Litter quality in cage-free laying hen systems is a primary determinant of welfare outcomes, affecting dustbathing behaviour, foot health and disease transmission.
Litter quality management is invisible in the final egg but determines the daily welfare of the hen that laid it. A hen in a barn with damp, compacted litter has poor dustbathing opportunity, elevated risk of footpad lesions, and higher disease exposure. The same hen in a barn with well-managed friable litter has access to the dustbathing behaviour that is fundamental to her welfare, lower disease risk, and better foot health. The difference is entirely a function of housing management decisions — ventilation, stocking density, litter depth and disturbance — that are within producer control and do not require changes to the fundamental housing system.