A Study on Quantitative Metrics for Evaluating Animal Behavior in Confined Environments

Abstract

Abstract. Researchers at the Georgia Tech Research Institute and the University of Georgia recently concluded an experiment studying animal reaction to robotic systems. The purpose of this study was to determine if the operation of robots in a poultry grow-out house environment is feasible from an animal behavior perspective. To determine this, an experiment was conducted operating both an aerial and a ground robot in a small-scale grow-out house housing broiler chickens for a typical growth cycle (6 weeks). Humans also interacted with the flock daily. The environment and robots were equipped with cameras and other sensors to record data for the entire duration of the experiment.As a part of this research effort, the team had to establish a set of measurable metrics with which to be able to quantify changes in animal behavior. Given the unique scenario and data collection abilities, a set of three measurable metrics with which to quantitatively assess the impact of operating the robots was created. These metrics included avoidance distance, speed when avoiding, and recovery time. Each of the newly defined metrics can be evaluated using statistics and mathematical analysis. As a result, a software program was developed to assist in the analysis of these metrics.The avoidance distance metric is defined as the average distance between the chicken and the external stimuli, whether it be humans or the robot systems, as it moves throughout the house. The flight response metric is defined as the animal response running away from external stimuli. The mass of movement, their average speed, and distance of travel can all be quantitatively characterized. Finally, the recovery time metric is defined as the average time it takes before the chicken resume “normal” activity after the stimulus leaves the environment.A software tool was developed to assist in the analysis of these metrics using video recordings. The analysis shows that there are statistical differences in the average avoidance distance metric but there is no significant difference between the average speeds, or with the recovery time metric, indicating that operating robots in the environment is no more stressful to the chicken than the presence of a human. A study on the ability of these metrics for identifying statistically significant changes in animal behavior and what they potentially mean is presented herein.