Effects of increasing environmental complexity on the physical activity of broiler chickens

Bizeray, Dorothée; Estévez, Inma; Leterrier, Christine; Faure, J

doi:10.1016/s0168-1591(02)00083-7

Cited by 145 publications

(152 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Mounting and dismounting perches, and the act of perching itself, may exercise the broiler musculoskeletal system in a different way from standing and walking, and may therefore strengthen legs. Indeed, Bizeray et al (2002) found a tendency towards improved morphology of the tibia when broiler chickens were required to traverse barriers to access feeders. They hypothesized that the physical activity associated with perching on, and stepping on to and over these barriers contributed to this effect.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The influence of providing perches and string on activity levels, fearfulness and leg health in commercial broiler chickens

Bailie¹,

O’Connell²

2015

Animal

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The aim of this study was to assess the effect of providing environmental enrichment in the form of perches and string on the behaviour and welfare of commercial broiler chickens. Houses containing~23 000 broiler chickens were assigned to one of four treatments in a 2 × 2 factorial design. Treatments involved two levels of access to perches (P) (present (24/house) ' +P' or absent ' −P') and two levels of access to string (S) (present (24/house) ' +S' or absent ' −S'). All houses contained windows, and 30 straw bales were provided from day 10 of the rearing cycle. Treatments were applied in one of four houses on a single farm, and were replicated over four production cycles. Behaviour and leg health were observed in weeks 3 to 5 of the rearing cycle. Production performance and environmental parameters were also measured. There was an interaction between perches and age in the percentage of birds observed lying, with higher percentages of birds observed lying in the +P treatment than in the −P treatment during weeks 4 and 5. There was also a significant interaction between string and age in the percentage of birds observed in locomotion, with higher percentages observed in locomotion in the −S treatment than in the +S treatment during weeks 4 and 5. There was also an interaction between string and age in average gait scores, with lower gait scores in the +S treatment than in the −S treatment during weeks 3 and 5 but not within week 4. Daytime observations showed that perches and strings were used frequently, with one bout of perching occurring approximately every 80 s/perch, and one bout of pecking at string occurring every 78 s/string on average. There was a significant effect of age on use of perches (P < 0.001) and string (P < 0.001), with perching peaking during week 5 and string pecking peaking during week 3. We conclude that commercial broilers in windowed houses with access to straw bales display an interest in additional enrichment stimuli in the form of perches and string, and therefore that these stimuli have the potential to improve welfare. In addition, provision of string as a pecking device appeared to positively influence walking ability. However, this effect was numerically small, was only shown in certain weeks and was not reflected in the other leg health measure (latency to lie). The results also showed an apparent negative effect of string and perches on the activity levels of birds (recorded away from the immediate vicinity of these enrichments) towards the end of the production cycle. These results emphasise the need for further research into optimum design and layout of enrichment stimuli for modern broilers in windowed houses to ensure that their provision leads to clear welfare benefits.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The influence of providing perches and string on activity levels, fearfulness and leg health in commercial broiler chickens

Bailie¹,

O’Connell²

2015

Animal

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“…A observação dos comportamentos em 15 minutos contínuos foi proposta por Bizeray et al (2002) últimos dias de cada semana, dentro das repetições, no total de 54 vídeos por tratamento.…”

Section: Introductionunclassified

Comportamento de poedeiras criadas a diferentes densidades e tamanhos de grupo em ambiente enriquecido

Pereira

Batista

Sanches³

et al. 2013

Pesq. agropec. bras.

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Resumo -O objetivo deste trabalho foi determinar diferenças comportamentais entre poedeiras criadas sob diferentes densidades e tamanhos de grupo, em condições de ambiente enriquecido. Foram utilizadas poedeiras Isa Brown com idade entre 30 e 32 semanas alojadas em galpões de escala reduzida e distorcida. As aves foram criadas durante 28 dias, em baias com cama de maravalha, poleiro e ninho. Foram avaliados dois tamanhos de grupos (6 e 12 aves) e duas densidades de criação (774 e 1.440 cm² por ave), em arranjo fatorial com três repetições. Em amostras de vídeo de 15 min, foram registrados as frequências e os tempos de expressão dos comportamentos: arrumar penas, banho de areia, bater asas, beber água, bicar, coçar a cabeça, ciscar, comer, empoleirar, esticar perna, perseguir, sentar e visitar o ninho. Foram observados efeitos significativos dos tratamentos e da interação entre eles. O grupo de seis aves manifestou aumento da frequência de comportamentos que indicam maior frustração das aves, independentemente da densidade. O tamanho de grupo é o fator mais importante para o bem-estar das aves.Termos para indexação: bem-estar animal, etologia, sistemas de criação, zootecnia de precisão. Behavior of hens reared at different densities and group sizes in an enriched environmentAbstract -The objective of this work was to determine the behavioral differences among laying hens reared at different densities and group sizes, in an enriched environment. Isa Brown laying hens with ages from 30 to 32-week-old, in small-sized and deformed pens, were used. Hens were raised during 28 days in bays with shavings bedding, perch and nest. Two group sizes were evaluated (6 and 12 fowls) and at two rearing densities (774 and 1,440 cm² by fowl) in a factorial arrangement with three replicates. In fifteen-minute video footages, it was recorded the frequency and the expression period for the following behavior were recorded: feather scratching, sand bath, wing beating, drinking water, pecking, head scratching, earth scratching, eating, perching, leg stretching, pursuing, sitting, and nest visiting. The treatments and the interaction between them had significant effects. The six-hen group increased the frequency of behavior types that indicate fowl frustration, regardless of density. The group size is the most important factor for hen well-being.

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“…Lapse-time video recording samples of 15 min in the morning, and 15 min in the afternoon were randomly chosen to be observed, as suggested by Bizeray et al (2002) and Estevez et al (2003).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Studying the activity responses of broiler chickens to an increase in the complexity of the rearing environment, Bizeray et al (2002) found that the use of barriers within the house, maintaining the same environmental conditions, led to changes in the feeding and drinking patterns. Broiler activity is known to be influenced by environmental temperature.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Broiler breeder behavior and egg production as function of environmental temperature

Pereira

Nääs

Romanini

et al. 2007

Rev. Bras. Cienc. Avic.

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Effects of increasing environmental complexity on the physical activity of broiler chickens

Cited by 145 publications

References 36 publications

The influence of providing perches and string on activity levels, fearfulness and leg health in commercial broiler chickens

The influence of providing perches and string on activity levels, fearfulness and leg health in commercial broiler chickens

Comportamento de poedeiras criadas a diferentes densidades e tamanhos de grupo em ambiente enriquecido

Broiler breeder behavior and egg production as function of environmental temperature

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