A Review : Hens Laying Welfare Indicators, A World View

Authors(1) :-Octavio Villanueva-Sanchez

Animal Welfare is one of the most important goals for improvement the animal production. So many factors are believed to be involved for improving the animal welfare. Today, there are alternatives for hen housing in the world in order to have a better animal condition. For the other hand, hen welfare assessment has been used a number of parameters of well-being in order to use evaluation techniques to reduce the confounding influence of handling on stress responses. For this reason new insights with non-invasive methods are performed for it. The subject matter of this study is a review of the results obtained by different authors in relation of wefare assessment of corticosterone in albumina egg, droppings, feather, relation of plasma corticosterone and H/L ratio, image analysis and infrared thermography in hens. This article reviews the best and most relevant publications during the past 10 years to promote hen laying healthcare using non-invasive methods as welfare indicators.

Authors and Affiliations

Octavio Villanueva-Sanchez
Department of Animal Nutrition, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutricion SZ. Mexico

Animal Welfare, Hen Housing, Non-Invasive Method, Welfare Indicators.

  1. Alm Malim Welfare Indicators in Laying Hens.Doctoral Thesis Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (Uppsala 2015 Acta Universitatis Agriculturae.
  2. Barbosa Filho A.D., Silva J. O. and  Silva A. N. 2008.  Welfare Evaluation by Image Analysis of Laying Hens in Different Breeding Systems and Environmental Conditions.  Livestock Environment VIII, 31. Published by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers.
  3. Boisy Alan. 2013. Genetics and the Behavior of Domestic Animals: Chapter 3. How Studying Interactions Between Animal Emotions, Cognition, and Personality Can Contribute to Improve Farm Animal Welfare 2nd Ed. Academic Press.
  4. Bortolotti G.R. Marchant T.A., Blas J. and Cabezas S. 2009. Tracking stress: localisation, deposition and stability of corticosterone in feathers. Biol. 212:1477-82.
  5. Bortolotti G.R. Marchant T.A., Blas J. and German T. 2008.  Corticosterone in feathers is a long-term, integrated measure of avian stress physiology.  Ecol. 22: 494–500
  6. Bulmer Elena and Gil Diego. Chronic Stress in Battery Hens: Measuring Corticosterone in Laying Hen Eggs. Inter. J. Poult. Sc.i 7 (9): 880-883,
  7. Cook N. J., Schaefer L.,  Kover D. R.,  Haley D. B., Feddes  J. R. and  Church J. S. Church. 2011.  Minimally-Invasive Assessments of the Behavioural and Physiological Effects of Enriched Colony Cages on Laying Hens. The Open Agricul. J.  5: 10-18 
  8. Dowing Jeff. Non-invasive assessment of stress in commercial housing systems A report for the Australian Egg Corporation. Australian Egg Corporation Limited.
  9. Elson A, Gleadthorpe ADAS and Mansfield Vale Meden. 2011. Housing and Husbandry of Laying Hens: past, present and future. Longmann Info. 46(2): 16-24
  10. Engel Joana. 2009. Further Development of Non-Invasive Stress Measures. Australian Poultry CRC.
  11. Engel Joana. Welfare and Environment. Australian Poultry CRC.
  12. FAO 2015. World Agriculture: Towards 2015/2030 - An FAO perspective. wfao.org/docrep/005/y4252e/y4252e07.htm.
  13. Fraser a David, Duncan b J.H., Edwards c Sandra A.,  Grandin d Temple, Gregory e Neville G,  Guyonnet f Vincent, Hemsworth  g Paul H.,  Huertas h Stella M.,  Huzzey a Juliana M.,  Mellor i David J.,  Menchi j Joy A.,  Spinka k Marek, Rebecca    2013. The Review General Principles for the welfare of animals in production systems: The underlying science and its application. Vet. J.  198: 19–27  
  14. Holt S., Davies R. H.,  Dewulf J., Gast , R. K., Huwe J. K., Jones  D. R., Walfman  D. and Willian K. R. 2011. Emerging Issues: Social Sustainability of Egg Production Symposium. Poult. Sci. doi:10.3382/ps.2010-00794
  15. Lay Jr D.C., Fulton R.M., Hester Y., Karcher D.M., Kjaer J.B., Mench J.A., Mullens A, Newberry R.C., Nicol C.J. O´Sullivan N.P. and Poster R.E. 2011. Emerging Issues: Social Sustainability of Egg Production Symposium: en welfare in different housing systems. Poult. Sci. 1-14
  16. Palme R. Monitoring stress hormone metabolites as a useful, non-invasive tool for welfare assessment in farm animals. Anim. Welf. 21: 331-337
  17. Per Jensen A., Buitenhuis b Bart,  Kjaer c  Joergen, Zanella d Adroaldo Morme´de e Pierre and Tommaso Pizzari. Genetics and genomics of animal behaviour and welfare—Challenges and possibilities.  App.l Anim. Behav. Sci. 113: 383–403.
  18. Rushen J, Chapinal N and de Passillé AM. 2012. Automated monitoring of behavioural-based animal welfare indicators. Anim. Welf.  21: 339-350
  19. Singh , Cook N., Cheng K. M.  and Silversides  F. G. 2009. Invasive and noninvasive measurement of stress in laying hens kept in conventional cages and in floor pens. Poult. Sci.  88:1346-1351.
  20. Tikhonov S. and and  Miftakhutdinov A. 2014.  Diagnostics of Hens Stresses in Poultry.  Ind. Glob. Ve.t 12: 750-755.

