Laying hens have a high tendency to direct pecking towards the feathers and tissues of conspecifics. Such injurious pecking is a serious welfare and economic problem in all housing systems, but it is especially difficult to control in non-cage systems. Some EU countries have banned the practice of beak-trimming and others are considering future bans7 so alternative methods of controlling injurious pecking are required. This study applied the findings of numerous extensive scientific studies of injurious pecking to devise a management package designed to protect against injurious pecking, for use on-farm. The effectiveness of the management package was tested on free-range farms in the UK, by comparing outcomes from treatment flocks and control flocks. Each treatment flock was provided with a bespoke package that proposed a set of specific management strategies, tailored to address the risk factors observed for that flock.
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