Pilot ten behoeve van substraatvoorkeur voor stofbadgedrag van leghennen

In a simple and short-lasting pilot study it was determined whether laying hens prefer to dustbath in either small coconut fibres, grinded wheat straw, sawdust (fine) or peat moss. Peat moss has been included because it is a preferred dustbathing substrate for laying hens. The study was performed in two units on a commercial laying hen farm. In each unit, all four substrates were tested. Video recordings were made during the afternoon and analysed during four days. This pilot study indicated that an equal number of hens showed dustbathing in peat moss and coconut fibres, whereas grinded wheat straw and sawdust were hardly used for dustbathing.