Publication Details

Published in : Volume 3 | Issue 1 | January-February 2017
Date of Publication : 2017-02-28
License:  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Page(s) : 01-08
Manuscript Number : IJSRST17312
Publisher : Technoscience Academy

Print ISSN : 2395-6011, Online ISSN : 2395-602X

Cite This Article :

Octavio Villanueva-Sanchez, " A Review : Hens Laying Welfare Indicators, A World View", International Journal of Scientific Research in Science and Technology(IJSRST), Print ISSN : 2395-6011, Online ISSN : 2395-602X, Volume 3, Issue 1, pp.01-08 , January-February-2017.
Journal URL : https://ijsrst.com/IJSRST17312
Citation Detection and Elimination     |      | | Biol. 212:1477-82.
  • Bortolotti G.R. Marchant T.A., Blas J. and German T. 2008.  Corticosterone in feathers is a long-term, integrated measure of avian stress physiology.  Ecol. 22: 494–500
  • Bulmer Elena and Gil Diego. Chronic Stress in Battery Hens: Measuring Corticosterone in Laying Hen Eggs. Inter. J. Poult. Sc.i 7 (9): 880-883,
  • Cook N. J., Schaefer L.,  Kover D. R.,  Haley D. B., Feddes  J. R. and  Church J. S. Church. 2011.  Minimally-Invasive Assessments of the Behavioural and Physiological Effects of Enriched Colony Cages on Laying Hens. The Open Agricul. J.  5: 10-18 
  • Dowing Jeff. Non-invasive assessment of stress in commercial housing systems A report for the Australian Egg Corporation. Australian Egg Corporation Limited.
  • Elson A, Gleadthorpe ADAS and Mansfield Vale Meden. 2011. Housing and Husbandry of Laying Hens: past, present and future. Longmann Info. 46(2): 16-24
  • Engel Joana. 2009. Further Development of Non-Invasive Stress Measures. Australian Poultry CRC.
  • Engel Joana. Welfare and Environment. Australian Poultry CRC.
  • FAO 2015. World Agriculture: Towards 2015/2030 - An FAO perspective. wfao.org/docrep/005/y4252e/y4252e07.htm.
  • Fraser a David, Duncan b J.H., Edwards c Sandra A.,  Grandin d Temple, Gregory e Neville G,  Guyonnet f Vincent, Hemsworth  g Paul H.,  Huertas h Stella M.,  Huzzey a Juliana M.,  Mellor i David J.,  Menchi j Joy A.,  Spinka k Marek, Rebecca    2013. The Review General Principles for the welfare of animals in production systems: The underlying science and its application. Vet. J.  198: 19–27  
  • Holt S., Davies R. H.,  Dewulf J., Gast , R. K., Huwe J. K., Jones  D. R., Walfman  D. and Willian K. R. 2011. Emerging Issues: Social Sustainability of Egg Production Symposium. Poult. Sci. doi:10.3382/ps.2010-00794
  • Lay Jr D.C., Fulton R.M., Hester Y., Karcher D.M., Kjaer J.B., Mench J.A., Mullens A, Newberry R.C., Nicol C.J. O´Sullivan N.P. and Poster R.E. 2011. Emerging Issues: Social Sustainability of Egg Production Symposium: en welfare in different housing systems. Poult. Sci. 1-14
  • Palme R. Monitoring stress hormone metabolites as a useful, non-invasive tool for welfare assessment in farm animals. Anim. Welf. 21: 331-337
  • Per Jensen A., Buitenhuis b Bart,  Kjaer c  Joergen, Zanella d Adroaldo Morme´de e Pierre and Tommaso Pizzari. Genetics and genomics of animal behaviour and welfare—Challenges and possibilities.  App.l Anim. Behav. Sci. 113: 383–403.
