How do you measure a chickensa国际传媒檚 happiness? Is it in the way it runs for food? How much time it spends preening?
To size up what might make chickens happy in their brief lives, researchers at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, are putting 16 breeds through physical fitness and behavioural tests. Theysa国际传媒檙e watching how well birds scramble over a barrier for food, how skittish they seem and whether they play with a fake worm.
Chickens cansa国际传媒檛 say how they feel, but playing with a fake worm may be a sign of happiness.
sa国际传媒淲e have to infer when an animal is happy or content or experiencing pleasure based on their behaviour,sa国际传媒� said Stephanie Torrey, one of the researchers.
In recent years, the animal welfare world has moved beyond looking at how to minimize suffering to exploring whether animals can also enjoy their lives, Torrey said.
Such measures may be considered irrelevant by companies but underscore a broader lack of consensus around the welfare of chickens, which are sometimes slaughtered as soon as five weeks after hatching.
Animal welfare advocates say cruelty begins with birds that have been bred to have breasts so big they can barely walk. They say todaysa国际传媒檚 chickens are genetic monstrosities crippled by pain and that the industry needs to switch breeds.
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Many in the industry say theresa国际传媒檚 no problem and that chickens may not move around a lot because theysa国际传媒檙e sedentary. Even if they were to agree to change breeds, itsa国际传媒檚 not clear what the alternatives should look like.
The two sides disagree about the cause and frequency of health issues among broilers chickens. Tyson and Sanderson Farms, for example, acknowledge that chicken breasts have ballooned over the years, but they say theysa国际传媒檙e not seeing widespread problems as a result.
sa国际传媒淚f they cansa国际传媒檛 move and get to the feed trough, theysa国际传媒檙e not going to survive,sa国际传媒� said Mike Cockrell, chief financial officer for Sanderson Farms.
John Glisson of the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association says broiler chickens are sa国际传媒渃ouch potatoessa国际传媒� and that some people may mistake the birdssa国际传媒� laziness for a medical issue. He said trying to assess welfare is tricky beyond established industry measures, like whether a chicken dies from disease before itsa国际传媒檚 slaughtered.
The industry says changing breeds is unnecessary, and that switching to broiler chickens that donsa国际传媒檛 grow as big or as fast would mean using up more water and other resources. Chicken prices at the supermarket would be higher too.
Still, animal welfare is becoming a bigger public relations concern, and companies say theysa国际传媒檙e always looking for ways to take better care of their chickens.
Tyson recently ran a trial that let chickens pick from pens with varying levels of light to determine which they prefer. Perdue is testing giving its conventional birds as much light and space as its organic birds, which are the same breed.
The Humane Society of the United States says stepping up living conditions helps, but it believes the bigger problem is breeding that has resulted in disfigured chickens. It says chickens have been genetically manipulated to have massive breasts their legs cannot support.
sa国际传媒淚t is crazy for anyone to have to remind the industry that birds naturally walk,sa国际传媒� said Josh Balk, the Humane Societysa国际传媒檚 vice-president of farm animal protection.
Balk said the study in Canada will provide important information on what type of chickens might suffer less.
University of Guelph researchers are also tracking chicken traits like weight, growth rate and meat quality they hope will be useful to the industry. Aviagen and Tyson-owned Cobb, which supply breeds to chicken producers, are providing birds for the study, including breeds that are widely used.
The companies say they already track health and welfare, but that theysa国际传媒檙e interested in the research.
The Guelph study is being funded by the Global Animal Partnership, which certifies corporate animal welfare standards. In 2016, it launched a campaign to get companies to switch to sa国际传媒渟lower growingsa国际传媒� breeds. Since then, it has acknowledged that chicken welfare is more complicated than just growth rate.
Itsa国际传媒檚 now pushing for a sa国际传媒渂ettersa国际传媒� chicken, and hopes the study will help define what that entails.
Only a small percentage of chickens in the U.S. are GAP-certified, and spelling out new requirements for breeds risks making certification even rarer.
Anne Malleau, the groupsa国际传媒檚 executive director, notes some of the researcherssa国际传媒� tests may seem far out. But she said providing sa国际传媒渆nrichmentssa国际传媒� sa国际传媒� such as places where chickens can rest or perch sa国际传媒� was also seen as a fringe idea before becoming more accepted.
GAP was founded a decade ago with funding from Whole Foods, which still pays Malleausa国际传媒檚 and another staffersa国际传媒檚 salaries.
Back in Guelph, researchers note that chicken traits can make for marketable imagery. That includes behaviours like their willingness to engage with a fake worm sa国际传媒� which they note may be misinterpreted as sa国际传媒減layingsa国际传媒� and happiness.
sa国际传媒淭he jurysa国际传媒檚 still out whether domestic chickens, with their comparatively smaller brains, have the capacity to play,sa国际传媒� Torrey said.
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The Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutesa国际传媒檚 Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Candice Choi, The Associated Press
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