Keel bone damage in laying hens reared in different production systems in Serbia

Abstract

The European Union in 2012 banned conventional battery cages for the welfare reasons. However, transition to new housing systems uncovered some new problems, such as keel bone damage (KBD), which also could endanger welfare of laying hens. Although KBD is a research topic which attracts a growing attention in the EU, in Serbia it is still rather unknown phenomenon, even among the scientific and professional community. This research is the first attempt to determine the prevalence of KBD in laying hens in housing systems currently existing in Serbia. The results of conducted monitoring show presence of KBD on all observed farms, except the organic one. The occurrence of KBD was at an acceptable level (from the standpoint of hen welfare) in the free-range system, enriched cages without equipment and conventional battery cages (4%, 3% and 1%, respectively), while in the fully equipped enriched cages it was high (39%). One could assume that this high prevalence of KBD in this system is a consequence of a long roosting on a metal perches.