The Effects of Partially Slatted Floor Designs on Some Early Behavioral Traits in Broiler Chicks

Abstract

This study was carried out to determine the effects of different levels of slatted floor applications on some early behavioral characteristics of broiler chickens. In this study, male-female mixed 600 fast-growing broiler chicks (Ross308) were used. The experiment consisted of five treatment groups with 120 chicks each (7 chicks/m2): fully littered, fully slatted, ½ littered+½ slatted, 1/3 littered+2/3 slatted, 2/3 littered+1/3 slatted. In the study, the feeding, drinking, resting, aggregation, other behaviors, and slatted floor preferences of the chicks were evaluated three times a day (at 9.00, 13.00, and 17.00 h) at 2, 5, 9 and 11 days of age. Each behavioral trait was expressed as a percentage of the total number of chicks showing the relevant behavior at the pen level. Different floor designs significantly affected the chicks' feeding, resting, aggregation behavior, and preference for being on the slatted floor (P < 0.05). Feeding behavior was higher in chicks reared on the fully slatted floor than in the others (P < 0.001). The percentage of chicks showing resting behavior was highest in the 2/3 littered+1/3 slatted floor application (P = 0.001). The 64.42% of the chicks reared in 2/3 slatted, 47.53% of those reared in ½ slatted, and 36.38% of those raised in 1/3 slatted preferred the use of the slatted floor. The percentage of chicks showing feeding behavior was highest at 5 (16.12%) and 2 d-old (15.73%) (P = 0.001). Resting behavior was highest at 2 (78.72%), 5 (76.89%), and 9 (72.82%) days of age (P < 0.001). In conclusion, this study revealed that different floor designs affect some behavioral characteristics in the early chick period. Since it is known that early rearing conditions affect later performance in broilers, slatted floor systems with higher feeding behavior can be an effective tool for better performance in broiler production.