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Copyright of International Journal of Agriculture & Wildlife Science is the property of International Journal of Agriculture & Wildlife Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Simple Summary: The objectives of this study were to determine if housing Bovan brown laying hens in conventional cages or enriched floor pens impacted novel physiological and behavioral markers for animal welfare and whether we can use these markers to assess animal welfare. We found that birds that were housed in conventional cages showed increased tonic immobility durations (indication of fearfulness), decreased fecal Immunoglobulin A (indicator of immune function), and increased feather corticosterone concentrations (indicator of chronic stress) compared to hens that were housed in enriched pens. These results indicate that caged birds are more stressed, have reduced immune function, and are more fearful than birds that are housed in pens. In contrast to expectations, we found that caged hens showed a shorter latency to feed during attention bias testing, indicating reduced anxiety compared to birds from pens. Overall, we found that conventional cages generally impacted animal welfare negatively, with the exception of anxiety. In addition, the results suggest that the chosen novel markers for animal welfare show appropriate contrast between long-term housing systems for laying hens. Yet, additional work needs to be done before these measures can be used more broadly. The scientific community needs objective measures to appropriately assess animal welfare. The study objective was to assess the impact of housing system on novel physiological and behavioral measurements of animal welfare for laying hens, including secretory and plasma Immunoglobulin (IgA; immune function), feather corticosterone (chronic stress), and attention bias testing (ABT; anxiety), in addition to the well-validated tonic immobility test (TI; fearfulness). To test this, 184 Bovan brown hens were housed in 28 conventional cages (3 birds/cage) and 4 enriched pens (25 birds/pen). Feces, blood, and feathers were collected 4 times between week 22 and 43 to quantify secretory and plasma IgA and feather corticosterone concentrations. TI tests and ABT were performed once. Hens that were from cages tended to show longer TI, had increased feather corticosterone, and decreased secretory IgA at 22 weeks of age. The caged hens fed quicker, and more hens fed during the ABT compared to the penned hens. Hens that were in conventional cages showed somewhat poorer welfare outcomes than the hens in enriched pens, as indicated by increased chronic stress, decreased immune function at 22 weeks of age but no other ages, somewhat increased fear, but reduced anxiety. Overall, these novel markers show some appropriate contrast between housing treatments and may be useful in an animal welfare assessment context for laying hens. More research is needed to confirm these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of three housing systems (conventional cages, enriched cages and litter) on egg quality parameters was evaluated in two experiments with four brown laying strains ISA Brown, Hisex Brown, Bovans Brown and Moravia BSL. During 40 weeks of lay the total number of 7200 eggs was produced and analysed for egg weight, egg component weight and eggshell quality indicators. In 60 eggs, pore density in the small-end, large-end and equatorial areas was determined. Significant interactions between genotype and housing were found out in egg weight (P ≤ 0.001), yolk and albumen weight (P ≤ 0.001) and yolk colour (P ≤ 0.001). Haugh units were the highest in eggs laid in cages and the lowest in the ISA Brown strain. Eggshell quality indicators were affected more by genotype than by housing. The interaction between genotype and housing was not significant for eggshell thickness but it was significant for eggshell weight and strength. Although eggshell thickness was lower in eggs produced in cages, eggshell strength was higher. A significant negative correlation was found out between pore density and housing system. Results of the study suggest that the ability of a strain to produce eggs of high quality in a particular housing system should be considered, even within brown strains.

As of 2012, the EU has banned the use of conventional cages (CC) for laying hens, causing a shift in housing systems. This study's aim was to gain insight into farmers' opinions on hen health and welfare in their current housing systems. A survey was sent to 218 Belgian egg farmers, of which 127 (58.3%) responded, with 84 still active as egg farmer. Hen welfare tended to be less important in choosing the housing system for farmers with cage than with non-cage systems. Respondents currently using cage systems were more satisfied with hen health than respondents with non-cage systems. Reported mortality increased with farm size and was higher in furnished cages than in floor housing. Feather pecking, cannibalism, smothering and mortality were perceived to be higher in current housing systems than in CC, but only by respondents who shifted to non-cage systems from previously having had CC. Health- and production-related parameters were scored to be more important for hen welfare as compared to behavior-related parameters. Those without CC in the past rated factors relating to natural behavior to be more important for welfare than those with CC. This difference in opinion based on farmer backgrounds should be taken into account in future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fatty liver is a common energy metabolic disorder in caged laying hens. Considering that the egg industry is shifting from conventional cages to alternative housing systems such as enriched cages, the objective of this study was to determine the effects of perches on fat deposition and liver health in laying hens. Three hundred twenty-four 17-wk-old White Leghorn hens were housed in 1 of 4 treatments with 9 hens per cage. Treatment 1 hens never had access to perches during their life cycle. Treatment 2 hens had access to perches during the pullet phase only. Treatment 3 hens had access to perches during the laying phase only. Treatment 4 hens always had access to perches. Liver weight, abdominal fat pad weight, BW, liver fat, and circulating alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase, and adiponectin were determined. Provision of perches during either the rearing or laying phase did not affect liver health in 71-wk-old hens. However, perch access compared with no perch access during the egg laying phase reduced relative fat pad weight. These results suggest that providing perches as a means of stimulating activity reduced abdominal fat deposition in caged hens during the laying period. However, perch access in caged hens was ineffective in reducing fat deposition in the liver and altering enzyme activities related to improved liver function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As of 2012, the EU has banned the use of conventional cages (CC) for laying hens, causing a shift in housing systems. This study’s aim was to gain insight into farmers’ opinions on hen health and welfare in their current housing systems. A survey was sent to 218 Belgian egg farmers, of which 127 (58.3%) responded, with 84 still active as egg farmer. Hen welfare tended to be less important in choosing the housing system for farmers with cage than with non-cage systems. Respondents currently using cage systems were more satisfied with hen health than respondents with non-cage systems. Reported mortality increased with farm size and was higher in furnished cages than in floor housing. Feather pecking, cannibalism, smothering and mortality were perceived to be higher in current housing systems than in CC, but only by respondents who shifted to non-cage systems from previously having had CC. Health- and production-related parameters were scored to be more important for hen welfare as compared to behavior-related parameters. Those without CC in the past rated factors relating to natural behavior to be more important for welfare than those with CC. This difference in opinion based on farmer backgrounds should be taken into account in future research.

