Lameness in broiler chickens is endemic in fast-growing commercial breeds. Addressing it requires both breeding changes and management improvements.
Broiler leg health is a systemic welfare crisis in commercial poultry production. Fast-growing breeds have been selected for muscle accumulation rates that their skeletal systems cannot fully support, resulting in leg deformities, joint disease, and chronic lameness affecting large proportions of every commercial flock. Lame birds spend more time resting on wet litter, creating hock burns and breast blisters in addition to their primary lameness problem. The suffering involved is chronic and affects birds throughout the production period from approximately two weeks of age to slaughter. The solution requires both genetic change — selecting for slower growth and better leg conformation — and management improvements including enrichment and appropriate stocking density that allow leg muscle development.