The study explored the effects of environmental enrichment on the behavior and stress levels of White Leghorn chickens. The results demonstrated that the enriched group exhibited significantly more natural behaviors, such as increased perching and dust bathing, which are known indicators of improved welfare and reduced stress. These findings align with previous studies that emphasize the benefits of environmental complexity in promoting healthier behavioral patterns and greater stress resilience in poultry. Interestingly, the enriched group also performed more stand alert behavior than the control group. While stand alert is often associated with vigilance, in this context, it may reflect heightened environmental engagement and curiosity, suggesting that the enriched birds were more actively interacting with their surroundings.
In the novel object test, the enriched chickens spent more time near the novel object, which indicates reduced fearfulness and a higher level of confidence when exposed to new stimuli, consistent with findings that enrichment reduces neophobia in poultry. In contrast, no significant differences were observed between the groups in the open field test, which was unexpected given previous research showing that enrichment tends to reduce anxiety and fear-related behaviors in novel environments.
The results from the restraint test showed no significant differences in corticosterone (CORT) levels between the control and enrichment groups, suggesting that while enrichment influenced behavior, it may not have significantly altered the physiological stress response in this particular context. However, the fault bar analysis revealed fewer stress-induced feather abnormalities in the enriched group, further supporting the idea that enriched environments reduce chronic stress exposure.
Overall, the study suggests that environmental enrichment can enhance welfare by encouraging more natural and varied behaviors, with the potential to reduce stress-related outcomes in chickens.