Feather pecking is a major welfare problem in laying hen flocks that causes pain, injury, and death — but its root causes in inadequate environments are well understood.
Feather pecking represents a systemic welfare failure in laying hen production: it is a behavioral pathology caused by the frustration of natural foraging and dustbathing drives in barren, overcrowded environments. The industry response — beak trimming — treats the symptom while perpetuating the cause. Beak trimming itself causes acute and sometimes chronic pain. Welfare-centered solutions address root causes: providing foraging materials, enrichment, reduced stocking density, and appropriate lighting. These interventions are achievable and prove economically viable in well-managed systems.