Management of laying hens: discover the best practices and recommendations

Today’s consumers demand that all animal-based food production considers both the quality of the final product and the health and welfare of the animals, including laying hens that provide us with eggs and other derived products. Therefore, the management of these hens must be adapted to the species’ characteristics and behaviors.

ChickenWatch monitors the adoption of animal welfare systems in Asian countries through a map that reveals the disparity in progress across different regions. Taiwan and Japan stand out as leaders in animal welfare practices for laying hens in Asia, with significant advancements in the implementation of cage-free systems.

In contrast, China and India are among the countries with the least progress, where the use of cages in egg production still predominates.

One of the fundamental principles of welfare that can be provided to laying hens is the cage-free system. When birds are caged, they cannot express their natural behaviors, experience stress, and their mental state and disease resistance are severely affected. This is why managing laying hens with welfare requires the adoption of the cage-free system.

However, simply raising laying hens without the use of cages is not enough to ensure their welfare; it is necessary to follow a series of best practices that preserve the birds’ physical and mental well-being.

Keep reading to learn about the animal welfare recommendations for managing laying hens!

General aspects of hen welfare

The management of laying hens must be careful and responsible at all stages of these animals’ lives, from birth, through rearing and transport, to the point when they are compassionately culled. Therefore, routines and management practices should be adopted to ensure that laying hens do not experience fear.

Below are the recommendations for the proper management of these animals:

• Unnecessary noise and sudden movements within the area where the birds are housed should be avoided to prevent stress or fright;
• Birds should always be handled with care to avoid injuries or cause them fear and pain;
• It is not recommended to lift birds by their wings, tails, feet, or necks, as this can be considered mistreatment;
• Animal mistreatment and abuse during any stage of their management are prohibited crimes under national laws.

Lighting system

To preserve the physiological welfare of laying hens, it is recommended to use natural lighting. This encourages the birds to perch at dusk, reducing the risk of crowding.

If exclusive use of natural lighting in poultry farming is not possible, the following practices are recommended:

• Provide uniform lighting throughout the housing, as dark areas encourage crowding and laying eggs on the litter;
• Every 24 hours, the poultry house’s lighting system should ensure a minimum period of 8 hours of continuous artificial light and/or daylight and a minimum period of 6 hours of continuous darkness or the natural period of darkness;
• For artificial lighting, a gradual dimming and brightening program should be used to simulate the variation in time and intensity of natural light, using a dimmer, light intensity regulator, or timer to help manage the lighting;
• During the day, the lighting should provide sufficient clarity for the birds to express their natural behaviors and be inspected without difficulty in any part of the housing;
• The light intensity at bird height should not be less than 10 lux.

Management to prevent cannibalism

When nutritional, sanitary, environmental management, and staff training for the care of laying hens are properly carried out, the incidence of feather pecking that can lead to cannibalism among birds is prevented. This is due to the knowledge and experience gained by producers, which have helped develop animal welfare recommendations.

Here are the practices that help reduce the risk of cannibalism among laying hens:

• Meeting nutritional requirements: a balanced diet and high-quality raw materials should be provided to meet the birds’ metabolic, energy, and behavioral needs;
• High-quality litter: helps reduce the incidence of cannibalism by motivating the birds to take dust or sand baths, a natural behavior of the species;
• Reduction of stimuli: the presence of blood or open wounds encourages aggressive pecking among birds, so the facilities should not have sharp elements or structures that can cause injuries;
• Immediate removal of birds: injured or dead hens should be removed from the group immediately;
• Homogeneity: bird management should result in a flock as uniform as possible in weight, health, and feather condition; routinely weighing a sample of birds allows evaluation of nutritional and sanitary management;
• Perches at different heights: both during the rearing and production phases, perches at different heights serve as a refuge for the hens;
• Nests: nests should have a closed bottom and low light inside so that birds lay their eggs in a place they consider protected;
• Selection: preference should be given to more docile breeds that adapt to the farming environment and are less prone to pecking and cannibalism;
• Beak treatment: severe beak trimming causes chronic pain and suffering and is not accepted as a practice. If the farm is not prepared to stop performing this procedure, infrared laser beak trimming should be used while the birds are still in the incubator, or cauterization should be performed, trimming only the beak tip.

Other measures to facilitate beak wear can also be adopted, such as using feeders with sandpaper-lined bottoms or a rough surface, or scattering porous stones throughout the housing and placing food on them.

Euthanasia

Laying hens suffering from an individual pathology that causes them suffering and has no prognosis for recovery should be culled following the best practices described below:

• Euthanasia should be performed by a veterinarian or someone trained to carry out the procedure without causing pain and stress to the birds;
• Cervical dislocation is accepted for euthanasia but with restrictions and only in emergency cases, as its purpose is compassionate culling and not a routine slaughter method;
• The chosen euthanasia method will depend on the birds’ age, physiological state, available means for containment, the technical ability of the person performing the procedure, and especially the number of birds to be culled;
• It should be ensured that the bird is truly dead before disposal in a container, composter, or incinerator;
• According to the National Compassionate Culling Program (STEPS), euthanasia should be performed by a trained employee through manual cervical dislocation of the bird’s neck;
• The STEPS program emphasizes that euthanasia should be performed only in emergencies with the purpose of compassionate culling and never as a routine slaughter method.

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Published on September 7, 2024