Animal category: Poultry

Final report of an audit of Germany carried out from 21 September to 1 October 2021 in order to evaluate the protection of the welfare of laying hens at all stages of production

DG SANTE

Published in 2022

Report from DG SANTE concluding that animal welfare regulations for laying hens in Germany are stricter than those in the EU, and that the effectiveness of official controls is strong. It records the German system's strengths and proposes opportunities for improvement.

Document types: Regulation/Certification

Animal categories: Poultry

Keywords: Societal issues, Risk management

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Welfare of domestic birds and rabbits transported in containers

EFSA Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (AHAW): Søren Saxmose Nielsen, Julio Alvarez, Dominique Joseph Bicout, Paolo Calistri, Elisabetta Canali, Julian Ashley Drewe, Bruno Garin-Bastuji, Jose Luis Gonzales Rojas, Christian Gortázar Schmidt, Mette Herskin, Virginie Michel, Miguel Ángel Miranda Chueca, Barbara Padalino, Paolo Pasquali, Helen Clare Roberts, Hans Spoolder, Karl Stahl, Antonio Velarde, Arvo Viltrop, Christoph Winckler

Published in 2022

EFSA scientific opinion on the protection of domestic birds and rabbits during transport. The main welfare consequences during loading and unloading are handling stress, injury, restriction of movement and sensory hyperstimulation; those while travelling and on arrival are injury, restriction of movement, sensory hyperstimulation, movement stress, heat, cold, prolonged hunger and prolonged thirst. These welfare consequences and the indicators measured on the animals are described. The hazards that cause them, and recommendations on how to avoid such hazards and to correct or mitigate their effects on welfare  are presented.

Document Types: Opinions

Animal categories: Poultry

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Adaptation of the environment to the animal, Animal-based measurements, Pain, Risk management, Welfare indicators, Human-animal relationships, Stress, Transport

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Play ontogeny in young chickens is affected by domestication and early stress

Lundén Gabrielle, Oscarsson Rebecca, Hedlund Louise, Gjøen Johanna, Jensen Per

Published in 2022

Scientific paper comparing the play behaviors of chicks bred from "domesticated" and "wild" genealogical lines, with and without the stress of routine procedures in a commercial hatchery. Chicks showed qualitative and quantitative differences in play behaviors depending on lineage, and early stress was observed to affect their play profile.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Poultry

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Learning, training, Enrichment, Cognitive processes, Stress

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The Potential of Understory Production Systems to Improve Laying Hen Welfare

Shaocong Yan, Chenyujing Yang, Lei Zhu, Yongji Xue

Published in 2022

Scientific review of Chinese systems of rearing laying hens in undergrowth, their overall positive impact on the welfare of the animals themselves, their acceptability to Chinese farmers and public authorities, and the limitations on their general implementation across the whole country.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Poultry

Keywords:Adaptation of the environment to the animal, Societal issues, Living environment, Stress, Livestock farming system

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Recognition and Assessment of Pain-Related Behaviors in Avian Species: An Integrative Review

Nicole A. Mikoni, David Sanchez-Migallon Guzman, Erik Fausak, Joanne Paul-Murphy

Published in 2022

Scientific review of the science behind the recognition of signs of pain in birds based on postural and behavioral changes. Most of the articles discuss pain stimuli associated with welfare impairments such as beak size, limb abnormalities, and wishbone fractures in chickens.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories:Birds (excluding poultry), Poultry

Keywords:Pain

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Transforming Intensive Animal Production: Challenges and Opportunities for Farm Animal Welfare in the European Union

Mariann Molnár

Published in 2022

Scientific review of the reasons why intensive livestock farming continues to be the dominant farming system in Europe, and the measures that need to be taken to encourage livestock sectors to make the transition to non-intensive farming methods.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Societal issues, Stress, Livestock farming system

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European Parliament: Written answer to question E-002611/22: Banning the transport of live animals during heatwaves 

Aurélia Beigneux (ID). Reply: Mrs Kyriakides on behalf of the European Commission

Published in 2022

Answer to a question on the European Commission's position on the banning of the transport of live animals when the temperature exceeds 30°C, and on how it intends to strengthen the regulations to better control such transport of live animals.

Document types: Regulation/Certification

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Equines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Societal issues, Human-animal relationships, Stress, Transport

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Practices and issues of moulting programs for laying hens: a review

R. Mishra, B. Mishra, Y. S. Kim, R. Jha 

Published in 2022

Scientific review on the methods used on laying hen farms to trigger and end moulting, along with the animal welfare problems they cause.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Poultry

Keywords:Stress, Livestock farming system

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Electric shock control of farmed animals: Welfare review and ethical critique

D. Grumett, A. Butterworth

Published in 2022

Scientific article presenting the available methods to control or confine of farm animals through the use of electric shocks and reminding readers that their use, which is likely to cause pain, must be ethically justifiable and provide clear welfare benefits. It sets out the potential welfare implications of each method.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Equines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Pain, Societal issues, Restraint equipment, Human-animal relationships, Stress

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Welfare issues and potential solutions for laying hens in free range and organic production systems: A review based on literature and interviews

Claire Bonnefous, Anne Collin, Laurence A. Guilloteau, Vanessa Guesdon, Christine Filliat, Sophie Réhault-Godbert, T. Bas Rodenburg, Frank A. M. Tuyttens, Laura Warin, Sanna Steenfeldt, Lisa Baldinger, Martina Re, Raffaella Ponzio, Anna Zuliani, Pietro Venezia, Minna Väre, Patricia Parrott, Keith Walley, Jarkko K. Niemi, Christine Leterrier

Published in 2022

Scientific review identifying an increased risk to free-range hens of microbial and parasitic infections, heat stress and predation. They do, however, have better bone quality and show less evidence of pecking behaviors. The review sets out existing preventive strategies and identifies missed opportunities to use genetics and prenatal and nutritional factors to prevent these welfare issues in free-range systems.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Poultry

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Enrichment, Housing, Living environment, Resilience, Robustness, Stress, Livestock farming system

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