Understanding positive welfare indicators in chickens -- not just the absence of suffering but the presence of good states -- is transforming how progressive producers assess and improve flock wellbeing.
Positive welfare science for chickens has advanced significantly, providing tools to measure not just whether hens are suffering but whether they are thriving. Judgment bias tests -- where animals trained on ambiguous stimuli reveal optimistic or pessimistic expectations -- can distinguish between systems that provide merely adequate conditions and those that promote genuine positive experience. This matters because a hen that is not sick and not injured but lives in a barren environment may score well on negative welfare indicators while experiencing an impoverished life. Progressive welfare assessment demands both: freedom from suffering and access to positive experiences.