Framework for Classification of Fattening Pig Vocalizations in a Conventional Farm with High Relevance for Practical Application

The vocal repertoire of the domestic pig (<i>Sus scrofa domesticus</i>) was examined in this study under conventional housing conditions. Therefore, direct behavior-associated vocalizations of fattening pigs were recorded and assigned to behavioral categories. Subsequently, a mathematical analysis of the recorded vocalizations was conducted using the frequency-based parameters of 25%, 50% and 75% quantiles of the frequency spectrum and the time-based parameters of variance of the time signal, mean level of the individual amplitude modulation and cumulative amplitude modulation. Most vocalizations were positively/neutrally assessed vocalizations constituting 59.7%, of which grunting was by far the most frequent vocalization. Negatively assessed vocalizations accounted for 37.8% of all vocalizations. Data analysis based on the six parameters resulted in a distinguishability of vocalizations related to negatively valenced behavior from those related to positively/neutrally valenced behavior. The study illustrates the relationship between auditory sensory perception and the underlying mathematical signals. It shows how pig vocalizations assessed by observations, for example, as positive or negative, are distinguishable using mathematical parameters but also which ambiguities arise when objective mathematical features widely overlap. In this way, the study encourages the use of more complex algorithms in the future to solve this challenging, multidimensional problem, forming the basis for future automatic detection of negative pig vocalizations.