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Poultry Welfare Scenario. Flock 1: Fertile-egg flock. Eggs contain viable embryos which are provided to research facilities Flock consists of 200 hens; 15-20 roosters Hy-Line Brown variety. Flock is raised on floor with wood shavings changed 2x/year - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Poultry Welfare Scenario
Flock 1: Fertile-egg flock
•Eggs contain viable embryos which areprovided to researchfacilities
•Flock consists of200 hens; 15-20 roosters
•Hy-Line Brown variety
Flock 1: Fertile-egg flock• Flock is raised on floor
with wood shavings– changed 2x/year
• Access to wooden perches and 16 metal nest boxes; both are readily used by hens
Flock 2: Exhibition Flock• 15 different breeds
represented (some common, some exotic)
• Housed in pens with litter– changed every 3 mo.
• 4 hens + 2 roosters per pen; pens organized by breed
Personnel
Flock 1
• Manager has a bachelors degree in Poultry Science and a masters degree in Animal Science
• This farm has 3 full-time employees and 3 part-time students that take care of the birds
Flock 2
• Manager has a bachelors degree in Animal Science and 10 years of exhibition experience
• This farm has 1 full-time and 2 part-time student employees
Flock 1: Food & Water
• Fed 1x/day; complete multigrain pellet feed provided ad libitum– 3 feeders in facility
• Water is supplied via water line system– Water line contains 10 nipples
Flock 2: Food & Water
• Fed 1x/day– A commercial layer breeder
diet pellet feed provided ad libitum; attention paid to providing vitamins and calcium
– 1 feeder/pen
• 1 bell drinker/pen– cleaned 2x/week
Chick handling and rearing
Flock 1 Flock 2
• Eggs are sold to buyers to be raised as exhibition birds
• Enough are kept to replace flock 1x/year
• Most eggs go to fertile-egg research projects
• The flock is replaced every 3 years from the internal flock
Neonatal Interventions
Flock 1
• Beaks are trimmed with an electric debeaker with guide plate within 5 days of hatching– No analgesic agents are used
• Toes are not trimmed at this facility
• Combs are not dubbed
Flock 2
• Beaks are not trimmed
• No toe trimming
• No comb dubbing
Housing
Flock 1
• Facility is well-ventilated using large fans
• Facility measures 30’ x 38’ (9 x 11.6m) and is cleaned in the spring and fall of each year
Flock 2
• Pens are well ventilated
• Litter is cleaned from pens every 3 months
• Pens measure 4’ x 10’ (1.2 x 3 m) each
Flock 1 - Time Budget (Ave. for 10 Bird sample)
18%
37%
3%
4%
4%
18%
4%
12%Other
Resting
Dustbathing
Eating
Drinking
Social Interaction
Nestbox
Foraging
Flock 2 - Time Budget (Ave. for 10 Bird sample)
13%
10%
10%
4%
5%
5%
33%
10%
10%OtherMating BehaviorOther Social Int.ForagingEatingDrinkingSleepDustbathingResting in Litter
Flock 1: Human animal interaction
• Birds encounter caretakers during routine feeding, inspection and cleaning– Average flight zone upon slow, upright
approach is approximately 6 ft (1.8m)
• When necessary to handle them, birds are carried by both legs; one bird/hand
• Duration of tonic immobility is approximately 2 min for males and females
Flock 2:Human animal interaction
• Birds are inspected daily and encounter caretakers during all routine procedures
• With slow, upright approach, birds have an approximately 3 ft (0.9 m) flight zone
• Birds are carried upright, one at a time
• Tonic immobility tests result in a duration of approximately 30 sec. for males and females
Flock 1: Health
• Sick birds are euthanized and incinerated to prevent disease transmission (3-4/month)
• Birds are kept for 36 months before being humanely processed for meat byproducts
• Flock is not vaccinated
• There is 0% incidence of breast blisters
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Males Females
Leg Injuries
Flock 2: Health
• 0-2 birds become sick and are euthanized each month
• Flock is slaughtered and replaced each year
– Surplus birds are sold to appropriate facilities or euthanized
• No vaccinations are given
• There is a 3% incidence of breast
blisters in meat breed varieties
00.5
11.5
22.5
33.5
4
Percentage of Birds
Males Females
Leg Injuries
Flock 1: Behavioral Responses
• Fighting is rare among familiar birds in pens together, but occurs when a new bird is placed in the pen
• No cannibalism
• A 1% frequency of feather-pecking is observed– Animals are not removed from the group in the rare events of feather pecking
Flock 2: Behavioral Responses
• There is approximately one rooster-rooster fight each day (duration 60 sec)
• Cannibalism is rarely, if ever, observed
• 10% of birds show signs of feather pecking– Animals are removed in the event of feather pecking
Egg Collection
Flock 1
• Egg collection occurs 2-3x/day
• Eggs are collected by hand
• Floor egg incidence: approximately 9%
Flock 2
• Egg collection is done by hand 2x/day
Molting
Flock 1
• Molting is induced yearly– Accomplished by altering
dietary levels of calcium and zinc, as well as a reduction in photoperiod
• If these methods are insufficient, feed is restricted
• Water is not restricted
Flock 2
• This flock is replaced yearly before they have the chance to molt
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