Table 2.
A summary of broiler breeders’ use of the different kinds of environmental enrichment reviewed in the present review and its effect on the prevalence of different welfare and production indicators measured.
| Type | Period | Genotype | Use by the birds | Parameter affected |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stereotypic behavior | Sexual behavior | Plumage condition | Aggressive pecking | Keel bone damage | Other | ||||
| Elevated resting places (perches and platforms) | Rearing | Fast | Limited | ||||||
| Slow | Moderate | ||||||||
| Production | Fast | Moderate | Improved | Increaseda | |||||
| Slow | Well used | Improved | Increaseda | ||||||
| Cover panels | Production | Fast | Improvedb | ||||||
| Bales of wood shavings | Rearing | Fast | Limited | No effect | No effect | Reduced | |||
| Suspended strings | Rearing | Fast | Limited | No effect | No effect | ||||
| Substrate | Rearing | Fast | Well used | Reduced | Improved | Reduced | |||
| Scattering of feed in bedding | Rearing | Fast | Reduced | No effectc | |||||
Fast, fast growing, slow, slow growing.
aOnly studied in birds with access to both perches and platforms.
bEgg production, fertility, hatchibility, and distribution of roosters in the house.
cConcentration of plasma corticosterone, compensatory food intake, and plasma glucose: non-esterified fatty acids ratio.