Wet litter not only induces footpad dermatitis but also reduces overall welfare, technical performance, and carcass yield in broiler chickens

Jong, I.C. de; Gunnink, H.; Harn, J. van

doi:10.3382/japr.2013-00803

Cited by 181 publications

(149 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Poor litter quality that is the most important factor influencing contact dermatitis (Shepherd and Fairchild, 2010) is also thought to cause an increase in the number of dirty and soiled broilers (de Jong et al, 2014).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Simplifying the Welfare Quality® assessment protocol for broiler chicken welfare

Jong

Hindle

Butterworth

et al. 2016

Animal

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Welfare Quality ® (WQ) assessment protocols place the emphasis on animal-based measures as an indicator for animal welfare. Stakeholders, however, emphasize that a reduction in the time taken to complete the protocol is essential to improve practical applicability. We studied the potential for reduction in time to complete the WQ broiler assessment protocol and present some modifications to the protocol correcting a few errors in the original calculations. Data was used from 180 flocks assessed on-farm and 150 flocks assessed at the slaughter plant. Correlations between variables were calculated, and where correlation was moderate, meaningful and promising (in terms of time reduction), simplification was considered using one variable predicted from another variable. Correlation analysis revealed a promising correlation between severe hock burn and gait scores on-farm. Therefore, prediction of gait scores using hock burn scores was studied further as a possible simplification strategy (strategy 1). Measurements of footpad dermatitis, hock burn, cleanliness and gait score on-farm correlated moderately to highly with slaughter plant measurements of footpad dermatitis and/or hock burn, supporting substitution of on-farm measurements with slaughter plant data. A simplification analysis was performed using footpad dermatitis, hock burn, cleanliness and gait scores measured on-farm predicted from slaughter plant measurements of footpad dermatitis and hock burn (strategy 2). Simplification strategies were compared with the full assessment protocol. Close agreement was found between the full protocol and both simplification strategies although large confidence intervals were found for specificity of the simplified models. It is concluded that the proposed simplification strategies are encouraging; strategy 1 can reduce the time to complete the on-farm assessment by~1 h (25% to 33% reduction) and strategy 2 can reduce on-farm assessment time by~2 h (50% to 67% reduction). Both simplification strategies should, however, be validated further, and tested on farms with a wide distribution across the different welfare categories of WQ.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Simplifying the Welfare Quality® assessment protocol for broiler chicken welfare

Jong

Hindle

Butterworth

et al. 2016

Animal

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“…In this system, better litter management is crucial for providing good litter quality and for controlling the ammonia level inside the poultry houses. If litter and inside air quality are not optimal, there will be a considerable risk of the birds developing respiratory diseases and contact dermatitis on their feet and breast (Cengiz et al, 2013;De Jong et al, 2014;Petek et al, 2015). However, keeping litter dry and in good condition in deep-litter floor housing is very difficult due to drinker type, bedding material, outdoor and indoor temperature and humidity, the ventilation system, and high stocking density (Musilova et al, 2013;Petek et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, keeping litter dry and in good condition in deep-litter floor housing is very difficult due to drinker type, bedding material, outdoor and indoor temperature and humidity, the ventilation system, and high stocking density (Musilova et al, 2013;Petek et al, 2014). Wet and unsuitable litter reduces overall welfare, technical performance, and carcass yield in broiler chickens (De Jong et al, 2014;Petek et al, 2014). A variety of floor materials have been tested for many years in broiler production (Da Cruz et al, 2013;Jacob et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of different floor housing systems on the welfare of fast-growing broilers with an extended fattening period

Çavuşoğlu¹,

Petek²,

Abdourhamane³

et al. 2018

Arch. Anim. Breed.

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Abstract. This study was made to investigate the long-term effects of different floor housing systems on the welfare of fast-growing broilers. The experiment was performed on 210-day-old fast-growing hybrid male chickens with identical conditions until 47 days of age. Animal-based welfare parameters were measured to investigate the welfare level in the group housed on deep litter, a litter and slat system, and a slatted floor, with five replicates for each group. Results showed that the main welfare indicators in live birds, such breast dirtiness, plumage score, footpad lesion, and hock burn lesion, were negatively affected in broilers kept on conventional deep-litter floor housing. But hemorrhage or lesion scores of the breast and shoulder of broilers in slat floor housing were found to be significantly greater than in conventional deep litter as a result of a heavy body weight at a greater slaughter age (p < 0.05). Pathologically, the prevalence of footpad and hock joint dermatitis was very high in the deep-litter housing system. Femoral head necrosis was not observed in any floor housing group. The results indicated that keeping broilers on a slat flooring system is preferable for younger slaughter ages and for a lighter slaughter weight. When considering the relationship between animal welfare and production economy, moving from one floor house system to another floor housing system should be carefully weighted in future decisions. Moreover, further investigations are needed in order to examine the incidence of joint and bone problems with muscle inflammation in heavier broilers in commercial conditions.

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“…Therefore, ammonia produced by the decomposing organic material may irritate the breast skin in particular. The redness of the breast was clearly associated with breast irritation that was scored as 0 for no irritation or redness of the breast, 1 for slight discoloration (redness) of the breast, and 2 for large discoloration (Jong et al, 2014). Contact dermatitis has been related to extremely long sitting and lying times and poor litter quality (Bessei, 2006).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of perch availability on performance, carcass characteristics, and footpad lesions in broilers

2016

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Abstract. In the modern broiler industry, solutions are still being sought to improve conditions or eliminate problems related to issues such as animal welfare, health, and meat quality brought by intensive production systems. Therefore, this experiment was conducted to study effects of perching on growth performance, carcass characteristics, and footpad lesions (FPLs) in broiler chickens. A total of 300 broiler chicks (Ross 308) were distributed into control and perch groups with three replicates including equal numbers of males and females. The perch group contained two single perches in each pen.Analysis of camera records revealed that on average 7.36 % of the birds using perches. Perch use did not have any effect on growth performance (P > 0.05), but had a positive effect on FPLs (P < 0.001). Carcass yield and proportions of carcass parts were not affected by perch availability (P > 0.05). Thigh and breast meat color was less yellow (P < 0.005) in the perch group compared to the control group, where breast meat color was more red (P < 0.01). Birds in the perch group had brighter breast meat (P < 0.001). The weight of livers in the perch group was lower than in the control group (P < 0.01).These findings suggest that perch use has positive effect on FPLs. The reduction of redness in the breast could indicate that perch use may have a positive effect on breast inflammation. The potential positive effects of adapting perch use to intensive conditions should be further investigated.

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Wet litter not only induces footpad dermatitis but also reduces overall welfare, technical performance, and carcass yield in broiler chickens

Cited by 181 publications

References 15 publications

Simplifying the Welfare Quality® assessment protocol for broiler chicken welfare

Simplifying the Welfare Quality® assessment protocol for broiler chicken welfare

Effects of different floor housing systems on the welfare of fast-growing broilers with an extended fattening period

Effects of perch availability on performance, carcass characteristics, and footpad lesions in broilers

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