Battery cage shape: Its effect on diurnal feeding pattern, egg shell cracking and feather pecking

Abstract

1. Battery cages 460 mm in depth (deep) were compared with 305 mm cages (shallow); the two shapes provided equal areas per bird. 2. More eggs were produced per hen housed from 30 to 70 weeks in the shallow cages; the difference approached significance. 3. The pattern of feeding activity over the day was significantly more U‐shaped in the shallow cages; this pattern accords more closely with physiological requirements. 4. Feather damage caused by pecking was slightly but significantly more severe in the deep cages at 70 weeks. 5. The proportion of cracked eggs (collected from 60 to 70 weeks) was significantly lower in the shallow cages. 6. The arrangement of the hens was such that within the shallow cages a higher proportion of birds was present in the front half. 7. It is suggested that some of the advantages conferred by the shallow cage may be related to the greater accessibility of the food trough.