Laying Hen Welfare. Janice Siegford. Department of Animal Science

Transcription

1 Laying Hen Welfare Janice Siegford Department of Animal Science

2 Laying Hen Welfare + NAMI? Pressures on the egg industry Changes to laying hen housing Impacts of changes on hen behavior and welfare Possible impact on spent hens sent to slaughter

3 The Chicken Lays the Egg The laying hen industry is under pressure from many angles, including 1. Need to portray eggs as healthy and safe 2. Pressure to keep egg prices low ( cheap protein ) 3. Legislation mandating changes to hen housing 4. Customers demanding eggs produced certain ways

4 Legislation Mandating Changes United States - 10 state laws do/will affect how hens are housed - Attempts at federal law failed in 2012 & 2013 Canada - Phase out conventional (battery) cages by 2036 European bans on battery cages - European Union = Switzerland = 1992

5 Bloomberg Customers Demanding Cage-free

6 Impetus to Change Hen Housing Perception of hen living conditions is the big driver behind both legislation and customer demands 1. Hens have limited space 2. Production environments are not natural Both lead to the perception that chickens are not able to live like chickens

7 Popular conception of how a chicken should live?

8 Hard to reconcile with modern commercial production? Reuters/Joe Ahlquist CC 2.0: Secretaria de Agricultura e Abastecimento do Estado de São Paulo Agriculturasp

9 What do chickens need to do? (to be able to live like chickens) What are important* behaviors that hens need to perform? - Lay eggs in nests - Perch - Dust bathe gumnut ABWG Beccary * Important = science shows hens will work to do these behaviors and may become stressed or develop problem behaviors if they can t

10 Can hens do these things in battery cages? Best Food Facts.org BO-IL IND CO., LTD Best Food Facts.org

11 How about in enriched/furnished cages? Big Dutchman Best Food Facts.org Roll et al., 2009

12 In indoor non-cage/aviary systems? Jenkins et al., 2012, Iowa State University Extension Sustainable Egg Coalition Best Food Facts.org

13 Indoor Non-Cage/Aviary Josh Balk/HSUS Vencomatic Daily Iowan

14 Research: Hen Welfare in Alternative Housing Commercial-scale study - Commercial farm in Midwestern US - Lohmann White hens - Coalition for Sustainable Egg Supply Experimental research - MSU s Laying Hen Facility - Varying strains of hens - Michigan Alliance for Animal Agriculture

15 Using Resources to Perform Key Behaviors Nests for egg laying Perches for roosting and moving between areas Litter for dust bathing, foraging, and movement

16 Egg Laying in Nests Nest use in enriched system = 97% Nest use in aviary system = 97% - Periodic problems with floor eggs Nest pad stays clean in both enriched and aviary systems - Pad cleanliness: median score of 1 (out of 7)

17 Egg Laying in Nests 90-95% eggs laid in nests Brown laid most in morning White laid into afternoon Brown laid more eggs out of nest in morning Brown had more damaged eggs (~5% vs ~1.5%) HB = Hy-Line Brown; BB = Bovans Brown; DW = DeKalb White; W36 = Hy-Line W36 Villanueva et al., 2017

18 Perching in Enriched System % of Hens Perching Time of Day 52 wk 77 wk Morning 10% 12.7% Midday 11.5% 8.2% Afternoon 9% 7.5% Night NA 60% Hens may be consistent in perching location 4-23% of hens were in the nest box during the night 67% of these hens returned to the nest box the next night

19 % Space Occupied Aviaries: Perch at Night and at Height Perch & Ledge Occupancy by Level Dark Light Lower Middle Upper Big Dutchman, Inc Campbell et al., 2016a

20 Aviaries: Strain Differences in Perching White hens prefer perching on the highest tier at night Brown hens prefer lower tiers HB = Hy-Line Brown BB = Bovans Brown; DW = DeKalb White W36 = Hy-Line W36 Night perching patterns are initially disrupted after hens start going out on litter during the day Ali et al., 2017

21 Scratch Pad Use in Enriched 2% of hens forage on pad during peak time (afternoon) WATTAgNet.com Other uses: Sitting, standing, preening, & sleeping Pad gets dirty: 4 out of 7 at 52 wks 2 out of 7 at 77 wks

22 Scratch Pad Use in Enriched Largest amount of dust bathing occurred during afternoon feeding 6% of hens on pad 11% of hens on wire Aggression: Little seen in relation to hens using the pad

23 Hen Use of Litter Movement to and from litter occurs across the day - Hens move out of the enclosure in largest numbers in the morning (following aviary opening or lights on) - No surge in hens re-entering the enclosure before lights off Open and covered litter areas well used by hens - Hens move most between litter areas most in the morning Hens using perch to re-enter Hens moving between litter areas Campbell et al., 2016d

