Identifying welfare issues in turkey hen and tom flocks applying the transect walk method

The Aviary Transect - A practical welfare assessment tool to improve the management of cage-free laying hens

The Aviary Transect (AT) is a method for assessing welfare in cage-free laying hen flocks, and comprises standardized walks along each aisle screening the flock for selected welfare indicators: feather loss (FL) on head, back, breast, and tail, wounds on head, back, tail, and feet, dirty plumage, enlarged crop, sickness, and birds found dead. The method is quick (20 min for a flock of 7,500 hens), has good interobserver agreement and shows positive correlations with individual bird sampling methods. However, it is less clear whether AT can be used to detect differences in flock health and welfare related to housing and management. The aim of this study was to evaluate how AT findings varied in relation to 23 selected housing, management, environmental, and production factors. The study was conducted on 33 commercial nonbeak-trimmed, white-feathered layer flocks of similar age (70-76 wk) kept in multitiered aviaries in Norway. The most prevalent findings across flocks were feather loss on the back (mean 0.97% of flock) and breast (0.94%) followed by feather loss on the head (0.45%) and tail (0.36%) with differences in feather pecking damage according to the hybrid used (P < 0.05). Better litter quality was associated with a lower prevalence of feather loss on the head and breast (P < 0.05), and addition of fresh litter during the production cycle resulted in fewer birds with feather loss on the head (P < 0.05) and tail (P < 0.001). Lower dust levels were linked to a lower prevalence of feather loss on the head, back, and breast (P < 0.05), and when access to the floor area underneath the aviary was provided at an earlier stage of production, fewer birds had wounds (P < 0.001), but more birds were observed with an enlarged crop (P < 0.05) and found dead (P < 0.05). In conclusion, findings from AT showed that results of the assessment varied according to housing conditions. These results support the validity of AT as a relevant welfare assessment tool for evaluating cage-free management practices.

The usual suspects: Co-occurrence of integument injuries in turkey flocks

The present study investigated the prevalence and co-occurrence of integument injuries in Canadian turkeys. Participating farmers scored 30 birds in their flock for integument injuries to the head/neck (HN), back/tail (BT), and footpad (FP) using a simplified scoring system (0: no sign of injury, 1: mild injury, 2: severe injury). Information from 62 flocks was used to calculate the prevalence of any (score ≥1) and severe (score 2) injuries on a flock- and individual-level. Chi-square analyses were performed to determine the likelihood of integument injury co-occurrence. The prevalence of each type of injury varied between flocks. While the majority of flocks reported injuries, the within-flock prevalence was relatively low and largely comprised of mild cases (score 1). Given their higher prevalence, the data indicate that FP injuries are overall more widespread and more severe among Canadian turkey flocks than HN and BT injuries. Co-occurrence of different integument injuries was observed in 7% of birds and 58.1% of flocks reported at least one bird with co-occurring injury types. Despite the low prevalence of multiple injury types, birds with one type of injury were more likely to present with other injury types. Indeed, birds with HN injuries were 4 times more likely to have BT injuries, and birds with FP injuries were 1.5 times more likely to have BT injuries compared to birds that do not have these respective injuries. The data increase our understanding of the co-occurrence of these common integument injuries which can help inform a holistic management approach to rear turkeys with healthy skin and feather cover.

Developing a novel welfare assessment tool for loose-housed laying hens - the Aviary Transect method

This study compared welfare assessment results in aviary flocks using 3 approaches: 1) A novel Aviary Transect method, 2) AssureWel, and 3) the Norwegian farm advisors' NorWel method. The Aviary Transect time requirement, interobserver reliability, and within- and across-house sensitivity to detect welfare indicators were also evaluated. The study was conducted on 6 randomly chosen commercial white-strain layer flocks of similar age and flock size, kept in multitiered aviaries. The Aviary Transect method comprised standardized walks along each aisle while screening the whole flock for 12 welfare indicators: feather loss (FL) on head, back, breast, and tail, wounds on head, back, tail, and feet, dirty birds, enlarged crop, sick birds, and dead birds. AssureWel involved scoring FL on head and back, and dirtiness of 50 random birds, and flock-level evaluation of beak trimming, antagonistic behavior, flightiness, birds needing further care, and mortality. NorWel involved scoring 8 welfare indicators on 50 random birds: FL on head, back, breast, and tail, dirtiness, and wounds on head, back, and tail. The AssureWel detected flock differences in both minor and major FL on the back (P < 0.01) as well as somewhat dirty birds (P < 0.01). The NorWel method detected flock differences in both minor and major FL on the head (P < 0.01), back (P < 0.001), breast (P < 0.001), and tail (P < 0.001) and somewhat (score 1) dirty birds (P < 0.05). The Aviary Transect method detected flock differences in FL on head, back, breast, and tail (all P < 0.001), dirty birds (P < 0.05) and enlarged crop (P < 0.001). More birds with FL on breast, and more dirty birds, were found in wall vs. central transects (P < 0.05). There was good interobserver agreement, except for dirty birds (P < 0.01), and positive correlations (P < 0.05) were identified between the Aviary Transect method and the other sampling methods for FL on head and back, and dirtiness. The three methods took similar time to complete (about 20 min/flock). In conclusion, all 3 methods detected significant differences in welfare indicator prevalence between flocks. The new Aviary Transect method provides egg producers with an efficient and sensitive whole-flock assessment of hen welfare status in multitiered aviaries.

