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Skånberg L, Holt RV, Newberry RC, Estevez I, McCrea K, Keeling LJ. Making the most of life: environmental choice during rearing enhances the ability of laying hens to take opportunities. Front Vet Sci 2024; 11:1425851. [PMID: 38948678 PMCID: PMC11211632 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1425851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2024] [Accepted: 05/13/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction The potential of aviary housing for improving laying hen (Gallus gallus domesticus) welfare will be constrained if rearing conditions limit the hens' behavioral ability to take opportunities. Incorporating theories on developmental plasticity and animal agency, this study aimed to determine: (1) whether a choice of litter and perch types during rearing would promote long-lasting changes in use of novel locations and resources, and (2) the influence of timing of choice provision. Methods Laying hen chicks were assigned to either a "Single-choice" (one litter and perch type) or "Multi-choice" environment (four litter and perch types) during "Early" (day 1-week 4) and "Late" rearing (week 5-15). The environments were switched in half of the 16 pens in week 5, resulting in a 2 × 2 factorial design with four choice environment by period combinations. The allocation of perch and litter space was the same across all treatment combinations. In week 16, all groups were moved to standard aviary laying pens (Laying period, week 16-27). Results When first moved to the laying pens, hens with Multi-choice in either or both rearing periods were quicker to spread out in their pen than hens with Single-choice throughout rearing. Multi-choice in Early rearing also reduced the latency to use novel elevated structures (perches and nests) in the laying pens. Multi-choice during Late rearing increased success in finding and consuming hidden mealworms (tested in weeks 9-17) and increased the proportion of eggs laid on elevated nesting trays. Numerically, hens switched from Multi-choice to Single-choice in week 5 used the outdoor range less than hens switched from Single-choice to Multi-choice. Discussion These results support the hypothesis that offering multiple resource choices during rearing improves hens' ability to make the most of new opportunities by being more proactive in exploring and exploiting newly available resources. In different opportunity challenges, hens showed positive outcomes in response to choice during Early, Late or both stages of rearing, suggesting that best results can be obtained by offering environmental choice throughout rearing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lena Skånberg
- Department of Applied Animal Science and Welfare, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Regine V. Holt
- Department of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ås, Norway
| | - Ruth C. Newberry
- Department of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ås, Norway
| | - Inma Estevez
- Neiker Basque Institute for Agricultural Research, Basque Research and Technology Alliance, Vitoria, Spain
- IKERBASQUE Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain
| | - Kirste McCrea
- Department of Applied Animal Science and Welfare, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Linda J. Keeling
- Department of Applied Animal Science and Welfare, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
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Tarım B, Demirtaş ŞE, Bozkurt M, Üstündağ AÖ, Eray O, Ahlat O, Bayır HÖ, Akşit H, Kamanlı S, Özkan S, Yalçın S, Tüzün AE. Feed form and perch design do not interact to production performance, gastrointestinal tract traits, behaviour and welfare of laying hens reared in enriched cages. Br Poult Sci 2024; 65:165-178. [PMID: 38372652 DOI: 10.1080/00071668.2024.2308278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
1. It was hypothesised that perch material and design may affect utility and maintenance energy demand in laying hens, affecting their feed form preferences and daily feed consumption. Accordingly, perch design and feed form on hen performance, gastrointestinal tract functions and some behavioural and welfare-related traits were studied in laying hens (ATAK-S) reared in enriched colony cages from 24 to 40 weeks of age.2. The experiment was a 2 × 2 factorial investigating two perch materials and design (circular steel or mushroom-shaped plastic) and feed form (mash or crumble). A total of 396 hens were randomly assigned to one of the four treatment groups with nine replicates each (11 birds per replicate).3. Except for feeding behaviour and prevalence of foot pad dermatitis at 40 weeks of age, the modification of the perch design did not have a significant effect on the traits examined. Mushroom-shaped plastic perches reduced feeding behaviour (p < 0.01) and the incidence of foot pad dermatitis at 40 weeks of age (p < 0.001).4. Performance traits were not affected by feed form. Intake, final body weight and FCR for crumble-fed laying hens were greater than those fed mash (p < 0.01).5. Hens fed mash had higher (p < 0.01) relative gizzard weights along with lower (p < 0.05) pH values, pancreatic chymotrypsin, amylase and lipase activities (p < 0.05), and duodenal absorption surface areas (p < 0.01). Ultimately, this gave higher protein digestibility (p < 0.05) compared to those receiving crumble.6. In conclusion, in enriched cage rearing systems, mashed feed was preferred over crumble to efficiently maintain productive performance. Compared to circular steel, plastic mushroom-shaped perches were associated with better footpad health and welfare.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Tarım
