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Welfare assessment of laying hens in furnished cages and non-cage systems: an on-farm comparison

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 January 2023

TB Rodenburg ,
FAM Tuyttens ,
K de Reu ,
L Herman ,
J Zoons  and
B Sonck
TB Rodenburg*
Affiliation:
Animal Breeding and Genomics Centre, Wageningen University, PO Box 338, 6700 AH Wageningen, The Netherlands Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research (IVLO), Animal Sciences, Animal Husbandry & Welfare, Scheldeweg 68, 9090 Melle, Belgium
FAM Tuyttens
Affiliation:
Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research (IVLO), Animal Sciences, Animal Husbandry & Welfare, Scheldeweg 68, 9090 Melle, Belgium
K de Reu
Affiliation:
Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research (IVLO), Technology and Food Sciences, Food Safety, Brusselsesteenweg 370, 9090 Melle, Belgium
L Herman
Affiliation:
Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research (IVLO), Technology and Food Sciences, Food Safety, Brusselsesteenweg 370, 9090 Melle, Belgium
J Zoons
Affiliation:
Provincial Centre for Applied Poultry Research, Poiel 77, 2440 Geel, Belgium
B Sonck
Affiliation:
Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research (IVLO), Animal Sciences, Animal Husbandry & Welfare, Scheldeweg 68, 9090 Melle, Belgium
*
* Contact for correspondence and requests for reprints: bas.rodenburg@wur.nl
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Abstract

From 2012 onwards, all laying hens in Europe will need to be housed either in furnished cages or non-cage systems (aviaries or floor-housing systems). In terms of animal welfare, furnished cages and non-cage systems both have advantages and disadvantages. Data on direct comparisons between the two, however, are limited. The aim of this study was to carry out an on-farm comparison of laying hens’ welfare in furnished cages and non-cage systems. To meet this aim, six flocks of laying hens in furnished cages and seven flocks in non-cage systems (all without an outdoor run) were visited when hens were around 60 weeks of age and a number of measures were collected: behavioural observations, fearfulness, plumage and body condition, incidence of bone breaks, bone strength, TGI-score (or Animal Needs Index), dust levels and mortality. In non-cage systems, birds were found to be more active and made greater use of resources (scratching area, perches) than in furnished cages. These birds also had stronger bones and were less fearful than birds in furnished cages. On the other hand, birds in furnished cages had lower mortality rates, lower incidence of bone fractures and lower airborne dust concentrations. When all the welfare indicators were integrated into an overall welfare score, there were no significant differences between systems. These results indicate that furnished cages and non-cage systems have both strong and weak points in terms of their impact on animal welfare.

Keywords

animal welfarebehaviourhealthhousinglaying henswelfare assessment
Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Welfare , Volume 17 , Issue 4 , November 2008 , pp. 363 - 373
Copyright
© 2008 Universities Federation for Animal Welfare

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