Modelling the dynamic activity of broiler chickens in response to step-wise changes in light intensity

The relationship between physical activity and leg health in the broiler chicken

“…Other studies have 10 reported a strong positive correlation between gait score and body weight (Kestin et al, 1992;Sorensen et al, 1999;Vestergaard and Sanotra, 1999;Kestin et al, 2001;Kristensen et al, 2006a), although this is sometimes confounded when severely lame birds (scores 4 and 5) are included since an inability to feed causes a loss in body weight. At a slaughter age of 6 weeks, a broiler chicken's skeleton is not mature, so 15 heavier birds put more strain on soft bones and less fully formed joints.…”

“…The 20 light intensity treatment comprised step-wise changes in light intensity alternating between an illuminance of 10 lx and 200 lx throughout the photoperiod, as used in our previous research (Kristensen et al, 2006a). There were 4 step changes each day (i.e.…”

“…Another method found to be effective in encouraging activity in broiler chickens is providing step changes in light intensity (Kristensen et al, 2006a). The 20 colour and source of artificial light can also affect activity; low-frequency fluorescent lighting lowers activity compared with high-frequency (Boshouwers and Nicaise, 1992) and activity is higher in red than in blue light both at the same intensity, and at higher intensities (Prayitno et al, 1997).…”

Lighting in the shackling area: conciliating broiler welfare with labor comfort

“…Using controlled and reduced lighting during catching minimizes possible physical and (or) emotional damages during this operation (Kristensen et al, 2006). Blue light is recommended during catching, as the visual perception of broilers is greatly impaired, and therefore, they are not distressed.…”

Recent advances in the analysis of behavioural organization and interpretation as indicators of animal welfare

“…The visualization of animal agents in simulated environments has led to their description as animats, the first example of which was Reynold's boids that could mimic behaviour of flocks, herds or schools using just three simple rulesof-thumb (Reynolds 1987). Examples of ABMS in animal welfare have almost exclusively considered the effects of physical environment on farm animal behaviour: the effect of lighting on broiler chickens (Kristensen et al 2006) and the effect of space and resource availability in pigs and broilers (Stricklin et al 1995(Stricklin et al , 1998Gonyou et al 1997;Collins & Sumpter 2007). As making real-life changes to the physical environment is costly, such models are appealing and the number and scope of environments tested can far exceed those that could be tested in the real world.…”