Influence of Different Light Spectrums on Behaviour and Welfare in Laying Hens.

Artificial commercial lighting used in animal production facilities can have negative influences on visual abilities, behaviour and welfare of domestic fowl. This study examined the effects of natural-derived light spectrums on behaviour, production and welfare of laying hens reared from hatching into adulthood. Comparisons were made of frequency of a range of behaviours associated with activity, aggression and comfort in birds kept in control light (commercial standard), daylight (full spectrum, including ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths and forest light (forest understorey, including UV).

Environmental complexity: A buffer against stress in the domestic chick.

Birds kept in commercial production systems can be exposed to multiple stressors from early life and this alters the development of different morphological, immunological and behavioural indicators. We explore the hypothesis that provision of a complex environment during early life, better prepares birds to cope with stressful events as well as buffers them against future unpredictable stressful episodes. In this study, 96 one day old pullets were randomly distributed in eight pens (12 birds/pen).

Ability of Laying Hens to Distinguish Between Companions According to Their Success in Gaining Access to Food.

Laying hens () are social birds with cognitive abilities related to having a functional interaction with their peers. Gaining knowledge about for example new food sources from other individuals can be a valuable complement to individual learning and probably even more so if one copies the behavior of successful individuals. In this study the aim was to investigate if a bird would identify another bird as being successful at gaining access to food.

Methods for Investigating the Motivation of Mice to Explore and Access Food Rewards.

The emotional state of domestic animals is an essential component of the assessment of their welfare. In addition, sensitivity to various rewards can be a valuable indicator when investigating these states. We aimed to design an exploration test and a contrast test that did not evoke fear and anxiety in C57BL/6N mice but that instead were perceived as positive experiences and that might be used to assess sensitivity to various rewards.

Light exposure during incubation and social and vigilance behaviour of domestic chicks.

Light exposure of chick eggs during a sensitive period at the end of the incubation period leads to the development of lateralised visual behaviour, and here we show that social behaviour is also influenced by this exposure. Groups of eight chicks of three types-(1) all incubated in the dark (Da), (2) all exposed to light (Li), (3) half Da and half Li (Mixed)-were tested on a range of tasks involving social competition and vigilance for a simulated predator. We confirmed a previous finding that lowest-ranking chicks in Li groups gained less access to a food bowl when they had to compete with group members than did the lowest-ranking chicks in the Da groups, and we extended this result to show that the Mixed groups performed like the Li groups.

Transmission of stress-induced learning impairment and associated brain gene expression from parents to offspring in chickens.

Background: Stress influences many aspects of animal behaviour and is a major factor driving populations to adapt to changing living conditions, such as during domestication. Stress can affect offspring through non-genetic mechanisms, but recent research indicates that inherited epigenetic modifications of the genome could possibly also be involved.

Methodology/principal Findings: Red junglefowl (RJF, ancestors of modern chickens) and domesticated White Leghorn (WL) chickens were raised in a stressful environment (unpredictable light-dark rhythm) and control animals in similar pens, but on a 12/12 h light-dark rhythm.