Page 11 - National Poultry Newspaper

RSPCA Approved means better chicken welfare
Enhanced poultry farm biosecurity
IN Australia, meat chickens are not kept in cages and both male and female chicks are raised to produce meat.
This can lead to eye- sight issues and poor leg strength.
Meat chickens should also be provided with ap- propriate lighting, equiva- lent to natural light, with periods of both light and dark, so that the birds can rest properly.
from better conditions on farm.
ON July 31 last year, birds tested positive for avian influenza on a Golden Plains free range egg farm.
lessons, the farm intro- duced enhanced biosecu- rity methods to prevent future outbreaks, includ- ing the use of footbaths, separate vehicles for dif- ferent areas on the prop- erty and building a new facility for chick rearing.
munities, scientists and emergency personnel to the outbreak was sen- sational – it meant we could eradicate avian influenza from poultry flocks in Victoria.”
Most meat chickens are housed in large sheds – ‘barn raised’ – with some also having daytime ac- cess to the outdoors – ‘free range’ – once they are fully feathered.
Poor quality and damp litter can also cause hock, breast and foot burns.
Today, 78 percent of Australia’s chicken meat has been farmed to the RSPCA’s standards.
Traditionally, chickens have been raised in bar- ren environments without the opportunity to express natural behaviours, such as perching, foraging and dust bathing.
The popularity of chicken as a diet staple for many Australians has meant that meat chickens have been bred over many generations to grow and gain weight very quickly.
In the short term, pro- viding a shed environment in which birds are encour- aged to move helps allevi- ate the health impacts of their fast growth rates.
This is arguably one of the biggest improvements for farm animal welfare that Australia has seen and was encouraged by demand from consumers.
Over the following four weeks, a further five farms in Golden Plains, East Gippsland and Gan- nawarra Shire tested positive.
Benefiting from the bi- osecurity lessons learnt during last year’s avian influenza outbreak – the largest experienced in Australia – Victorian poultry are avian in- fluenza free thanks to the combined efforts of stakeholders, community and emergency response teams.
“We must remain vigi- lant to minimise the risk of emergency animal and plant diseases in Victoria and protect our agriculture and environ- ment from the impacts of pests and diseases,” Ms Thomas said.
As chickens – even free range birds – will spend the majority of their lives inside, it is important they have a good indoor en- vironment with perches, good quality litter and in- teresting objects to peck at.
This rapid growth rate, coupled with inadequate shed environments, can cause serious welfare problems for the birds, in- cluding leg injuries, frac- tures and joint problems.
However, in the medium to long term, the RSP- CA believes the industry must shift towards slow- er-growing meat chicken breeds to avoid the leg weakness and other disor- ders associated with fast growth rate.
To help improve the wel- fare of farmed chicken, the RSPCA actively en- gages in the Australian Animal Welfare Stand- ards and Guidelines for Poultry farming process- es, to advocate for the improvement of chicken welfare.
In total, three strains of avian influenza were found on six Victorian poultry farms, infect- ing three bird species – three egg farms with highly pathogenic H7N7 avian influenza, two turkey farms with low pathogenic H5N2 avian influenza and one emu farm diagnosed with low pathogenic H7N6 avian influenza.
Australia was declared free from avian influen- za on February 26, 2021, with about 1400 obser- vational visits and 2700 surveillance texts initi- ated to achieve the status.
Typically, chickens are kept in dim light for 23 hours a day to discourage movement and increase food intake to promote weight gain.
Housing environments for meat chickens should include perching, litter for dustbathing and for- aging and enrichment in the form of objects and materials to peck at and play with.
Since releasing its first animal welfare standards for meat chickens in 2010, more than 2.5 billion chickens have benefitted
The RSPCA Approved logo means the chicken meat has come from a farm where birds are raised according to the RSPCA’s detailed animal welfare standards.
One of the farms, Longview Emu Farm near Kerang, was the last to test positive on August 25 and lost 5100 birds as a result.
The Victorian Minister for Agriculture Mary- Anne Thomas said, “The response of farmers, businesses, local com-
The order required all domestic poultry to be housed – reducing the risk of interaction with wild birds and further cases developing.
The RSPCA believes meat chickens should be raised in environments that cater to their physi- cal and behavioural needs and give them a good life.
Through the RSPCA Approved Farming Scheme, the RSPCA works closely with grow- ers committed to raising chickens to higher animal welfare standards.
Look for the RSPCA Approved logo on chicken in the supermarket and when dining out.
With the potential to decimate the indus- try, and the prospect of transmission to humans, the outbreak was quickly controlled.
To minimise the risk of additional birds testing positive in the Golden Plains Shire, a ‘housing order’ was introduced as part of the response – an Australian first.
Farms are visited regularly by an RSPCA assessor to ensure good animal welfare. Photo: RSPCA
More information can be found at rspcaapproved. org.au
www.poultrynews.com.au
National Poultry Newspaper, September 2021 – Page 11
These standards include:
After learning valuable
• Good indoor environ- ments – because even free range chickens spend most of their time indoors
• Space and good light- ing, encouraging chickens to be active
To assess the status of the avian influenza out- break, 21,650 samples were analysed by diag- nostics and research lab- oratories at Agriculture Victoria’s bioscience lab- oratory AgriBio, assisted by CSIRO’s Australian Centre for Disease Pre- paredness.
• The chickens can perch to rest and keep their bones and muscles strong
• The birds can enjoy a dry litter floor covering, to scratch and dust bathe.
Farms are visited regu- larly by an RSPCA asses- sor to ensure good animal welfare.
Victorian poultry are avian influenza free thanks to the combined efforts of stakeholders, com- munity and emergency response teams. Photo: Henrique S Ruzzon
For more information on avian influenza in Victoria, visit agriculture. vic.gov.au
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