two fighting pigs to engage in reconciliation or a third pig not involved in the conflict can provide unsolicited physical contact with the aggressor or the victim, most frequently with the use of the snout. Bystander pigs clearly have the cognitive and empathetic skills to detect emotions such as anxiety in other pigs. It also suggests that the third pig knows when the moment is right to intervene, how to do it effectively. Although physical contact while not solicited by either of the antagonistic animals, proves an effective remedy to conflict.