Inspirational ideas: Chickens are going mobile

Mobile housing for laying hens can contribute to improving animal welfare and the quality of the eggs while reducing impact on the environment. However, their uptake remains limited as they also present a number of risks, such as vulnerability to predators. A German Operational Group based in Rhineland-Palatinate designed, tested and disseminated an efficient management system for mobile coops, in order to increase their application in the region and beyond.

The subject of animal welfare and species-appropriate animal husbandry has become increasingly important. In the area of ​​poultry farming and the production of eggs, there is also a high consumer demand for regionally produced products. In 2017 in Rhineland-Palatinate at the start of the project, around 30% of the 24,000 organic laying hens in the region were already in mobile housing. This was on around half of the 40 organic farms. Farmers found that using animal-friendly mobile housing was very adapted to organic animal husbandry in many respects. David Pfeifer, project manager, explains the advantages “The flexibility of being able to change the location of the coop easily, the possibility of including the grazing areas in the crop rotation, reduced nutrient input, the chickens can always graze so they are occupied and they have freedom of movement. If managed well, germ and parasite pressure are also reduced.”

The Operational Group identified however a certain number of factors which can put certain farmers off investing in such infrastructure. There is the danger of predators and also if the hygiene of both the coop and the outside areas are not managed correctly, parasite infestations can occur. Sometimes, due to inappropriate design, the outdoor areas can be used in an uneven way by the hens, and therefore hens do not benefit from the full potential of this outdoor space and feed. Furthermore, few studies have been carried out, and so the information on indicators and techniques was lacking.

The aim of the project was to improve animal welfare for laying hens by increasing the attractiveness of mobile laying hen husbandry in organic farms in Rhineland-Palatinate, taking into account environmental compatibility as well as profitability. In order to do this, the partnership, led by the Competence Center for Organic Farming (KÖL) in Rhineland-Palatinate, utilised and analysed a specific existing housing system ‘Mobilstall’. The chicken coops in this system are built on wheels or skids so that their location can be changed periodically. The partners also used an existing standardised management tool for young laying hens: ‘MTool’, published by the German Federal Ministry of Nutrition and Agriculture, which takes account of specific animal parameters such as laying activity, plumage condition, injuries due to pecking, animal weight, anomalies on feet, the presence of parasites. David continues “With the help of these indicators, changes in animal behavior or physical condition can be quickly identified, the causes determined and countermeasures taken.”

In order to achieve the project goal, a strong partnership was created between the research, advisory and practice partners. Transfer of knowledge also ‘from practice - for practice’ between the farms involved was also considered equally important.

The partnership began by carrying out a survey, assessing the context and current situation for organic farmers in the area. Then, on ten organic farms in Rhineland-Palatinate which had already installed the ‘Mobilstall’ housing system, the Operational Group collected data to obtain a complete picture of the state of health of the laying hens at various stages of life. In the event of losses, the causes were recorded. A feed analysis was also carried out as behavioural anomalies are often due to malnutrition and stress in the animals. On each farm, the project identified the main problems and developed solutions with the farm managers.  

The evaluation and interpretation of the collected data show that well-managed mobile chicken coops can ensure an animal-friendly husbandry system. David Pfeifer explains “Feather pecking, injuries to the limbs and soft tissues and deformation of the sternum only occurred to a very small extent in this project (<3% of the animals examined). Over 95% of the hens from mobile houses showed no anomalies in the form of injuries, inflammation, plumage damage or parasite infestation.” However, the weight of the hens needs to be constantly monitored in this type of system, as in the trials, some of the hens did not meet the weight specifications of the hatcheries. This is also why regular feed analysis is important. Laboratory analyses of the feed showed that the concentration of the valuable ingredients can vary significantly. Even the size of each feed components has to be checked regularly in order to avoid malnutrition because hens show selective eating behaviour.

Problems in mobile housing systems are losses by predators, however the project identified some possible solutions such as building hiding places and the presence of other animals to protect the hens (e.g. dogs, sheep, goats, alpacas).

In 2021 at the end of the project, with regards to the 10 farms involved in the project, housing capacity increased by 11,530 hens and the number of stall units also increased to from 17 in 2015 to 37. The area of Rhineland-Palatinate more widely has also seen an increase in the number of organic laying hens. This increase is partly due to the work carried out by the project and its partners, but other factors also come into play such as the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic which led people to buy products more locally, and also the amount of manufactures of mobile housing has increased significantly which has led to more availability.

The partnership has been disseminating the outcomes of its project and has worked with Operational Groups from other parts of Germany to exchange ideas on feed etc. It has also published a virtual 360° tour of a mobile chicken coop which contains information on the results of the Operational Group project as well as hints and tips to consider.

Project information

Contact:

Nadine Ossowski Nadine.Ossowski@dlr.rlp.de

Phone: 0049671820487

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