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Influence of Increased Freedom of Movement on Welfare and Egg Laying Pattern of Hens Kept in Aviaries
| Contributor(s):: Nannoni, Eleonora, Buonaiuto, Giovanni, Martelli, Giovanna, Lizzi, Gabriele, Trevisani, Giacomo, Garavini, Gloria, Sardi, Luca
This work investigates the effects of structural modifications on the welfare level and laying patterns of hens in a three-tier commercial aviary system. Four experimental groups were used: C (control, housed in a traditional aviary); LM (longitudinal movement, in which internal partitions were...
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The effects of environmental enrichment on the behaviour of cockatiels (Nymphicus hollandicus) in aviaries
| Contributor(s):: Stevens, April, Doneley, Robert, Cogny, Aurore, Phillips, Clive J. C.
Most research to enrich the environment of psittacines in captivity has focused on foraging. Little is known about the importance of bathing substrates for enrichment of their environment, despite this being a natural behaviour that is rarely possible in captivity. Twelve captive-bred, adult...
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The effect of perches and aviary tiers on the mating behaviour of two hybrids of broiler breeders
| Contributor(s):: Gebhardt-Henrich, Sabine G., Jordan, Anja, Toscano, Michael J., Würbel, Hanno
Broiler breeders are kept for the production of fertile eggs. They face serious welfare problems like aggressive behaviour of the males towards females during mating. Furthermore, broiler breeders are usually kept without perches which are a highly valued resource in chickens. The aim of the...
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Influence of nest site on the behaviour of laying hens
| Contributor(s):: Lentfer, Tine L., Gebhardt-Henrich, Sabine G., Fröhlich, Ernst K. F., von Borell, Eberhard
Low rates of nest acceptance by laying hens are a major problem in commercial poultry farming operations with aviary systems, leading to costly manual collection and cleaning of mislaid eggs. To gain knowledge about factors affecting nest use, laying hens’ preferences for different nest locations...
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Development of physical activity levels in laying hens in three-dimensional aviaries
| Contributor(s):: Kozak, Madison, Tobalske, Bret, Springthorpe, Dwight, Szkotnicki, Bill, Harlander-Matauschek, Alexandra
Levels of physical activity are known to be associated with a number of health and welfare parameters in laying hens, such as stronger bones. Despite this, we presently lack insight into the development of physical activity throughout the life of the laying hen. To close this knowledge gap, we...
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Location tracking of individual laying hens housed in aviaries with different litter substrates
| Contributor(s):: Campbell, Dana L. M., Karcher, Darrin M., Siegford, Janice M.
The laying hen industry is phasing out conventional cages in favor of other housing systems such as the aviary – designed to improve hen welfare by providing additional space and resources including a litter area. However, we do not know whether individual hens significantly vary in the time they...
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Perch use by laying hens in aviary systems
| Contributor(s):: Brendler, Christina, Schrader, Lars
Perching preference in laying hens is well analysed in several experimental studies. However, information about perch use on farm is scarce. The present study highlights perching preferences at daytime and night-time in 19 laying hen flocks on 18 farms with symmetric (n=9) and asymmetric (n=10)...
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Use of space by domestic chicks housed in complex aviaries
| Contributor(s):: Kozak, Madison, Tobalske, Bret, Martins, Candace, Bowley, Stephen, Wuerbel, Hanno, Harlander-Matauschek, Alexandra
To improve the understanding of the development of locomotor capacity in layer hens, we measured how female laying hen chicks (n=120) of four different strains (LSL-lite, Hyline Brown, Dekalb White, Lohmann Brown; 3 groups of 10 chicks per line) utilized the ground, the air, elevated horizontal...
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Feeding from perches in an aviary system reduces aggression and mortality in laying hens
| Contributor(s):: Sirovnik, Janja, Stratmann, Ariane, Gebhardt-Henrich, Sabine G., Würbel, Hanno, Toscano, Michael J.
Some commercial aviary systems for laying hens allow birds to access feed by standing on perches instead of platforms. Despite reports that providing laying hens with perches relates to reduced aggression and cannibalism, and increased prevalence of keel bone damage, the impact of feeding from...
