Social enrichment improves affective state and foraging behavior while maintaining growth performance in broiler chickens
Description
This study hypothesizes that broiler chickens exposed to social enrichment (n = 48) through regular positive human interactions will exhibit enhanced behavioral welfare indicators such as increased exploratory behaviors (locomotion, foraging), a reduced fear response (measured through tonic immobility and attention bias tests), a preference for sweet and umami compounds, and improved growth performance when compared to those exposed solely to physical enrichment (n = 48)(e.g., perches, platforms, and straw bales). The data analysis includes behavioral observations capturing both the frequency and duration of various behaviors in broiler chickens, such as feeding, drinking, locomotion, lying, preening, dustbathing, interaction with environmental enrichment (perches, platforms), and social behaviors like mock fighting and gentle pecking, as well as foraging. The dataset also contains information from the attention bias test, which measures the duration of behaviors such as first step, begin feeding, time spent feeding, and resume feeding, along with binary scores (1-0) indicating the presence or absence of vigilance behaviors like erect posture, neck stretching, looking around, and freezing. In the section on sweet and umami taste preferences, the data reflect the consumption of two matrices, one neutral with water and another containing sucrose or monosodium glutamate (MSG), calculated by subtracting the remaining solution from the total offered. The results of the tonic immobility test are also included, which record the time in seconds each bird remained immobile. Finally, the productive data encompass parameters such as average daily gain (ADG), average daily feed intake (ADFI), feed conversion ratio (FCR), and final body weight (BW), measured throughout the 43-day production cycle to evaluate the impact of different enrichment strategies on broiler productivity.
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The data was collected through a series of controlled tests and weekly behavioral observations conducted in a broiler production system over a 43-day cycle. A total of 96 one-day-old male broiler chickens were divided into two treatment groups: one receiving physical enrichment (perches, platforms, and straw bales) and the other undergoing social enrichment (positive human-animal interaction). The birds were housed in 16 floor pens (8 pens per treatment) and subjected to a habituation period before data collection began. Behavioral Observations: Weekly observations were made to capture behaviors such as feeding, drinking, locomotion, lying, preening, dustbathing, foraging, and social interactions like mock fighting and gentle pecking. These behaviors were recorded using overhead IP Wi-Fi cameras installed above each pen. Each week, one 5-minute video per pen was analyzed using the BORIS software for behavioral coding. The ethogram was adapted from validated protocols to categorize behaviors by frequency and duration. Attention Bias Test: Following the protocol described by Anderson et al. (2021), this test was conducted on day 43 to assess the affective state of the birds. The birds were placed in a novel arena with access to food, and an alarm sound was played as a stressor. Latencies to the first step, begin feeding, time spent feeding, and resume feeding were recorded. Vigilance behaviors, such as erect posture and freezing, were scored on a binary scale (1-0). Taste Preference Tests: Based on the methodology of Cordero et al. (2024), these tests were conducted over four days between days 17 and 20. Each day, the birds were presented with two drinkers, one with a neutral water matrix and the other with either sucrose (100 mM) or monosodium glutamate (MSG, 300 mM). The test lasted 2 hours each day, during which the amount consumed from each matrix was measured by subtracting the remaining solution from the initial offering. Tonic Immobility Test: This test, based on Wang et al. (2014), was conducted on days 20 and 40. Each bird was placed on its back, and the duration of immobility (in seconds) was recorded. Tonic immobility is a widely used measure of fearfulness in poultry, with longer durations indicating higher fear levels. Growth Performance Data: Growth performance data collection began on day 1 of the trial. Broilers were weighed on days 1, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, and 42 to measure body weight (BW) and calculate average daily gain (ADG) and average daily feed intake (ADFI). Feed conversion ratio (FCR) was determined by dividing the ADG by the ADFI. Mortality (n = 4) was recorded throughout the trial, and adjustments were made for deceased birds in feed intake calculations.