Behaviour and animal welfare indicators of broiler chickens housed in an enriched environment

The present study aimed to assess the influence of adding straw bales, step platforms, and laser projectors as environmental enrichment resources on the behaviour and welfare indicators of broiler chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus). A sample of 4,000 day-old male Cobb® 500 birds was used. The exper...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2021-09, Vol.16 (9), p.e0256963-e0256963
Main Authors: Lourenço da Silva, Marconi Italo, Almeida Paz, Ibiara Correia de Lima, Chaves, Gustavo Henrique Coelho, Almeida, Ianê Correia de Lima, Ouros, Caio Cesar Dos, Souza, Silvia Regina Lucas de, Milbradt, Elisane Lenita, Caldara, Fabiana Ribeiro, Satin, Ana Júlia Garcia, Costa, Gabriel Augusto da, Glavina, Andreia Soares Gonçalves
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal behavior
Animal Husbandry - methods
Animal sciences
Animal welfare
Animal Welfare - statistics & numerical data
Animals
Behavior
Behavior, Animal - physiology
Biology and Life Sciences
Birds
Broilers (Poultry)
Cameras
Chickens
Chickens - physiology
Comfort
Engineering and Technology
Enrichment
Evaluation
Exploratory behavior
Exploratory Behavior - physiology
Fear - psychology
Housing, Animal - organization & administration
Humans
Indicators
Lasers
Locomotion
Locomotion - physiology
Male
Methods
Myopathy
Platforms
Poultry
Projectors
Social Sciences
Straw
Troughs
Veterinary colleges
Veterinary medicine
Zoology
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Summary:The present study aimed to assess the influence of adding straw bales, step platforms, and laser projectors as environmental enrichment resources on the behaviour and welfare indicators of broiler chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus). A sample of 4,000 day-old male Cobb® 500 birds was used. The experimental treatments consisted of No Environmental Enrichment (NEE)-similar to a conventional environment; and Environmental Enrichment (EE)-environment enriched with straw bales, step platforms, and laser projectors, with four replicates per treatment of 500 animals. Behavioural characteristics (ethological observation through cameras, grab test, and modified touch test) and animal welfare indicators (pododermatitis and dorsal cranial myopathy) were assessed. The birds submitted to the EE treatment exhibited greater exploratory activity and expression of behaviours associated with comfort and welfare, whereas those in the NEE group were less active. Locomotion and play fighting behaviour decreased and behaviours associated with comfort increased as age advanced. The frequencies of interaction with laser spots and birds lying around straw bales were the highest in the 1st week (P
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0256963