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The effect providing space in excess of standards on the behaviour of budgerigars in aviaries
| Contributor(s):: Phillips, Clive J. C., Farrugia, Cameron, Lin, Chun-han, Mancera, Karen, Doneley, Bob
Budgerigars housed in conventional cages have no opportunity for some normal behaviours, in particular flight, and develop stereotyped behaviours. Increasingly aviaries are used for groups of budgerigars but the minimum space requirement to support normal behaviour is not known. We compared the...
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Use of aerial perches and perches on aviary tiers by broiler breeders
| Contributor(s):: Gebhardt-Henrich, Sabine G., Toscano, Michael J., Würbel, Hanno
Perching, especially during the night, is an innate behaviour of chickens and the provision of perches is mandatory for laying hens in multiple countries. We examined whether broiler breeders of the fast (Ross 308) and relatively slow (Sasso) growing hybrids used aerial perches (P) and perches on...
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Pond use by captive African penguins (Spheniscus demersus) in an immersive exhibit adjacent to human bathers
| Contributor(s):: Ozella, L., Favaro, L., Carnovale, I., Pessani, D.
Nonhuman animals in zoos are exposed to a continuous human presence, which affects their behaviors and welfare. However, little is known about what role the "visitor effect" has on penguins in captivity. The African penguin ( Spheniscus demersus) is an endangered species commonly housed...
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Zoo playgrounds: a source of enrichment or stress for a group of nearby cockatoos? A case study
| Contributor(s):: Collins, C. K., Marples, N. M.
There is increasing evidence that in some circumstances, zoo visitors may be aversive stimuli to nonhuman animals housed in zoos. Yet, most previous research has focused on primates with little attention given to numerous other species who are housed in zoos. The focus animal of this project was...
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Modification of aviary design reduces incidence of falls, collisions and keel bone damage in laying hens
| Contributor(s):: Stratmann, A., Frohlich, E. K. F., Gebhardt-Henrich, S. G., Harlander-Matauschek, A., Wurbel, H., Toscano, M. J.
Non-cage housing systems for laying hens such as aviaries provide greater freedom to perform species-specific behavior and thus are thought to improve welfare of the birds; however, aviaries are associated with a high prevalence of keel bone damage (fractures and deviations), which is a major...
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The veterinarian's role in preventing and controlling disease in exotic animals in assisted-care facilities
| Contributor(s):: Hess, L.
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Abnormal behavior in caged birds kept as pets
| Contributor(s):: Hoek, C. S. van, Cate, C. ten
There are a limited number of studies dealing with abnormal behavior in caged birds kept as pets. However, these studies demonstrate the presence of abnormal behavior in both songbirds and parrots. Ethological studies on these birds, as well as studies on domestic and zoo birds, indicate that...
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Welfare, health, and hygiene of laying hens housed in furnished cages and in alternative housing systems
| Contributor(s):: Rodenburg, T. B., Tuyttens, F. A. M., Sonck, B., Reu, K. de, Herman, L., Zoons, J.
The aim of this review was to compare welfare, health, and hygienic status of laying hens housed in furnished cages and in alternative systems. In alternative systems (floor housing and aviaries), birds have more freedom of movement and a more complex environment than in furnished cages. However,...
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A potential metric of the attractiveness of bird song to humans
| Contributor(s):: Blackburn, T. M., Su, Shan, Cassey, P.
The prevalence of passerines (mostly oscines, or songbirds) in international bird trade suggests that the possession or production of a song that is attractive or desirable to people may contribute to the likelihood of a species being traded. Testing this is difficult because we lack a general...
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Welfare of non-traditional pets
| Contributor(s):: Schuppli, C. A., Fraser, D., Bacon, H. J.
The keeping of non-traditional or 'exotic' pets has been growing in popularity worldwide. In addition to the typical welfare challenges of keeping more traditional pet species like dogs and cats, ensuring the welfare of non-traditional pets is complicated by factors such as lack of knowledge,...
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Mitigating the effects of depression in elderly males through environmental manipulation: A field experiment
| Contributor(s):: Holcomb, Ralph John