- Department of Breeding, Poultry Research Institute, Ankara, Turkey
| | - Ş E Demirtaş
- Department of Breeding, Poultry Research Institute, Ankara, Turkey
| | - M Bozkurt
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Aydın, Turkey
| | - A Ö Üstündağ
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Aydın, Turkey
| | - O Eray
- Department of Breeding, Poultry Research Institute, Ankara, Turkey
| | - O Ahlat
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey
| | - H Ö Bayır
- Department of Breeding, Poultry Research Institute, Ankara, Turkey
| | - H Akşit
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Balıkesir University, Balıkesir, Turkey
| | - S Kamanlı
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Kırşehir Ahi Evran University, Kırşehir, Turkey
| | - S Özkan
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Ege University, İzmir, Turkey
| | - S Yalçın
- Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Ege University, İzmir, Turkey
| | - A E Tüzün
- Koçarlı Vocational School, Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Aydın, Turkey
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Anderson MG, Johnson AM, Jacobs L, Ali ABA. Influence of Perch-Provision Timing on Anxiety and Fearfulness in Laying Hens. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:3003. [PMID: 37835608 PMCID: PMC10572007 DOI: 10.3390/ani13193003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2023] [Revised: 09/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/21/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Perches can enhance laying hen welfare, but their effectiveness might be age-dependent. We investigated early and late perch access effects on anxiety and fear in pullets through attention bias (AB) and tonic immobility (TI) tests. Pullets (n = 728) were raised with or without multi-level perches: CP (continuous perch access: 0-37 weeks), EP (early perch access: 0-17 weeks), LP (late perch access: 17-37 weeks), and NP (no perch access). AB was conducted in weeks 21 and 37 (n = 84/week), and TI was performed in weeks 20, 25, and 37 (n = 112/week). CP hens fed quicker than EP, LP, and NP in AB at weeks 21 and 37 (p ≤ 0.05). CP and NP feeding latencies were stable, while EP and LP fed faster at week 37 (p ≤ 0.05). CP had the shortest TI at week 20 (p < 0.05). CP and LP had the shortest TI in weeks 25 and 37 (all p ≤ 0.05). Unlike NP, CP reduced anxiety and fear. Adding perches during laying (LP) raised anxiety at week 21, adapting by week 37, and removing pre-laying perches (EP) worsened fear at weeks 20 and 25 and anxiety at week 21, recovering by week 37. Adding or removing perches prior to the lay phase increased fear and anxiety, an effect that disappeared by week 37 of age. Our study indicates that continuous perch access benefits animal welfare compared to no perch access at all.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mallory G. Anderson
- Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA; (M.G.A.); (A.M.J.)
| | - Alexa M. Johnson
- Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA; (M.G.A.); (A.M.J.)
| | - Leonie Jacobs
- Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA;
| | - Ahmed B. A. Ali
- Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA; (M.G.A.); (A.M.J.)
- Animal Behavior and Management, Department of Veterinary Hygiene and Management, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University, Giza 12211, Egypt
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Liste G, Estevez I. Phenotype alteration causes long-term changes to the social strategies of victimised birds. Sci Rep 2023; 13:2421. [PMID: 36765194 PMCID: PMC9918478 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-29577-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Phenotype alterations can occur naturally during the life span of the domestic fowl. These alterations increase the risk to become a target of aggression and may cause a severe impact on the welfare of affected birds. We analysed the behavioural consequences of sequential phenotype alterations and their long-term effects within stable social groups of adult birds differing in group size. Phenotypically homogeneous groups, with 100% or 0% marked individuals, and heterogeneous groups, with 70%, 50% or 30% marked birds, were housed at constant density in groups of 10, 20 or 40. We applied sequential phenotype alterations to homogeneous groups (by marking or unmarking birds) and compared their behavioural response to heterogeneous groups considered controls. Results show that aggression was greatly affected by phenotype alteration but, unexpectedly, group size did not play any relevant role modulating social responses. Aggression was directed towards the first altered birds and was significantly higher than in control groups. Long term effects were detected, as victimized individuals failed to engage in aggression at any time and adapted their behaviour to minimize aggressive encounters (e.g. high perch use). Therefore, we provide evidence of long-lasting submissive strategies in stable groups of adult domestic fowl, highlighting the relevance of phenotype alteration on the social dynamics of affected birds. Phenotype alterations could help explain much of the targeted aggression observed in producing flocks which severely affects animal welfare.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guiomar Liste
- Neiker, Animal Production Department, P.O. Box 46, 01080, Vitoria, Spain.
| | - Inma Estevez
- Neiker, Animal Production Department, P.O. Box 46, 01080, Vitoria, Spain.
- Ikerbasque, Basque Foundation for Science, Alameda Urquijo 36-5 Plaza Bizkaia, 48011, Bilbao, Spain.