  • Rushen J, Chapinal N and de Passillé AM. 2012. Automated monitoring of behavioural-based animal welfare indicators. Anim. Welf.  21: 339-350
  • Singh , Cook N., Cheng K. M.  and Silversides  F. G. 2009. Invasive and noninvasive measurement of stress in laying hens kept in conventional cages and in floor pens. Poult. Sci.  88:1346-1351.
  • Tikhonov S. and and  Miftakhutdinov A. 2014.  Diagnostics of Hens Stresses in Poultry.  Ind. Glob. Ve.t 12: 750-755.
  • " target="_blank"> BibTeX | Biol. 212:1477-82.
  • Bortolotti G.R. Marchant T.A., Blas J. and German T. 2008.  Corticosterone in feathers is a long-term, integrated measure of avian stress physiology.  Ecol. 22: 494–500
  • Bulmer Elena and Gil Diego. Chronic Stress in Battery Hens: Measuring Corticosterone in Laying Hen Eggs. Inter. J. Poult. Sc.i 7 (9): 880-883,
  • Cook N. J., Schaefer L.,  Kover D. R.,  Haley D. B., Feddes  J. R. and  Church J. S. Church. 2011.  Minimally-Invasive Assessments of the Behavioural and Physiological Effects of Enriched Colony Cages on Laying Hens. The Open Agricul. J.  5: 10-18 
  • Dowing Jeff. Non-invasive assessment of stress in commercial housing systems A report for the Australian Egg Corporation. Australian Egg Corporation Limited.
  • Elson A, Gleadthorpe ADAS and Mansfield Vale Meden. 2011. Housing and Husbandry of Laying Hens: past, present and future. Longmann Info. 46(2): 16-24
  • Engel Joana. 2009. Further Development of Non-Invasive Stress Measures. Australian Poultry CRC.
  • Engel Joana. Welfare and Environment. Australian Poultry CRC.
  • FAO 2015. World Agriculture: Towards 2015/2030 - An FAO perspective. wfao.org/docrep/005/y4252e/y4252e07.htm.
  • Fraser a David, Duncan b J.H., Edwards c Sandra A.,  Grandin d Temple, Gregory e Neville G,  Guyonnet f Vincent, Hemsworth  g Paul H.,  Huertas h Stella M.,  Huzzey a Juliana M.,  Mellor i David J.,  Menchi j Joy A.,  Spinka k Marek, Rebecca    2013. The Review General Principles for the welfare of animals in production systems: The underlying science and its application. Vet. J.  198: 19–27  
  • Holt S., Davies R. H.,  Dewulf J., Gast , R. K., Huwe J. K., Jones  D. R., Walfman  D. and Willian K. R. 2011. Emerging Issues: Social Sustainability of Egg Production Symposium. Poult. Sci. doi:10.3382/ps.2010-00794
  • Lay Jr D.C., Fulton R.M., Hester Y., Karcher D.M., Kjaer J.B., Mench J.A., Mullens A, Newberry R.C., Nicol C.J. O´Sullivan N.P. and Poster R.E. 2011. Emerging Issues: Social Sustainability of Egg Production Symposium: en welfare in different housing systems. Poult. Sci. 1-14
  • Palme R. Monitoring stress hormone metabolites as a useful, non-invasive tool for welfare assessment in farm animals. Anim. Welf. 21: 331-337
  • Per Jensen A., Buitenhuis b Bart,  Kjaer c  Joergen, Zanella d Adroaldo Morme´de e Pierre and Tommaso Pizzari. Genetics and genomics of animal behaviour and welfare—Challenges and possibilities.  App.l Anim. Behav. Sci. 113: 383–403.
  • Rushen J, Chapinal N and de Passillé AM. 2012. Automated monitoring of behavioural-based animal welfare indicators. Anim. Welf.  21: 339-350
  • Singh , Cook N., Cheng K. M.  and Silversides  F. G. 2009. Invasive and noninvasive measurement of stress in laying hens kept in conventional cages and in floor pens. Poult. Sci.  88:1346-1351.