Evaluation of Welfare in Commercial Turkey Flocks of Both Sexes Using the Transect Walk Method

The study was conducted between March and September 2019 in six meat-type turkey flocks with similar management standard procedures using the transect walk method. The concept of the method is based on visual observation of the birds while slowly walking across the entire farm in predetermined transects. Each flock was evaluated at three different times during the fattening cycle: at 3 to 4, 12 to 13, and 19 to 20 weeks of age, and total number of males and females that were immobile or lame, had visible head, vent, or back wounds, were small, featherless, dirty, or sick, had pendulous crop, or showed aggression toward birds or humans were recorded. At each visit, NH₃ and CO₂ were measured within the facilities. In the first assessment, the most frequently observed welfare indicators were small size (0.87%) and immobility (0.08%). Males showed a significantly higher prevalence of small size (p < 0.01), sickness (p < 0.05), and dirtiness (p < 0.1) compared to females. In the second assessment, the most common findings in both sexes were dirtiness (1.65%) and poor feather condition (1.06%), followed by immobility (0.28%). Males were significantly dirtier (p < 0.001), had more immobile birds (p < 0.01) and birds with vent wounds (p < 0.1), but had fewer sick birds (p < 0.05). In the last assessment, an increase in immobile, lame, sick, and dead birds was recorded, indicating an increase in health problems. Higher CO₂ (3000 and 4433 ppm) and NH₃ (40 and 27.6 ppm) values were noted only at the first assessment in two facilities. Further analyses showed that slightly elevated NH₃ and CO₂ levels did not influence the occurrence of welfare indicators. This study is the first description of the welfare of commercial turkey flocks in Slovenia.

Influence of environmental enrichment on circulating white blood cell counts and behavior of female turkeys

Under commercial conditions turkeys are housed in large groups in poorly structured environments. This leads to stress and subsequently to pecking and cannibalism. Environmental enrichment is suggested to reduce stress and feather pecking, thus leading to an increase of the overall flock health. However, the effect of increasing age on the use of enrichment elements and on the behavior repertoire as well as its correlation with health parameters has scarcely been studied. Therefore, our objective was to investigate the influence of environmental enrichment on the behavioral repertoire and on health parameters of turkeys. In 3 consecutive trials, female turkeys were housed up to 12 wk either in an unstructured (control group) or enriched environment (EE group) featuring elevated plateaus at different levels (“turkey tree”). Behavior parameters, clinical health, and immune parameters were determined at selected time points. The percentage of birds using the turkey tree increased with age up to 55 to 77% at 22 to 30 d post hatch (dph). Thereafter, the number of birds located on the turkey tree decreased to 25 to 32% at 73 to 79 dph. Feather pecking and fighting was significantly lower in the EE group compared to the control group in 2 and 3 trials, respectively (P < 0.05). The integrity of feathers and integument, scored in the head/neck, wing, and tail regions was repeatedly better in the EE birds compared to control birds at most investigated time points (P < 0.05), suggesting a reduction in stress related aggression by the use of the turkey tree. Head pecking, running and flying activity, foraging, and preening were overall comparable between the EE and the control group (P > 0.05). Humoral immunity as determined by vaccination-induced anti-Newcastle disease virus antibody titers was not affected by the turkey tree use. The flow cytometric evaluation of blood monocyte and T-lymphocyte numbers showed no repeatable difference between control and EE groups. Interestingly, compared to the control groups, EE birds displayed significantly higher numbers of circulating MHC class II⁺ lymphocytes and lower numbers of thrombocytes at various time points compared to controls (P < 0.05). This study provides clear evidence that environmental enrichment with plateaus not only leads to an altered behavioral repertoire but also modifies some of the investigated immune parameters, implying that EE may have a modulatory effect on turkeys’ immunity and overall fitness. Further studies are needed to understand the correlation between behavior and health parameters in birds more closely.

