Modification of fear in domestic chicks, Gallus gallus domesticus, via regular handling and early environmental enrichment
Although its adaptive properties are recognized, fear can harm the welfare and performance of intensively housed poultry. Its alleviation in individually caged domestic chicks via the independent or integrated application of regular handling and environmental enrichment regimes was investigated. The test situations incorporated varying degrees of exposure to novel, inanimate stimuli and of human involvement. […]
Feather pecking in domestic chicks: its relation to dustbathing and foraging
Feather pecking is a serious problem in poultry housing, as it may lead to feather damage, injuries and even mortality. We tested predictions of the two prevalent hypotheses claiming that feather pecking is related to dustbathing and foraging, respectively. Forty-two groups of 30 laying hen chicks,Gallus gallus domesticuswere reared in pens with a slatted floor. […]
Regulation of dustbathing in feathered and featherless domestic chicks: the Lorenzian model revisited
In Lorenz’s [`]psychohydraulic model’, behaviour is regulated by performance: the motivation to perform a behaviour builds up with time and can be reduced only by performance itself. However, a convincing example of Lorenzian regulation has been lacking. We studied dustbathing in featherless and feathered chicks, Gallus gallus domesticus, the latter trained to dustbathe on glass […]
Social dispersal by domestic chicks in a novel environment: reassuring properties of a familiar odourant
It may be possible to exploit olfactory attachments shown by chickens, Gallus gallus domesticus, to improve their welfare. In the present study, chicks were housed in groups of 15 in wooden boxes from 1 day of age. Experiment 1 compared fear responses in pairs of 8-10-day-old chicks with no previous experience of vanillin when they […]
Affiliation and Aggression As Related to Gender in Domestic Chicks (Gallus gallus)
Social discrimination in male and female domestic chicks (Gallus gallus) was investigated by using (1) latencies of approach response, (2) simultaneous free choice, and (3) intersubject aggressive-pecking tests. In approach-response tests, females showed shorter latencies when tested with cagemates than when tested with strangers, whereas males showed shorter latencies when tested with strangers than when […]
Behavioural and physiological effects of absence of ultraviolet wavelengths for domestic chicks
It is increasingly clear that ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths are a component of normal avian colour perception and influence their behaviour. As artificial lighting is designed to human specifications, and so is usually deficient in UV light, there may be welfare implications for captive birds, with both context-dependent and chronic long-term effects in its absence. Domestic […]