Chicken

Exploration of skin redness and immunoglobulin A as markers of the affective states of hens

Non-invasive markers of affective states can help understanding animals' perception of situations and improving their welfare. These markers are scarce in avian species. In this study, we investigate the potential relation between alterations in facial skin redness in hens and...

Year Published: 2024Topics: Emotion, Pain, & SentienceAnimal Type: Bird, Chicken

Citation: Soulet, D., Jahoui, A., Guabiraba, R. et al. 2024. Exploration of skin redness and immunoglobulin A as markers of the affective states of hens. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 274, 106268.

Cooped up: Refinement of a Gallus gallus domesticus environment

Providing an enriched species specific environment, coupled with the principles of the 3Rs (Refinement, Reduction and Replacement) is at the heart of the poulty team team at The Pirbright Institute. Periodically reviwed custom made cage designs (Raised Floor Pens) have...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental Enrichment, HousingAnimal Type: Bird, Chicken

Citation: Matthews, B., New, R., Kanse, Y. M. et al. 2023. Cooped up: Refinement of a Gallus gallus domesticus environment. Animal Technology and Welfare 22(3), 228–230.

An effective environmental enrichment framework for the continual improvement of production animal welfare

Substrates and objects are provided to farm animals on the assumption that they improve animal welfare by enriching the environment, but these often fail to consider the extent to which an environmental enrichment (EE) improves animal welfare, if at all....

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Cattle, Chicken, Equine, Fowl, Goat, Pig, Sheep

Citation: Taylor, P. S., Schrobback, P., Verdon, M. et al. 2023. An effective environmental enrichment framework for the continual improvement of production animal welfare. Animal Welfare 32, e14.

A UV lamp for birds

For birds, access to direct sunlight (without the use of glass) is very important. If that cannot be achieved in captivity, then at the very least ensure provision of the right UV lamp. Appropriate UV lighting is not only important...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Bird, Chicken, Finch, Fowl, Other Bird, Parrot

Citation: van Es, J., Zandleven, A. 2023. A UV lamp for birds. RATEL (Journal of the Association of British and Irish Wild Animal Keepers) 50(3-4), 4-7.

The effect of short-term classical music stimulus on behavior and tonic immobility reaction of pullets

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of short-term stimulation of classical music on the behavior of pullets and to explore whether classical music as an auditory enrichment factor reduces the fear level in pullets. One hundred...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Chicken

Citation: Zhao, S., Zhang, R., Li, C. et al. 2023. The effect of short-term classical music stimulus on behavior and tonic immobility reaction of pullets. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 26(3), 386–392.

Benchmarking enrichment efforts in the US & Canada across species and enrichment categories

Enrichment is important for animal welfare and data quality. Provision of enrichment opportunities varies between species and enrichment category. However, data benchmarking these differences does not exist. Our objective was to characterize enrichment provision and associated factors across species in...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Cat, Cattle, Chicken, Dog, Ferret, Goat, Macaque, Mink, Mouse, Nonhuman Primate, Rabbit, Rat, Rodent, Sheep

Citation: LaFollette, M. R., Cloutier, S., Brady, C. M. et al. 2023. Benchmarking enrichment efforts in the US & Canada across species and enrichment categories. JAALAS 62(4), 303–316.

Evaluation of light color manipulation on behavior and welfare of broiler chickens

This experiment evaluated the effect of light manipulation on the behavior and welfare of broilers using 280-day-old Arbor-Acre chicks, which were weighed and assigned to 7 treatments having 4 replicates and 10 birds per replicate. The light treatments were as...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Chicken

Citation: Oke, O. E., Oso, O., Iyasere, O. et al. 2023. Evaluation of light color manipulation on behavior and welfare of broiler chickens. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 26(4), 493–504.

Effects of different auditory environments on behavior, learning ability, and fearfulness in 4-week-old laying hen chicks

Environmental enrichment can improve animal welfare. As a method of environmental enrichment, the effect of different auditory stimulations on the behavior response and welfare of laying hen chicks has yet to be investigated. Therefore, this study was aimed at exploring...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Bird, Chicken

Citation: Zhao, S., Cui, W., Yin, G. et al. 2023. Effects of different auditory environments on behavior, learning ability, and fearfulness in 4-week-old laying hen chicks. Animals 13(19), 3022.

The legislative, ethical, and conceptual importance of replicability in farm animal welfare science

In this commentary, we discuss three replicability issues that are specifically relevant to research regarding farm animal welfare: (1) Legislative action, and its potential economic consequences, should derive from robust and replicable research to benefit animals kept in an industrial...

Year Published: 2020Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: Cattle, Chicken, Equine, Fowl, Goat, Pig, Sheep

Citation: Nawroth, C., Gygax, L. 2020. The legislative, ethical, and conceptual importance of replicability in farm animal welfare science. agriRxiv 2020, 20203211980.

The role of sound in livestock farming—Selected aspects

To ensure the optimal living conditions of farm animals, it is essential to understand how their senses work and the way in which they perceive their environment. Most animals have a different hearing range compared to humans; thus, some aversive...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & Management, VocalizationAnimal Type: Cattle, Chicken, Equine, Fowl, Goat, Pig, Sheep

Citation: Olczak, K., Penar, W., Nowicki, J. et al. 2023. The role of sound in livestock farming—Selected aspects. Animals 13(14), 2307.