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Injurious pecking in domestic turkeys: development, causes, and potential solutions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 December 2013

H.A. DALTON ,
B.J. WOOD  and
S. TORREY
H.A. DALTON*
Affiliation:
Dept. of Animal and Poultry Science, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada
B.J. WOOD
Affiliation:
Dept. of Animal and Poultry Science, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada Hybrid Turkeys, Suite C, 650 Riverbend Drive, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
S. TORREY
Affiliation:
Dept. of Animal and Poultry Science, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
*
Corresponding author: hdalton@uoguelph.ca
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Abstract

Injurious pecking is a serious concern for commercial turkey production and welfare. The behaviour is thought to represent re-directed ground foraging, but the development and causes are poorly understood with little supporting literature. In the initial development of the behaviour, early lighting regimes and social facilitation may play contributing roles. Other factors such as the availability of foraging material, diet composition, stocking densities, and group dynamics may also affect levels of injurious pecking. Given that commercial turkeys are group-housed, alternative breeding techniques, like group selection based on social effects, might successfully reduce moralities from pecking without detracting selection pressure from economic traits. However, to better suit their behavioural needs, any genetic attempts to adapt turkeys to perform less injurious pecking should be done in combination with environmental and dietary improvements.

Keywords

injurious peckingturkeygenetic selectionenvironmentnutritionfeather peckingcannibalismhead pecking
Type
Review Article
Information
World's Poultry Science Journal , Volume 69 , Issue 4 , December 2013 , pp. 865 - 876
Copyright
Copyright © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 

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