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Sinclair M, Lee NYP, Hötzel MJ, de Luna MCT, Sharma A, Idris M, Islam MA, Iyasere OS, Navarro G, Ahmed AA, Curry M, Burns GL, Marchant JN. Consumer attitudes towards egg production systems and hen welfare across the world. FRONTIERS IN ANIMAL SCIENCE 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fanim.2022.995430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Concurrent with the growth of the human population, global egg production has experienced exponential increase in the last 50 years. This exponential growth has been made possible through the refinement of intensive egg production systems, predominately, conventional cages. The significant amount of liberties conventional cages withhold from hens has also formed the basis of growing challenge to the industry in many countries, with some major regions such as the European Union making sweeping regulatory reform. These reforms were driven by well-organised animal advocacy groups, fuelled by aligning consumer attitudes and behaviours. In the absence of concerted hen welfare advocacy and cage-free movement in much of the rest of the world, it is difficult to know what consumer attitudes and knowledge may exist outside the European Union. This study aimed to contribute to this knowledge by surveying 4,292 members of the public at random across 14 geographically and culturally diverse countries (Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Chile, China, India, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Sudan, Thailand, UK and USA). The findings show that most participants across all countries eat eggs, most state that it matters to them that hens do not suffer in the process of producing the eggs they eat, and importantly, a majority of participants in most countries (except Nigeria) would prefer (to varying degrees) to purchase eggs from hens not kept in cages. Participant knowledge of the dominant system of egg production in their country varied greatly, with frequent uncertainty. This suggests a need for clarity and consistency in communication to consumers during campaigns, in order to mitigate confusion. Most importantly, although these similarities existed across the countries, important regional differences were also present. This underscores the importance of understanding animal and agricultural issues by geopolitical region, and of locally tailoring strategy. The findings of this research will be of strategic use to egg producers and animal welfare advocates alike in understanding and appropriately catering to consumers in the future.
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Mandel R, Bracke MBM, Nicol CJ, Webster JA, Gygax L. Dairy vs beef production - expert views on welfare of cattle in common food production systems. Animal 2022; 16:100622. [PMID: 36109300 DOI: 10.1016/j.animal.2022.100622] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2022] [Revised: 07/18/2022] [Accepted: 07/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Consumers' views and concerns about the welfare of farm animals may play an important role in their decision to consume dairy, meat and/or plants as their primary protein source. As animals are killed prematurely in both dairy and beef industries, it is important to quantify and compare welfare compromises in these two sectors before the point of death. Seventy world-leading bovine welfare experts based in 23 countries were asked to evaluate the likelihood of a bovine to experience 12 states of potential welfare concern, inspired by the Welfare Quality® protocol. The evaluation focused on the most common beef and dairy production systems in the experts' country and was carried out separately for dairy/beef calves raised for red meat, dairy/beef calves raised for veal, dairy/beef calves raised as a replacement, and for dairy/beef cows. The results show experts rated the overall likelihood of a negative welfare state (i.e. welfare risk) to be higher in animals from dairy herds than from beef herds, for all animal categories, regardless of whether they were used to produce milk, red meat or veal. These findings suggest that consuming food products derived from common dairy production systems (dairy or meat) may be more harmful to the welfare of animals than consuming products derived from common beef production systems (i.e. from animals solely raised for their meat). Raising awareness about the linkage between dairy and meat production, and the toll of milk production on the welfare state of animals in the dairy industry, may encourage a more sustainable and responsible food consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roi Mandel
- Section of Animal Welfare and Disease Control, Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1870 Frederiksberg C, Denmark; Behavioural Ecology Group, Section for Ecology & Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Marc B M Bracke
- Wageningen Livestock Research, Wageningen University and Research, 6708 WD Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | | | - John A Webster
- Professor Emeritus at the University of Bristol and Former Head of the Bristol Vet School, BS40 5DU Langford, United Kingdom
| | - Lorenz Gygax
- Animal Husbandry & Ethology, Albrecht Daniel Thaer-Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences, Humboldt-University of Berlin, 10099 Berlin. Germany
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Norman KI, Adriaense JEC, Nicol CJ. The impact of early structural enrichment on spatial cognition in layer chicks. Behav Processes 2019; 164:167-174. [PMID: 31077757 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2019.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2019] [Revised: 04/08/2019] [Accepted: 05/07/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
The aim of the study was to determine whether early access to elevated structures affects spatial navigational abilities. Ninety six day-old chicks were reared in 16 pens. Eight pens were provided with A-frame perches with an attached platform and a ramp. Eight pens had no elevated structures. At 14-15 days of age 48 chicks were tested in a battery of navigational tasks: a detour test, jump test and rotated floor test (RFT). The remaining 48 chicks received the same tests at 28-29 days of age. Chicks reared with elevated structures were faster at completing the detour test (P = 0.045). Older chicks were more likely to turn left in the detour test (p = 0.013) and were more successful in the jump test (69% vs 31% completion, p = 0.001). There was no treatment effect on use of intra or extra-maze cues in the RFT, but the proportion of chicks using intra-maze cues declined between the first (0.76) and second (0.43) repeat of the RFT (p = 0.038), particularly for chicks reared with elevated structures. We conclude that bird age or developmental stage may have a predominant influence on spatial navigation and physical ability, but early experience of elevated structures had some mediating effects which require further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kate I Norman
- Bristol Veterinary School, University of Bristol, Langford House, Bristol, BS40 5DU, UK.
