1
|
Ulans A, Brooks GC, Jacobs L. Environmental complexity impacts anxiety in broiler chickens depending on genetic strain and body weight. Sci Rep 2024; 14:17535. [PMID: 39080356 PMCID: PMC11289402 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-67965-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2024] [Accepted: 07/18/2024] [Indexed: 08/02/2024] Open
Abstract
The objective was to assess the impact of environmental complexity on affective state (anxiety) in fast- and slow-growing broilers (Gallus gallus domesticus) as they gain weight. Six hundred fast-growing broilers (Ross 708; "fast-growers") and 600 slow-growing broilers (Hubbard Redbro Mini; "slow-growers") were raised in 24 pens with simple (standard; SE) or complex (permanent and temporary enrichments; CE) environments. Six birds/pen underwent the attention bias test on day 23 (fast-growers only), 28-29, 35-36, 42-43, and 56-57 (slow-growers only), with individuals only tested once (n = 576). Proportion of birds feeding, time spent vigilant and latencies to eat and step were recorded. Greater vigilance and longer latencies indicate more anxiety. Slow-growers fed more (p = 0.001), were less vigilant (p = 0.003), and stepped sooner than fast-growers (p = 0.007). For both strains, likelihood of feeding was unrelated to weight in SE, but decreased with increasing weight in CE (p = 0.048). Birds in CE stepped sooner than birds in SE (p = 0.030). Vigilance increased with body weight (p = 0.024). These results indicate that affective state (anxiety) can change as birds gain weight, depending on environmental complexity and genetic strain. Overall, slow-growers showed reduced anxiety compared to fast-growers, across housing treatments or weights.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Ulans
- School of Animal Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
| | - George C Brooks
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
| | - Leonie Jacobs
- School of Animal Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Tiemann I, Becker S, Fournier J, Damiran D, Büscher W, Hillemacher S. Differences among domestic chicken breeds in tonic immobility responses as a measure of fearfulness. PeerJ 2023; 11:e14703. [PMID: 37033722 PMCID: PMC10081456 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.14703] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2021] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 04/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Background One priority for animal welfare is for animals to experience less fear, especially during human contact. For domestic animals, breeds that are less fearful may provide genetic resources to develop strains with improved welfare due to lower susceptibility to fear. Genetic predispositions inherited in these breeds might reflect the large diversity of chicken breeds. The goal of the present study was to systematically test a diverse group of chicken breeds to search for breeds that experience less fear. Methods Nineteen chicken breeds from commercial hybrid lines, native layer-type, meat-type and dual-purpose breeds, ornamental breeds as well as bantam breeds were tested in a standardized tonic immobility (TI) test. Chickens were manually restrained on their back, and the time to first head movement and first leg movement, the duration of TI, as well as the number of attempts needed to induce TI were measured. Results The TI response differed among chicken breeds (p ≤ 0.001) for naïve, mature hens. The median number of attempts required to induce TI ranged from 1 to 2 and did not differ significantly among breeds. Median durations were much more variable, with Lohmann Brown showing shortest durations (6 s, 12 s, 58 s for time to first head movement, first leg movement and total duration of TI, respectively). In contrast, medians reached the maximum of 600 s for all three measures in German Creepers. Repeated tests on the same individuals did not affect attempts needed to induce TI nor TI durations. Breeds clustered into two main groups, with layer-type native breeds and ornamental breeds having longer TI durations, and bantam, dual-purpose and meat-type native breeds having shorter TI durations. Conclusions Our findings provide evidence for substantial variation of fearfulness among breeds. This variation could be linked to the intended use during the breed's specific history. Knowledge and quantitative measurement of these behavioural responses provide the opportunity to improve welfare through selection and future breeding.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Inga Tiemann
- Institute of Agricultural Engineering, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Senta Becker
- Institute of Agricultural Engineering, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Jocelyn Fournier
- Department of Animal & Poultry Science, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
| | - Daalkhaijav Damiran
- Department of Animal & Poultry Science, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
| | - Wolfgang Büscher
- Institute of Agricultural Engineering, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Sonja Hillemacher
- Institute of Agricultural Engineering, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Mels C, Niebuhr K, Futschik A, Rault JL, Waiblinger S. Predictors for plumage damage and bloody lesions indicative of feather pecking in pullets reared in aviaries. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2022.105607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
|
4
|
Cabrera D, Nilsson JR, Griffen BD. The development of animal personality across ontogeny: a cross-species review. Anim Behav 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2021.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
|
5
|
