Slower growth, indoor environmental enrichment, or covered veranda access: A comparison of three rearing systems for broiler chicken welfare and behavior
5 affiliations
- 1Epidemiology, Health and Welfare Unit, Ploufragan-Plouzané-Niort Laboratory, French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES), Ploufragan, France
- 2Avian Experimental Unit, Ploufragan-Plouzané-Niort Laboratory, French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES), Ploufragan, France
- 3Technical Institute for Poultry (ITAVI), Nouzilly, 37380, France
- 4INRAE, CNRS, Université de Tours, PRC, Nouzilly, 37380, France
- 5INRAE, Université de Tours, BOA, Nouzilly, 37380, France
Abstract
The use of slower-growing chicken strains and environmental enrichments are major levers for improving broiler welfare. This study compared the effects of three rearing systems on the welfare and behavior of broiler chickens: intermediate-growing broilers (Redbro) kept in an unenriched environment (“RDB”), fast-growing broilers (Ross 308) kept in a highly enriched and complex indoor environment (“RoE+”), and fast-growing broilers (Ross 308) having access to a 36-m² covered veranda from D14 (“RoCV”). Each of the four 81-m² pens per treatment housed 1,350 birds until they reached a final body weight of 1.9 kg, corresponding to a final indoor stocking density of 30 kg/m². As they aged, the RoCV chickens increasingly went into the covered verandas until an average of 27% of the birds in the verandas was reached on D32. At the same time, RoE+ broilers perched more and more on the enrichments over time. RoE+ birds consumed more water than RoCV chickens from D24 onward, without any difference in feed consumption. RDB and RoCV birds had fewer leg lesions than RoE+ ones, although the litter quality did not differ between the treatments, but RDB birds had better gait scores than either RoE+ or RoCV broilers. More walking, running, foraging, sparring and frolicking behaviors were observed in the covered verandas than in the indoor pens, where resting behavior was more frequently observed. RoE+ birds dustbathed more often than RDB and RoCV chickens. No difference between treatments was found for mortality. Fewer RoCV broilers reached the different steps of the detour test and approached a novel object than RDB and RoE+ broilers. Overall, the three rearing systems compared influenced different aspects of broiler welfare: RDB treatment was associated with better walking ability and fewer occurrences of footpad dermatitis, RoE+ with more comfort behaviors, and RoCV with more active behaviors and improved footpad condition.
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BibTeX
@article{mocz2026slower,
title = {{Slower growth, indoor environmental enrichment, or covered veranda access: A comparison of three rearing systems for broiler chicken welfare and behavior}},
author = {F. Mocz and C. Boulangé and J-P. Moysan and L. Warin and A. Keita and C. Arnould and B. Méda and E. Le Bihan-Duval and M. Guinebretière},
journal = {Poultry Science},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.psj.2026.107950},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psj.2026.107950},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Slower growth, indoor environmental enrichment, or covered veranda access: A comparison of three rearing systems for broiler chicken welfare and behavior
AU - F. Mocz
AU - C. Boulangé
AU - J-P. Moysan
AU - L. Warin
AU - A. Keita
AU - C. Arnould
AU - B. Méda
AU - E. Le Bihan-Duval
AU - M. Guinebretière
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/11
JO - Poultry Science
DO - 10.1016/j.psj.2026.107950
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psj.2026.107950
AB - The use of slower-growing chicken strains and environmental enrichments are major levers for improving broiler welfare. This study compared the effects of three rearing systems on the welfare and behavior of broiler chickens: intermediate-growing broilers (Redbro) kept in an unenriched environment (“RDB”), fast-growing broilers (Ross 308) kept in a highly enriched and complex indoor environment (“RoE+”), and fast-growing broilers (Ross 308) having access to a 36-m² covered veranda from D14 (“RoCV”). Each of the four 81-m² pens per treatment housed 1,350 birds until they reached a final body weight of 1.9 kg, corresponding to a final indoor stocking density of 30 kg/m². As they aged, the RoCV chickens increasingly went into the covered verandas until an average of 27% of the birds in the verandas was reached on D32. At the same time, RoE+ broilers perched more and more on the enrichments over time. RoE+ birds consumed more water than RoCV chickens from D24 onward, without any difference in feed consumption. RDB and RoCV birds had fewer leg lesions than RoE+ ones, although the litter quality did not differ between the treatments, but RDB birds had better gait scores than either RoE+ or RoCV broilers. More walking, running, foraging, sparring and frolicking behaviors were observed in the covered verandas than in the indoor pens, where resting behavior was more frequently observed. RoE+ birds dustbathed more often than RDB and RoCV chickens. No difference between treatments was found for mortality. Fewer RoCV broilers reached the different steps of the detour test and approached a novel object than RDB and RoE+ broilers. Overall, the three rearing systems compared influenced different aspects of broiler welfare: RDB treatment was associated with better walking ability and fewer occurrences of footpad dermatitis, RoE+ with more comfort behaviors, and RoCV with more active behaviors and improved footpad condition.
SN - 0032-5791
SN - 1525-3171
ER -