| | - Jessie E C Adriaense
- Bristol Veterinary School, University of Bristol, Langford House, Bristol, BS40 5DU, UK; Department of Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14 (UZA1), 1090, Vienna, Austria; SCAN-Unit, Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, 1010, Wien, Austria.
| | - Christine J Nicol
- Royal Veterinary College, Hawkshead Lane, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, AL9 7TA, UK.
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Eusemann BK, Baulain U, Schrader L, Thöne-Reineke C, Patt A, Petow S. Radiographic examination of keel bone damage in living laying hens of different strains kept in two housing systems. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0194974. [PMID: 29742164 PMCID: PMC5942800 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0194974] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2017] [Accepted: 03/14/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
A high prevalence of deviations and fractures of the keel bone is a widespread welfare problem in laying hens. The aim of this study was to experimentally investigate this multifactorial problem throughout the laying period and to compare the prevalence and severity in different layer lines and different housing systems. High performing white (WLA) and brown (BLA) pure bred layer lines and low performing white (R11, G11) and brown layer lines (L68) were kept in both single cages and a floor housing system. A total of 97 hens (19 or 20 from each line, respectively) were repeatedly radiographed in the 35th, 51st and 72nd week of age. Fracture prevalence increased with age (p<0.001). The proportion of deviated keel bone area increased only for caged BLA, WLA and R11 hens (p<0.05) and was significantly higher for caged WLA and R11 hens compared to floor-housed WLA and R11 hens in the 72nd week of age (p<0.05). In the 72nd week of age hens in the floor housing system showed significantly more fractures than hens kept in cages (p<0.05). Prevalence of keel bone deviations was significantly higher in the white layer line R11 but significantly lower in the white layer line G11 compared to both brown layer lines and WLA (p<0.05). Brown layers showed significantly more fractures than white layers (p<0.05) in the 51st and 72nd week of age. Within the brown layers there was a significantly lower prevalence of deviations (p<0.05) and fractures (p<0.05) in the low performing (L68) compared to the high performing line (BLA). Our results show a different development of keel bone damage in caged compared to floor-housed hens under experimental conditions. Additionally, they indicate genetic effects on keel bone damage.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ulrich Baulain
- Institute of Farm Animal Genetics, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Mariensee, Germany
| | - Lars Schrader
- Institute of Animal Welfare and Animal Husbandry, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Celle, Germany
| | - Christa Thöne-Reineke
- Institute of Animal Welfare, Animal Behavior and Laboratory Animal Science, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Antonia Patt
- Institute of Animal Welfare and Animal Husbandry, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Celle, Germany
| | - Stefanie Petow
- Institute of Animal Welfare and Animal Husbandry, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Celle, Germany
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Pettersson IC, Weeks CA, Nicol CJ. The effect of ramp provision on the accessibility of the litter in single and multi-tier laying hen housing. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2016.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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Kiyma Z, Küçükyılmaz K, Orojpour A. Effects of perch availability on performance, carcass characteristics, and footpad lesions in broilers. Arch Anim Breed 2016. [DOI: 10.5194/aab-59-19-2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract. In the modern broiler industry, solutions are still being sought to improve conditions or eliminate problems related to issues such as animal welfare, health, and meat quality brought by intensive production systems. Therefore, this experiment was conducted to study effects of perching on growth performance, carcass characteristics, and footpad lesions (FPLs) in broiler chickens. A total of 300 broiler chicks (Ross 308) were distributed into control and perch groups with three replicates including equal numbers of males and females. The perch group contained two single perches in each pen. Analysis of camera records revealed that on average 7.36 % of the birds using perches. Perch use did not have any effect on growth performance (P > 0.05), but had a positive effect on FPLs (P < 0.001). Carcass yield and proportions of carcass parts were not affected by perch availability (P > 0.05). Thigh and breast meat color was less yellow (P < 0.005) in the perch group compared to the control group, where breast meat color was more red (P < 0.01). Birds in the perch group had brighter breast meat (P < 0.001). The weight of livers in the perch group was lower than in the control group (P < 0.01). These findings suggest that perch use has positive effect on FPLs. The reduction of redness in the breast could indicate that perch use may have a positive effect on breast inflammation. The potential positive effects of adapting perch use to intensive conditions should be further investigated.
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