  • Tikhonov S. and and  Miftakhutdinov A. 2014.  Diagnostics of Hens Stresses in Poultry.  Ind. Glob. Ve.t 12: 750-755.
  • " target="_blank">RIS | Biol. 212:1477-82.
  • Bortolotti G.R. Marchant T.A., Blas J. and German T. 2008.  Corticosterone in feathers is a long-term, integrated measure of avian stress physiology.  Ecol. 22: 494–500
  • Bulmer Elena and Gil Diego. Chronic Stress in Battery Hens: Measuring Corticosterone in Laying Hen Eggs. Inter. J. Poult. Sc.i 7 (9): 880-883,
  • Cook N. J., Schaefer L.,  Kover D. R.,  Haley D. B., Feddes  J. R. and  Church J. S. Church. 2011.  Minimally-Invasive Assessments of the Behavioural and Physiological Effects of Enriched Colony Cages on Laying Hens. The Open Agricul. J.  5: 10-18 
  • Dowing Jeff. Non-invasive assessment of stress in commercial housing systems A report for the Australian Egg Corporation. Australian Egg Corporation Limited.
  • Elson A, Gleadthorpe ADAS and Mansfield Vale Meden. 2011. Housing and Husbandry of Laying Hens: past, present and future. Longmann Info. 46(2): 16-24
  • Engel Joana. 2009. Further Development of Non-Invasive Stress Measures. Australian Poultry CRC.
  • Engel Joana. Welfare and Environment. Australian Poultry CRC.
  • FAO 2015. World Agriculture: Towards 2015/2030 - An FAO perspective. wfao.org/docrep/005/y4252e/y4252e07.htm.
  • Fraser a David, Duncan b J.H., Edwards c Sandra A.,  Grandin d Temple, Gregory e Neville G,  Guyonnet f Vincent, Hemsworth  g Paul H.,  Huertas h Stella M.,  Huzzey a Juliana M.,  Mellor i David J.,  Menchi j Joy A.,  Spinka k Marek, Rebecca    2013. The Review General Principles for the welfare of animals in production systems: The underlying science and its application. Vet. J.  198: 19–27  
  • Holt S., Davies R. H.,  Dewulf J., Gast , R. K., Huwe J. K., Jones  D. R., Walfman  D. and Willian K. R. 2011. Emerging Issues: Social Sustainability of Egg Production Symposium. Poult. Sci. doi:10.3382/ps.2010-00794
  • Lay Jr D.C., Fulton R.M., Hester Y., Karcher D.M., Kjaer J.B., Mench J.A., Mullens A, Newberry R.C., Nicol C.J. O´Sullivan N.P. and Poster R.E. 2011. Emerging Issues: Social Sustainability of Egg Production Symposium: en welfare in different housing systems. Poult. Sci. 1-14
  • Palme R. Monitoring stress hormone metabolites as a useful, non-invasive tool for welfare assessment in farm animals. Anim. Welf. 21: 331-337
  • Per Jensen A., Buitenhuis b Bart,  Kjaer c  Joergen, Zanella d Adroaldo Morme´de e Pierre and Tommaso Pizzari. Genetics and genomics of animal behaviour and welfare—Challenges and possibilities.  App.l Anim. Behav. Sci. 113: 383–403.
  • Rushen J, Chapinal N and de Passillé AM. 2012. Automated monitoring of behavioural-based animal welfare indicators. Anim. Welf.  21: 339-350
  • Singh , Cook N., Cheng K. M.  and Silversides  F. G. 2009. Invasive and noninvasive measurement of stress in laying hens kept in conventional cages and in floor pens. Poult. Sci.  88:1346-1351.
  • Tikhonov S. and and  Miftakhutdinov A. 2014.  Diagnostics of Hens Stresses in Poultry.  Ind. Glob. Ve.t 12: 750-755.
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