Farm Animals

Broiler Chicken Dustbathing Behaviour and Welfare

Dustbathing is a highly motivated behaviour in chickens, essential for feather maintenance and psychological wellbeing.

Key Facts

Broilers perform dustbathing even on bare litter without true dust
Dustbathing is associated with relaxed, positive affective states
Poor litter quality reduces dustbathing frequency and satisfaction
Provision of friable litter material supports natural behaviour
Dustbathing is both functional (parasite control) and rewarding

Welfare Considerations

Dustbathing motivation is so strong that chickens perform vacuum dustbathing when substrate is unavailable. Good litter management that maintains friable, dry material supports this key natural behaviour.

What You Can Do

Choose chicken products from farms with deep litter systems
Support broiler welfare standards that require litter quality monitoring
Advocate for enriched housing with dedicated dustbathing areas