The domestication process of the Chicken was initiated around 8000 years ago and has led to remarkable changes in chicken morphology, physiology and behaviour. Selective breeding of human-desired traits has taken the ancestral Red Junglefowl from the jungles of South-East Asia to largescale production facilities for meat-and egg production.
Further, it is well-known that early experiences and stress can give rise to a range of negative effects later in life. Does this also apply on chicks in egg production, and can it influence chicken welfare?
My talk will be about chickens in general, and the connection between early stress, domestication and welfare of chickens in particular.