Animal welfare assessment for laying hens

In this newsletter we will provide an overview of animal-based indicators that can be used to assess laying hen welfare on the farm, using measures from the Welfare Quality® Assessment protocol (2009).

The laying hen husbandry landscape in the United States is rapidly evolving in response to consumer demands. Ethical concerns over egg-laying hens housed in conventional cages have led to an ongoing, transition from caged to cage-free housing systems. Nearly 25% of the 320 million hens are in cage-free production in 2020 and this number is expected to go up in the next 10 years (USDA-AMS, 2020). Cage-free systems often include complex designs and enrichments where birds are provided more space and are reared in bigger colonies.

Some aspects of health and welfare have improved in hens in cage-free systems; however, other unique challenges have emerged. Problems of aggressive pecking and cannibalism, keel bone fractures, and outbreaks of certain diseases can be greater in the cage-free systems compared to conventional cages.

In this regard, on-farm welfare assessment can be a valuable tool to assess the impacts of husbandry standards (housing, nutrition, and management) on physiological and behavioral elements of laying hen welfare.

 

With a number of housing systems and genetic lines being used for egg production, routine welfare assessment of hens is key to monitor and improve management strategies as well as ensuring the welfare of the birds kept under our care.

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On-farm welfare assessment protocols are developed based on principles such as appropriate housing, sound health, good feeding, and normal behavior. A number of relevant measures can be included in the protocol to assess the welfare criteria. 

How often: As often as you can; at least once during pullet stage and 3 times during laying period to include early, peak and end of lay.

How many birds: 5-10 % of the population depending on the flock size; birds should be randomly sampled to encompass all regions of the house.

Training: All personnel should be trained prior to the welfare assessment and the assessors should periodically assess the same birds for measures of agreement. A trained assessor can establish a ‘standard’ bird for measures of repeatability.

Record keeping: Assessment records enable monitoring of flock welfare throughout production and while also allowing comparison of welfare status between flocks.

Assessment of hen welfare requires proper handling techniques. Bird should be taken gently out of its pen or cage while properly securing its legs and wings. Some examples of handling with potential impacts on the bird are provided below.

(A) Tightly holding the bird in this position for prolonged period might put pressure on their lungs and impede the breathing ability of the bird

(B) In this picture the bird is not held securely risking injury to both the assessor and the hen

(C) Holding the hen by their wings might result in dislocation of wing joints

(D) Appropriately held with fingers of the assessor securing both legs while the palm supports the belly of the bird. The bird is resting comfortably against the body of the assessor

 

The following is a list of indicators from the Welfare Quality Protocol for Poultry (Welfare Quality®, 2009) that can be used to assess various aspects of hen welfare. Assessments include examinations of various body locations, such as the comb, beak, keel bone, and plumage