Research Note: Injurious pecking in fattening turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo f. dom.)-video analyses of triggering factors and behavioral sequences in small flocks of male turkeys

Injurious pecking is one of the main welfare issues in fattening turkey husbandry. Birds pecked by conspecifics can suffer from serious injuries that may even lead to the death of the victimized animals or require their culling. In the present study, the behavior of male turkeys was documented day and night using video recordings throughout the entire fattening period of 19 wk. Thus, when a turkey was found injured or dead in the barn, a retrospective analysis of video recordings was carried out to clarify the circumstances surrounding the death or injuries of the bird in the present study. In 3 fattening trials with a total of 1,620 male turkeys with intact beaks, 41 birds (2.5%) were found either seriously injured (n = 24) or dead (n = 17) in the barn as a result from conspecific pecking. The detailed evaluation of the video recordings showed that the onset of injurious pecking was mainly in the afternoon after the last daily visual controls of animals and that one third of the dead found animals died a natural death without any pecking incidents. The duration of injurious pecking directed against a certain conspecific was on average 794 min, ranging from 84 min to 1,437 min, that is up to almost an entire day. Pecking activities lasting more than 10 h were interrupted from the light regime between dusk and dawn but continued with the onset of light in the morning. Duration of injurious pecking events decreased with age (P = 0.031). If the victims laid down or were impaired in their mobility, they would be surrounded by up to 10 turkeys that would still be forcefully pecking at the occipital and neck area of the badly injured or moribund birds.

Associations between animal-based measures at 11 wk and slaughter data at 20 wk in turkey toms (Meleagris gallopavo)

To monitor animal welfare on a commercial scale, systematic collection and evaluation of slaughterhouse data is the most feasible method. However, we need to know whether slaughterhouse data retrospectively and reliably reflect information about the birds' welfare on-farm. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate associations between animal-based welfare measures in flocks of turkey toms at 11 wk of age recorded with the transect walk and slaughter data at 20 wk of age. A total of 20 commercial flocks of turkey toms were visited, where an observer walked the transects in a random order and recorded the total number of birds per transect that were immobile, lame, with visible head, tail, or wing wounds, small, featherless, dirty, sick, terminal, or dead. Slaughterhouse data were provided for each flock. Univariate and multivariate linear regression models were used to investigate the associations between on-farm and slaughterhouse measures. Increased prevalence of immobile toms at week 11 resulted in more birds rejected at slaughter owing to leg issues (P = 0.02) and airsacculitis (P < 0.001). More lame birds on-farm were associated with an overall higher rejection rate at slaughter (P < 0.001). Flocks with more featherless birds had significantly more birds being rejected at slaughter owing to skin issues (P = 0.02). More dirty birds at week 11 resulted in more birds being rejected owing to airsacculitis at slaughter (P < 0.001). A higher mortality on-farm was associated with more birds rejected for being too small (P = 0.04). In conclusion, significant associations between animal-based measures of turkey toms as assessed by the transect walk method on-farm at 11 wk and slaughter data at 20 wk were identified.

Housing and Management of Turkey Flocks in Canada

Simple Summary

Relatively little is known about how farmers house and manage turkey flocks. To address this knowledge gap, a cross-sectional survey on housing and management practices of turkey flocks was conducted among farmers in Canada. Data were collected from 53 hen flocks (64%) and 30 tom flocks (36%), giving a total of 83 turkey flocks across the country. Flock age ranged between 7–14 weeks (interquartile range). The majority of turkey flocks were kept in indoor barns with automated ventilation. Bedding was provided to all flocks, and litter management was mostly focused on avoiding wet litter (e.g., adding dry litter or heat to avoid caking litter). Practices related to feed/water management and environmental control were relatively consistent between farms. More variation was observed between farmers in terms of flock health management and biosecurity practices. These results can benchmark current management practices within the Canadian turkey farming sector and present a foundation for future research.

