In the face of growing pressure for higher-welfare products, enrichments can be an accessible way to improve the welfare of broiler chickens.
Enrichments are any resources that are added to an animal’s environment to support its needs and motivations beyond basic survival requirements, such as food and water.
This definition is fairly broad, and the variety of enrichments that have been studied in broiler chicken welfare research alone is vast — everything from perches, dust baths and hay bales to laser pointers, yarn, mirrors and fly larvae.
However, implementing an effective enrichment protocol for a flock doesn’t have to be complicated — it can be as easy as A-B-C.
A Is for Accessibility
For broiler chicken enrichments to be effective, they must be accessible, especially as the birds’ mobility declines with age. Simply put, if the birds cannot use the resources, they cannot benefit from them.
As broilers age, they become increasingly front-heavy, and their mobility may be limited by gait and leg health concerns.
Therefore, they may struggle to use some enrichments that require active behavior or balancing, such as traditional bar-type perches.
A good alternative is a platform-type perch with a large, flat top surface and ramps to allow the birds to walk up.
Broilers may struggle with mobility, but they still want to perch and roost on elevated surfaces. Providing them with the opportunity to do so can improve their welfare.
Accessibility also includes a sufficient number and appropriate distribution of enrichments.
If resources are limited, they can become overcrowded and inaccessible to some birds.
For example, dust bathing is a socially contagious behavior in broilers, meaning if one bird sees another bird dust bathing, it is more likely to perform the same behavior.
Therefore, dust baths should be large enough to ensure multiple birds can use them at once.
To improve accessibility, multiple dust baths, huts, platforms and pecking items should be strategically placed across the house so birds have easy access.
B Is for Behavioral Motivations
Enrichments can improve the welfare of broilers by allowing them to fulfill natural behavioral motivations.
The junglefowl ancestors of broilers passed down a variety of motivations that helped them survive in their natural environments — not only physiological drives like hunger and thirst, but also behavioral drives such as roosting on elevated spaces, dust bathing, exploring, playing and socially engaging with other chickens.
When broilers are unable to fulfill these drives due to lack of resources, they may experience negative welfare states such as depression, boredom or frustration.
Therefore, allowing broilers to behave more naturally in a commercial environment can decrease negative states and promote positive ones.
Enrichments that promote natural behaviors include platforms (for roosting), dust baths (for dust bathing, foraging and exploration), temporary access to new spaces (for play and exploration), and any items that promote pecking or exploration with the beak.
When it comes to designing an enrichment protocol for broilers, the best strategy may be to “think like a chicken” and consider how a bird may want to spend its time in a natural environment.
C Is for Complexity
There is no single best enrichment for broilers; rather, protocols that promote the highest levels of welfare are those that cover a variety of behavioral needs and provide birds with choices.
Beyond fulfilling motivations and preventing negative emotions, a variety of options can give birds the agency to choose what they want to experience, which is an important aspect of a good life.
Additionally, the experience or exploration of something new is rewarding for many species, even if the item is simply a different color, texture or shape than they are familiar with.
An ideal complex environment could contain a mixture of large enrichments (platforms, bedding substrates, temporary access to a new area) to support natural behaviors such as roosting or dust bathing and smaller items (balls, CDs, mirrors, strings or cardboard boxes) to facilitate exploration and play.
Enrichment for Good Animal Welfare
Broiler chicken welfare can benefit in many ways from enrichments. In addition to the behavioral benefits listed here, indirect benefits on health exist, such as reduced contact dermatitis, improved walking ability and greater bone strength compared to unenriched counterparts.
Producers looking to enhance flock welfare can keep the “ABCs” in mind — accessibility, behavior and complexity.
These basic principles will get them well on their way to happier and healthier birds with a few simple additions to the husbandry procedures that are already in place.
Source: Lancaster Farming