Rokavec N, Zupan Šemrov M. Psychological and Physiological Stress in Hens With Bone Damage. Front Vet Sci 2020; 7:589274. [PMID: 33385015 PMCID: PMC7770218 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2020.589274] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Accepted: 11/12/2020] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Abnormalities in bone development in humans and non-humans can lead to impaired physical and psychological health; however, evidence is lacking regarding the role of individual psychosocial factors in the development of poor bone conditions. Addressing this lack of knowledge, we used low-productive laying hens (n = 93) and assessed behavioral responses to an open-field test [at 17, 18, 29, 33 weeks of age (wa)], an aerial predator test (at 39 wa), and a social reinstatement test (at 42 wa). Bone condition was assessed using a palpation technique on five occasions (at 16, 29, 33, 45, 58 wa), with half of the hens experiencing damage (deviations, fractures, or both) at 29 wa and all hens by 58 wa. Corticosterone (CORT) concentration in feathers (at 16, 33, 58 wa) and body weight (at 23, 47, 58 wa) were also investigated. We hypothesized that lighter birds (at 23 wa) with higher CORT (at 16 wa) and open field-induced fear collected before the onset of lay (at 17 and 18 wa) are associated with a worse bone condition when in lay. We also hypothesized that those birds with more damage at the peak of laying (at 29 wa) would be lighter at 47 and 58 wa and more fearful by showing higher open field-induced (at 29 and 33 wa) and predator-induced fear responses, however, acting less socially toward conspecifics. These hens were also expected to have higher CORT (at 33 and 58 wa). Our results show no association between open-field fear level and fear behavior, CORT concentration, or body weight on the one hand (all measured before starting to lay) and bone damage at 29 wa on the other. When in lay, bone damage was associated with more pecking and less crossing zones when faced with an open-field situation at 29 wa and improved sociality at 42 wa. This study provides the first evidence of a relationship of bone health with fear, sociality, and stress response. When in poor bone condition, our hens had enhanced psychological stress measured by fear behavior reactivity but not physiological stress measured as feather CORT concentration.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Neža Rokavec
- Department of Animal Science, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Domžale, Slovenia
| | - Manja Zupan Šemrov
- Department of Animal Science, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Domžale, Slovenia
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Favati A, Zidar J, Thorpe H, Jensen P, Løvlie H. The ontogeny of personality traits in the red junglefowl,Gallus gallus. Behav Ecol 2015. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arv177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
|
7
|
de Haas EN, Bolhuis JE, Kemp B, Groothuis TGG, Rodenburg TB. Parents and early life environment affect behavioral development of laying hen chickens. PLoS One 2014; 9:e90577. [PMID: 24603500 PMCID: PMC3948370 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0090577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2013] [Accepted: 02/03/2014] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Severe feather pecking (SFP) in commercial laying hens is a maladaptive behavior which is associated with anxiety traits. Many experimental studies have shown that stress in the parents can affect anxiety in the offspring, but until now these effects have been neglected in addressing the problem of SFP in commercially kept laying hens. We therefore studied whether parental stock (PS) affected the development of SFP and anxiety in their offspring. We used flocks from a brown and white genetic hybrid because genetic background can affect SFP and anxiety. As SFP can also be influenced by housing conditions on the rearing farm, we included effects of housing system and litter availability in the analysis. Forty-seven rearing flocks, originating from ten PS flocks were followed. Behavioral and physiological parameters related to anxiety and SFP were studied in the PS at 40 weeks of age and in the rearing flocks at one, five, ten and fifteen weeks of age. We found that PS had an effect on SFP at one week of age and on anxiety at one and five weeks of age. In the white hybrid, but not in the brown hybrid, high levels of maternal corticosterone, maternal feather damage and maternal whole-blood serotonin levels showed positive relations with offsprings' SFP at one week and offsprings' anxiety at one and five weeks of age. Disruption and limitation of litter supply at an early age on the rearing farms increased SFP, feather damage and fearfulness. These effects were most prominent in the brown hybrid. It appeared that hens from a brown hybrid are more affected by environmental conditions, while hens from a white hybrid were more strongly affected by parental effects. These results are important for designing measures to prevent the development of SFP, which may require a different approach in brown and white flocks.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elske N. de Haas
- Adaptation Physiology Group, Department of Animal Science, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - J. Elizabeth Bolhuis
- Adaptation Physiology Group, Department of Animal Science, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Bas Kemp
- Adaptation Physiology Group, Department of Animal Science, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Ton G. G. Groothuis
- Behavioural Biology, Centre for Behaviour and Neuroscience, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - T. Bas Rodenburg
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Department of Animal Sciences, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Ghareeb K, Awad WA, Sid-Ahmed OE, Böhm J. Insights on the host stress, fear and growth responses to the deoxynivalenol feed contaminant in broiler chickens. PLoS One 2014; 9:e87727. [PMID: 24498179 PMCID: PMC3907497 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0087727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2013] [Accepted: 01/01/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Mycotoxins pose an important danger to human and animal health. Poultry feeds are frequently contaminated with deoxynivalenol (DON) mycotoxin. It is thus of great importance to evaluate the effects of DON on the welfare related parameters in poultry industry. In the present study, the effects of contamination of broiler diet with 10 mg DON/kg feed on plasma corticosterone and heterophil to lymphocyte (H/L) ratio as indicators of stress, tonic immobility duration as an index for fear response and growth performance of broiler chickens were studied. In addition, the effect of a microbial feed additive either alone or in combination with DON contamination on these different aspects was also evaluated. The results showed that DON feeding significantly affected the welfare related parameters of broiler chickens. The feeding of DON contaminated diet resulted in an elevation of plasma corticosterone, higher H/L ratio and increased the