How providing enrichment objects and structures in broiler houses improves welfare, reduces leg problems, and promotes natural behavior.
Broiler chickens in commercial production often exist in barren environments with no opportunity to express natural behaviors including foraging, dust-bathing, perching, and exploratory locomotion. This behavioral deprivation causes frustration and contributes to leg problems as birds become increasingly inactive. Enrichment objects represent one of the simplest and most cost-effective welfare improvements for broilers - modest additions like straw bales and elevated platforms provide significant behavioral opportunities and reduce sedentary behavior that contributes to leg disorders.