The objective of this research was to evaluate the effect of environmental enrichment on physical integrity, keel damage and locomotor problems in broiler chickens reared in a controlled environment at different ages. Ninety-six Cobb broiler chicks were used, reared in a controlled environment, with 48 birds for each treatment (T1 = presence and T2 = absence of environmental enrichment) at different ages (1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 weeks old) during the two production cycles. The use of environmental enrichment influenced the decrease in the percentage of birds with a score of 1, contrary to treatment with no environmental enrichment. Hock burns in broilers showed no difference (P = 0.069) between the presence and absence of environmental enrichment for score 1, so the treatments did not influence the appearance of hock burn score 1 in birds. Dermatitis on the feet of broiler chickens showed no difference (P = 0.0800) between scores 0 and 1 for the presence and absence of environmental enrichment. Dermatitis on the feet of the birds differed (P < 0.0001) between weeks 5 and 6 for scores of 0 and 1; however, in the other weeks, the treatments did not influence this variable. The highest percentage of birds with a score of 1 was observed at week 6, with 38.24% having dermatitis on the feet. The use of environmental enrichment favored a reduction in the score of 1 for plumage cleanliness and lameness in broilers. Hock burn, foot dermatitis and keel damage were not affected by the use of environmental enrichment. Week 6 had the highest percentage of birds, with a score of 1 for all physical integrity variables.
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Nazareno et al. (2024) studied this question.