24 Number of hens on open litter Peak-lay Mid-lay Litter Use in Aviaries Litter used across the day Highest in afternoon Lowest numbers in evening Big Dutchman, Inc End-lay Campbell et al., 2016d

25 Hens Dust Bathing on Litter Hens dust bathe more in the afternoon Sometimes up to 80% of hens on litter dust bathing at once Campbell et al., 2016d

26 % time spent on litter Hens Like Some Types of Litter Better * 5 0 Straw Astro-turf Shavings Straw Campbell et al., 2016e

27 Dust Bathing & Foraging Hens forage on litter evenly across the day Hens dust bath on litter most in early afternoon Campbell et al., 2017

28 Piling on Litter Hens sometimes cluster on the litter in large groups hens in a pile - Piles lasted 1 minute to 6 hours Hard to determine why piles start No dead hens seen afterwards Campbell et al., 2016d

29 # Flights Observed Flight in Aviaries Can End Badly Outcome of Flights % 24% 23.5% Success Fail Fail = Collision/Slip/Fall 0 Peak Lay Mid Lay End Lay Campbell et al., 2016b

30 Variation among Different Strains of Hens Ali et al., 2016 HB = Hy-Line Brown; BB = Bovans Brown; DW = DeKalb White; W36 = Hy-Line W36

31 and Variation among Individual Hens Astroturf Shavings Straw Campbell et al., 2016e

32 Will alternative systems satisfy the hens? (Will they satisfy the human consumers?) Being able to do important behaviors improves welfare? - Lay eggs in nests - Perch - Dust bath Commercial cage free housing will meet public expectations? WATTAgNet.com gumnut ABWG WATTAgNet.com Beccary

33 Hen Satisfaction?

34 Public Satisfaction? VS. What do you think? Will the commercial cage-free indoor systems meet the public/consumers idea of a good life for chickens?

35 Impact on spent hens sent to slaughter? 313 million laying hens in the U.S. (as of May 2017) - Laying hens kept for weeks (depends on molting or not) 61.5 million laying hens slaughtered (2016) % of the spent hens that are depopulated yearly Where are the rest going? Would more hens be processed if they had stronger bones at end of lay? Will there be a better market for products from cage-free spent hens?

36 THANK YOU Any Questions?

37 Links Coalition for Sustainable Egg Supply Final Results. March Inside McDonald s Bold Decision to Go Cage Free. Fortune, August 16, Cage-free chickens keep winding up with broken bones, and scientists are looking for a solution. Popular Science, May 11, The Cage Free Progress Report. Compassion in World Farming. September About the US Egg Industry. American Egg Board. June Push for national chicken cage standards stalls Capital Press. January 5, ush-for-national-chicken-cage-standards-stalls

38 References Ali ABA, Campbell DLM, Karcher DM, Siegford JM* Nighttime preference for roosting height and substrate type among four strains of laying hens in an aviary system. 10th European Poultry Welfare Symposium: Book of Abstracts. 10:164. Campbell DLM, Ali ABA, Karcher DM, Siegford JM* Laying hens in aviaries with different litter substrates: behavior across the flock cycle and feather lipid content. Poultry Science. doi: /ps/pex204. Villanueva S, Ali ABA, Campbell DLM, Siegford JM* Nest use and patterns of egg laying and damage by four strains of laying hens in an aviary system. Poultry Science. 96: doi: /ps/pex104. Ali ABA, Campbell DLM, Karcher DM, Siegford JM* Influence of genetic strain and access to litter on spatial distribution of four strains of laying hens in an aviary system. Poultry Science. 95: doi: /ps/pew236. Campbell DLM, Makagon MM, Swanson JC, Siegford JM*. 2016a. Perch use by laying hens in a commercial aviary. Poultry Science. 95: doi: /ps/pew111. Campbell DLM, Goodwin SL, Makagon MM, Swanson JC, Siegford JM*. 2016b. Failed landings after laying hen flight in a commercial aviary over two flock cycles. Poultry Science 95: doi: /ps/pev270. Campbell DLM, Makagon MM, Swanson JC, Siegford JM*. 2016c. Litter use by laying hens in a commercial aviary: dust bathing and piling. Poultry Science 95: doi: /ps/pev183. Campbell DLM, Makagon MM, Swanson JC, Siegford JM*. 2016d. Laying hen movement in a commercial aviary: enclosure to floor and back again. Poultry Science 95: doi: /ps/pev186. Campbell DLM, Karcher DM, Siegford JM* Location tracking of individual laying hens housed in aviaries with different litter substrates. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 184: doi: /j.applanim