Effects of floor type during rearing and of beak trimming on ground pecking and feather pecking in laying hens

Blokhuis, H.J.; Haar, J.W. van der

doi:10.1016/0168-1591(89)90030-0

Cited by 88 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Feather pecking is suggested to be a substitute for normal feeding behaviour in the absence of adequate foraging incentives (Hoffmeyer, 1969;Blokhuis and Van der Haar, 1989). Therefore, it is expected that nutritional factors might reduce feather pecking behaviour if these factors increase the level of feeding related behaviour (Van Krimpen et al, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Effects of dietary energy concentration, nonstarch polysaccharide concentration, and particle sizes of nonstarch polysaccharides on digesta mean retention time and gut development in laying hens

Krimpen

Kwakkel²,

Peet–Schwering

et al. 2011

British Poultry Science

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1. From an experiment with 504 laying hens (ISA Brown strain, 18-40 weeks of age), 90 40-week old hens were used for determining digesta mean retention time (MRT) and gut weight development. This experiment comprised 6 dietary treatments according to a 2 × 3 factorial design. Factors were dietary apparent metabolisable energy (AME) concentration (11·8 vs 10·6 MJ/kg), insoluble nonstarch polysaccharides (NSP) concentration (65 vs 134 g/kg), and fine vs coarse particle sizes of added NSP. Titanium recovery in different gut segments was used as an indicator of MRT. 2. Increasing NSP concentration prolonged MRT in the crop (68 vs 34 min) and total foregut (91 vs 57 min) compared with control NSP. Reducing energy concentration prolonged MRT in the colon (26 vs 7 min), and total hind gut (30 vs 9 min), compared with control energy. Overall MRT was not affected by dietary treatments. 3. Increasing NSP concentration increased relative weights of the empty proventriculus-gizzard and its contents by 30% (25·2 vs 19·4 g/kg) and 18% (15·4 vs 13·0 g/kg), respectively, compared with control NSP diets. 4. MRT in the foregut was prolonged as daily insoluble NSP intake increased, and this was more pronounced in hens given coarsely ground NSP, compared with finely ground. A prolonged MRT in the foregut seemed to indicate a higher level of satiety, which may contribute to a lower feather pecking pressure in laying hens.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Effects of dietary energy concentration, nonstarch polysaccharide concentration, and particle sizes of nonstarch polysaccharides on digesta mean retention time and gut development in laying hens

Krimpen

Kwakkel²,

Peet–Schwering

et al. 2011

British Poultry Science

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“…Experience in early life concerning the validation of the ground as an incentive for pecking may exert a significant influence on pecking behaviour later. This has already been shown in an experiment in which rearing on litter caused laying hens to featherpeck less compared to hens reared on wire floors (Blokhuis and van der Haar, 1989). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 73%

Effects of pecking incentives during rearing on feather pecking of laying hens

Blokhuis¹,

Haar²

1992

British Poultry Science

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1. Additional straw or grain was supplied to hens during rearing in floor pens with litter floors. During lay, hens were housed in pens with partly-littered partly-slatted floors. The effects on foraging behaviour and feather pecking were studied and feather damage was scored at 17, 30 and 42 weeks of age. 2. Supply of grain in the litter during rearing caused an increase in ground scratching. Ground pecking also tended to increase. Supply of straw had no significant effect on the observed behaviours. 3. Feather damage in the laying period was significantly reduced by providing grain during rearing. A similar tendency was found for groups that received straw during rearing. On the basis of the behavioural observations it was concluded that this better plumage cover was caused by less feather pecking. 4. The frequency of pecking at food was decreased during rearing by the supply of grain. This could not be explained solely on the basis of a lower food intake. Apparently the efficiency of pecking at food had changed as well. Behavioural data from the laying period suggest that this change was of a more permanent character. 5. The incentive value of the ground and the substrate covering it might be increased by the supply of grain during the rearing period. This causes foraging-related behaviours like scratching and pecking to be directed to the ground. The hens' perception of incentive stimuli for pecking is apparently influenced by experience during rearing. 6. To prevent birds redirecting their ground pecks to the feathers of other birds, not only the peckability/scratchability of the ground seems to be important but also other aspects like nutritive value or taste.

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“…The common method used by poultry industry to minimize the negative effect of feather pecking leading to cannibalism is beak trimming (Blokhuis and van der Haar, 1989). However, despite the benefit of beak trimming in reducing mortality due to cannibalism, some believe that the pain caused by beak trimming is not acceptable on welfare grounds.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Mash Dietary Fiber on Performance and Cannibalism in Laying Hens

Hartini

Choct

2011

J. Indonesian Trop. Anim. Agric.

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An experiment was conducted to observe the effect of dietary fiber given in mash form on performance and cannibalism mortality in laying hens. Three different diets: a wheat-based diet, a guar gum diet (a wheat-based diet + 20 g/kg guar gum) and a lucerne meal diet (a wheat-based diet + 40 g/kg lucerne meal) in mash form were offered for 12 weeks. The results showed that birds fed guar gum diet had the lowest intake (p<0.01), egg weight (p<0.05), body weight (p<0.05) and the lowest egg production (p<0.01) compared to those fed other diets. Diets did not have a significant effect (p>0.05) on feed to egg ratio and cannibalism mortality, but numerically the birds fed the guar gum diet had the highest mortality (11.3%) and the lucerne diet had the lowest (6.9%). The lack of profound differences was probably due to the diets were given in mash form. In conclusion, diets containing high soluble NSP reduced the performance and increased the mortality due to cannibalism in laying hens. The use of mash form may have a potential in reducing the negative effect of soluble NSP on cannibalism.

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Effects of floor type during rearing and of beak trimming on ground pecking and feather pecking in laying hens

Cited by 88 publications

References 9 publications

Effects of dietary energy concentration, nonstarch polysaccharide concentration, and particle sizes of nonstarch polysaccharides on digesta mean retention time and gut development in laying hens

Effects of dietary energy concentration, nonstarch polysaccharide concentration, and particle sizes of nonstarch polysaccharides on digesta mean retention time and gut development in laying hens

Effects of pecking incentives during rearing on feather pecking of laying hens

Effect of Mash Dietary Fiber on Performance and Cannibalism in Laying Hens

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