Abstract

An increased understanding of the turkey sector and how farmers manage flocks can help maintain and improve the health and welfare of turkeys. We conducted a cross-sectional survey among turkey farmers in Canada to gain information regarding general farm characteristics, housing aspects (incl. lighting, ventilation), litter management, feed and water management, flock characteristics, and flock health management. The survey was distributed to 500 farmers through the Turkey Farmers of Canada in April–December 2019. A total of 83 final responses (response rate approx. 20%) were used for a descriptive analysis to determine the frequency of housing and management practices (77 commercial flocks, 6 breeder flocks). Hen flocks (n = 53) had a median age of eight weeks (IQR: 7–12 weeks) and tom flocks (n = 30) had a median age of 12 weeks (IQR: 9–14 weeks). Turkey flocks within Canada are typically kept in indoor barn systems on a concrete floor (87.5%), with bedding (e.g., straw, wood shavings) provided (100%). The majority followed a brood and move growing system (68.8%), and a large proportion of farmers indicated that they raised turkeys under the ‘Raised Without Antibiotics/Antibiotic Free’ or the ‘Responsible Use of Antibiotics’ certification (70.5%). Possible room for improvement could be found in terms of litter management and biosecurity practices, however, further research is needed to make clear recommendations.

Associations between on-farm welfare measures and slaughterhouse data in commercial flocks of turkey hens (Meleagris gallopavo)

There is a growing demand for documentation of animal welfare in meat production industry. Research on turkey welfare has mainly focused on toms at the end of production cycle, and information on the relationship between on-farm welfare and slaughterhouse recordings for turkey hens is currently lacking. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between routinely collected slaughterhouse data from turkey hens and their on-farm welfare measured by transect walks, to identify potential retrospective welfare indicators. The study was conducted between November 2017 and March 2018 in 20 commercial turkey flocks in Norway. On-farm welfare was evaluated using the transect walk method when the turkey hens were 11 wk old, recording the number of birds that were immobile, lame, small, featherless, dirty, sick, terminal, or dead and had visible head, tail, or wing wounds. Slaughterhouse data was provided for each flock. Univariate and multivariate linear regression models were used to investigate the associations between the variables. The results showed significant associations between several measures on farm and at slaughter. Flocks with more lameness on farm had more birds rejected at the slaughterhouse owing to leg and joint issues (P = 0.03, r = 1.01). Featherlessness and dirtiness on farm were positively associated with airsacculitis (P = 0.005; r = 0.42 and P = 0.0008; r = 0.57, respectively). The results suggest that slaughterhouse registrations may provide both practical and feasible retrospective information on the welfare of turkey hens that potentially could be implemented in future welfare assessment schemes. Further studies are needed to investigate the causal factors behind the identified relationships.

On-farm welfare assessment of commercial Pekin ducks: a comparison of methods

Although a number of welfare assessment methods have been developed for poultry, none have been evaluated for use in commercial duck farms. The primary objective of the study was to evaluate the inter-rater reliability and relative accuracy of 4 duck welfare assessment strategies. Over 2 experiments, 12 flocks of commercial meat ducks (5,850 to 6,300 ducks/flock) aged 30 to 34 D were evaluated. During experiment 1, six flocks were evaluated using 2 welfare assessment methods: transect walks (TW) and catch-and-inspect (CAI). During TW, 2 observers walked predetermined transects along the length of the house and recorded the number of ducks per transect that were featherless, were dirty, were lethargic, had bloody feathers, had infected eyes, and/or had plugged nostrils or were found dead. During CAI, a total of 150 ducks per flock were corralled and individually evaluated. The same welfare indicators were assessed using both methods. During experiment 2, six flocks were initially evaluated using CAI, TW, and a distance evaluation (DE; a total of 50 ducks per flock evaluated from a walking distance) and then reassessed within 24 h during the loadout (LO) process. Data were analyzed in SAS (version 9.4) to determine the observer and method effects on the incidence of welfare indicators. Interobserver reliability was high (P > 0.05) across methods for most welfare indicators. The assessment method affected the measured outcome variables in both experiments (P < 0.05). CAI resulted in higher estimated incidences of most welfare indicators than TW (experiment 1 and 2) and LO (experiment 2). DE yielded intermediate results compared with other methods (experiment 2). Results obtained using TW and LO were most similar, the only difference being the number of dead birds observed using each method (P < 0.0001). The average time required for CAI, TW, DE, and LO was 2.40 ± 0.004, 1.12 ± 0.02, 1.54 ± 0.001, 3.56 ± 0.006 h, respectively. Bootstrapping analyses showed that the observed welfare indicator prevalence estimates were affected by the number of transects (TW) and number of birds (CAI) sampled.