ABSTRACT
Worldwide, the majority of laying hens are beak trimmed to prevent injurious pecking. Although this procedure has been refined over the past few years from hot blade trimming (in Europe mostly at 6 weeks of age) to infrared treatment in the hatchery (which is less painful and therefore is referred to as ‘treatment’ instead of ‘trimming’), it is still a mutilation causing pain and discomfort to the birds (Cheng 2006, MarchantForde et al. 2008). Therefore, in various countries a ban on beak treatments has come into force (e.g. Sweden) or is being discussed (e.g. the United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands). In addition, the European legislation prohibits beak treatment of organic flocks. When it is no longer allowed to treat the beaks, farmers are facing the challenge of preventing injurious pecking behaviour in their flocks. This requires specific management skills.