fear levels as indicated by longer duration of tonic immobility reaction. Furthermore, DON reduced the body weight and body weight gain during the starter phase definitely at the second and third week. However, during grower phase, feeding of DON decreased the body weight at the fourth week and reduced the body gain at the fifth week. Addition of the microbial feed additive, a commercial antidote for DON mycotoxin, was able to overcome DON effects on stress index (H/L ratio), fearfulness and growth parameters of broilers. In conclusion, we showed for the first time that the DON feeding increased the underlying fearfulness and physiological stress responses of broilers and resulted in a reduction in the welfare status as indicated by higher plasma corticosterone, higher H/L ratio and higher fearfulness. Additionally, feeding the microbial feed additive was effective in reducing the adverse effects of DON on the bird's welfare and can improve the performance of broiler chickens.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Khaled Ghareeb
- Institute of Animal Nutrition and Functional Plant Compounds, Department for Farm Animals and Veterinary Public Health, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Animal Hygiene, Behaviour and Management, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, South Valley University, Qena, Egypt
- * E-mail:
| | - Wageha A. Awad
- Department of Animal Hygiene, Behaviour and Management, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, South Valley University, Qena, Egypt
- Clinic for Avian, Reptile and Fish Medicine, Department for Farm Animals and Veterinary Public Health, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | - Omer E. Sid-Ahmed
- Institute of Medical Biochemistry, Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | - Josef Böhm
- Institute of Animal Nutrition and Functional Plant Compounds, Department for Farm Animals and Veterinary Public Health, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Relationships between multiple welfare indicators measured in individual chickens across different time periods and environments. Anim Welf 2011. [DOI: 10.1017/s0962728600002621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
AbstractThe assessment of animal welfare requires the collection of multiple indicators of welfare but quantification of their associations in different contexts is lacking. Previous studies have examined correlations between a few indicators, but not relationships between many different indicators, or between indicators taken from the same individuals in more than one environment. We housed 60 hens for six sequential 35-day phases in different pen environments. During each phase, a series of behavioural and physiological measures was taken for every bird: body and plumage condition, surface body temperature, behaviours observed in the home pens and during test periods, tonic immobility, physiological blood profiles, and faecal sample composition. Most variation in nearly all measures was not explained by either individual bird or grouping effects but varied across phases within the birds. Acknowledging this, we examined correlations between all parameters at the phase within-bird level, selecting a conservative P-value. A consistent set of correlations showed that a slow approach response and alert behaviour in the novel object test was associated with higher bodyweight, lower body temperature and lower acute phase protein, heterophil: lymphocyte ratio and blood glucose level. A cluster analysis confirmed these correlations. Other important parameters known to be linked to the hens’ environmental preference (eg comfort behaviour) were independent of the set described above. We conclude that statistical techniques can reveal patterns of independence and redundancy in the collection of behavioural and physiological measures of welfare.
Collapse
|
10
|
Cole M. From "Animal Machines" to "Happy Meat"? Foucault's Ideas of Disciplinary and Pastoral Power Applied to 'Animal-Centred' Welfare Discourse. Animals (Basel) 2011; 1:83-101. [PMID: 26486216 PMCID: PMC4552206 DOI: 10.3390/ani1010083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2010] [Accepted: 01/06/2011] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary This paper considers some recent developments in ‘animal-centred’ welfare science, which acknowledges the sentience of ‘farmed’ animals, alongside the emergence of a market for ‘happy meat’, which offers assurances of care and consideration for ‘farmed’ animals to concerned consumers. Both appear to challenge the instrumental ‘machine’ model characteristic of ‘factory farming’. However, in both cases, this paper argues that these discourses of consideration for the well-being of ‘farmed’ animals work to appease and deflect ethical concerns while facilitating the continued exploitation of ‘farmed’ animals. Abstract Michel Foucault's work traces shifting techniques in the governance of humans, from the production of ‘docile bodies’ subjected to the knowledge formations of the human sciences (disciplinary power), to the facilitation of self-governing agents directed towards specified forms of self-knowledge by quasi-therapeutic authorities (pastoral power). While mindful of the important differences between the governance of human subjects and the oppression of nonhuman animals, exemplified in nonhuman animals' legal status as property, this paper explores parallel shifts from disciplinary to pastoral regimes of human-‘farmed’ animal relations. Recent innovations in ‘animal-centred’ welfare science represent a trend away from the ‘disciplinary’ techniques of confinement and torture associated with ‘factory farms’ and towards quasi-therapeutic ways of claiming to know ‘farmed’ animals, in which the animals themselves are co-opted into the processes by which knowledge about them is generated. The new pastoral turn in ‘animal-centred’ welfare finds popular expression in ‘happy meat’ discourses that invite ‘consumers’ to adopt a position of vicarious carer for the ‘farmed’ animals who they eat. The paper concludes that while ‘animal-centred’ welfare reform and ‘happy meat’ discourses promise a possibility of a somewhat less degraded life for some ‘farmed’ animals, they do so by perpetuating exploitation and oppression and entrenching speciesist privilege by making it less vulnerable to critical scrutiny.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Cole
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Open University, UK.
| |
Collapse
|