As a result of welfare considerations, conventional cage systems will be banned in the European Union from 2012 onward. Currently, there is limited information on the level of contamination with zoonotic pathogens related to the laying hen housing system. Therefore, 2 studies were designed to investigate the effect of the housing system on colonization of layers with Salmonella. In both studies, layers were housed in 3 different housing systems: a conventional cage system, a furnished cage, and an aviary. At 18 wk of age, all birds were orally inoculated with Salmonella Enteritidis. Shedding and colonization were measured at regular time points. The results did not show an increased risk for alternative housing systems compared with the conventional battery cage system. In contrast, in one study, a faster decline in shedding was noted for layers housed in the alternative cage systems in comparison with the conventional cage system. This study does not give indications that housing layers in alternative systems will yield a risk for increased Salmonella contamination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Measurernents ofthe heterophil:lymphocyte (H/L) ratio (invasive technique) and corticosterone in yolk arid albumen (noninvasive techniques) were used to measure stress in 3 commercial laying strains, Lohmann White (LW), H&N White (HN), Lohmann Brown (LB), and a noncommercial cross (CR) between Rhode Island Red (male) and Barred Plymouth Rock (female), kept in conventional cages or floor pens. All chicks were reared in their respective environments, and 450 and 432 pullets were placed at 18 and 7 wk of age in cages and floor pens, respectively. Blood from 12 hens per strain was taken at 19, 35, and 45 wk of age in each housing system. A total of 100 heterophils and lymphocytes were counted and their ratio (H/L ratio) was calculated. Corticosterone was measured in yolk and albumen from 12 hens per strain in each housing system at 22 and 45 wk of age. The H/L ratio was within the normal range. The interaction between environment and strain for the H/L ratio showed that in both environments. LB and CR hen's had a higher H/L ratio than LW and 1-IN layers. ln cages, there were significant differences in H/L ratios between LW and HN hens that were likely due to genetic differences. The LW hens had significantly lower corticosterone concentrations in yolk thali LB hens. In cages but not floor pens, yolk corticostCrone concentrations at wk 22 were significanUy higher than at wk 45. In floor pens but not cages, albumen corti:costerone at wk 22 was higher than at wk 45. The H/L ratios suggest that none of the hens were unduly stressed, and corticosterone levels in yolk and albumen support the suggestion that hens adapted to their environments with age. Although measurement of yolk corticosteroiie and the H/L ratio may be comparable, the measurement of corticosterone level in the albumen may differ because it is secreted over a short time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Production performance and egg quality were compared between 4 strains of beak-trimmed layers: 3 commercial strains—Lohmann White (LW), H&N White (HN), Lohmann Brown (LB)—and a non-commercial cross between Rhode Island Red (male) and Barred Plymouth Rock (female) in conventional cages and in floor pens. All chicks were reared and 857 pullets were housed at 18 wk of age in their respective environments. Body weight, hen-day egg production, feed consumption and efficiency, and egg quality were measured at wk 20, 30, 40, and 50. In floor pens, the location of eggs was recorded for 4 consecutive days at 4-wk intervals between 20 and 50 wk of age. Eggs from cages, nest-boxes, and the floor were tested for Escheri- chia coli and coliform contamination at 38 and 42 wk of age. Mortality was recorded during the rearing and laying periods. Housing systems significantly influenced BW and mortality but not feed consumption or feed efficiency. The interaction between environment and strain was significant for hen-day egg production at wk 20 to 30 and for BW at wk 30, 40, and 50. Hens in floor pens had greater BW, egg and yolk weights, and yolk color than those in cages. Commercial hens produced more eggs than the cross hens. Overall, HN hens had the best production performance, whereas cross hens had better egg quality. In floor pens, LW and HN hens laid most of their eggs in nest boxes, whereas LB and cross hens laid half of their eggs on the floor. Eggs from cages had lower E. coli and coliform contamination than those from nest-boxes and the floor, and E. coli contamination was greater for LB eggs than for LW eggs. Significant strain differences were found for the use of nest-boxes, with a high percentage of floor eggs for brown egg strains. This study suggests that genotype x environment interactions should be considered when alternative housing systems are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]