The collection of blood to monitor circulating concentrations of metabolites is an important tool for research to better describe the nutritional and health status of animals. In pigs, venepuncture requires the animal to be restrained, which can be stressful and painful, and large veins are also not very visible which complicates the procedure. An alternative is catheterization, but this involves a surgical procedure which induces an inflammatory response that can mask certain metabolic responses, and needs the housing of pigs in isolated pens. This study aimed to test alternative blood collection procedures and associated scaled down methods to assess circulating metabolites in growing pigs. In Exp 1, four blood collection methods were tested in pigs (n=6 females, 61 kg body weight): (1) catheterization; (2) venepuncture with the aid of a handheld infra-red imaging tool; (3) ear pricking with a lancet to collect drops of blood in filter papers; and (4) blood sucking Dipetalogaster maxima parasites. Blood collection was done at four time points using each method in a randomised order after feeding the pigs a liquid glucose meal. Methods were compared for the relative ease of collection, animal stress indicators, and obtained concentrations of cortisol and glucose. In Exp 2, glucose sensors with an intradermal needle were secured on the neck of pigs (n=8 females, 50 kg body weight); pigs were also equipped with a jugular catheter to serve as a control. Circulating glucose concentrations analysed by the sensor were obtained during five days with two diets (high starch then a high fat). Both basal concentrations and postprandial glucose curves during four hours after two meal test procedures were also compared with those obtained by blood sampling through the catheter. Ongoing laboratory and data analysis will reveal the best suitable approach in minimising the negative impact of blood collection in pigs used in experimental research. The PIGWEB project has received funding from European Union’s Horizon 2020 under Grant Agreement No 101004770.