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. 2023 Sep 10;13(18):2879.
doi: 10.3390/ani13182879.

Exploratory Study on Individual Locomotor Activity in Local Dual-Purpose and Commercial Breeder Pullets

Pia Schürmann  1 , Senta Becker  1 , E Tobias Krause  2 , Sonja Hillemacher  1 , Wolfgang Büscher  1 , Inga Tiemann  1
Affiliations

Exploratory Study on Individual Locomotor Activity in Local Dual-Purpose and Commercial Breeder Pullets

Pia Schürmann et al. Animals (Basel). .

Abstract

Improving animal welfare is a prerequisite for the societal acceptance of poultry production. Support for improvements requires practical tools to quantify animal welfare and identify predispositions at the individual level, where possible. In this study, the activities and behavior of dual-purpose chickens (N = 245) and commercial breeders (N = 224) were analyzed. The general locomotor activity (GLA) data were collected using an RFID system over five days with 9-to-14-week-old animals. The results show that the animals of comparable age and stocking density differed from each other in their activity (p ≤ 0.001) according to breed, but no sex differences were observed (p = 0.159). No correlations were found between GLA and plumage condition (p > 0.05). The individual variations within the breeds are presented and discussed on an animal-by-animal level, providing new insights into the individual behavioral variability of chickens. The RFID systems can reliably generate GLA data that help to understand the potential interplay between behavior and animal welfare. The technology is also suitable for creating individual (personality) profiles that can be used for breeding. With a better understanding of the role of activity, husbandry and management practices can be adapted to improve animal welfare.

Keywords: animal welfare; breeder; dual-purpose chicken; gallus gallus; general locomotor activity; local breeds; personality; pullets.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Female phenotype of the investigated breeds: Ranger (a), Bielefelder (b), Red Junglefowl (c), White Rock (d), and Ramelsloher (e).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Experimental setup of antennas covering the pen. Positions of antennas, perches, feeders, and water nipples and dimensions of pens are given. The RA were housed in compartments shown in (a) and the breeds BIE, RAM, and WR were housed in compartments as shown in (b).
Figure 3
Figure 3
General locomotor activity (GLA) for the individuals of the investigated Red Junglefowl, Bielefelder (BIE), and Ramelsloher (RAM), and as well as the breeders Ranger (RA) and White Rock (WR). Each bar represents one individual from the breed. The different age groups and comparable stocking densities, i.e., groups that were statistically compared, are indicated by different background colors. The GLA expresses the number of antennas passed per bird and day during five days of recording.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Comparison of general locomotor activity (GLA) distribution for the investigated breeds, Red Junglefowl, Bielefelder (BIE), and Ramelsloher (RAM), as well as the breeders Ranger (RA) and White Rock (WR). The different age groups and comparable stocking densities, i.e., the groups that were statistically compared, are indicated by different background colors. The upper and lower boundaries of the box indicate the upper (75%) and lower (25%) quartiles, the median is shown by the line within the box, the mean is indicated by the cross inside the box, and the whiskers show minimum and maximum values. Outliers less than or equal to 1.5 times the interquartile range are presented with dots.
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