Putt Ruby, Brouwers Hubert, Groves Peter John, Muir Wendy Isabelle
Poultry Research Foundation, The University of Sydney, Camden 2570, Australia.
School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Camperdown 2050, Australia.
Animals (Basel). 2025 Jul 4;15(13):1967. doi: 10.3390/ani15131967.
Cage-free egg production is now the predominant system in Australia. However, the occurrence of floor eggs (FE), which are eggs laid outside designated nest boxes, presents a major challenge for these producers. To understand factors that may be associated with the laying of FE, a national scoping survey of cage-free egg-laying flocks was undertaken. Forty-three flocks across multiple farms were surveyed via a phone-based interview using predetermined questions. Floor egg levels ranged from 0.01-17%. There was no difference in floor egg levels between the breeds of brown-egg-laying hens. Age at peak lay did not alter the level of FE, but higher rate of peak lay had a weak association with fewer FE (r = -0.31, = 0.049). Larger flocks had a lower percentage of FE (r = -0.5, = 0.002), and farmers of larger sized flocks considered a lower level of floor eggs to be acceptable. Farms with tunnel-ventilated sheds reported fewer FE compared to those using other ventilation systems ( = 0.013). Higher floor egg levels were associated with increased labor costs ( = 0.023). These findings suggest that shed design and environmental management may be leveraged to reduce floor egg occurrence and improve operational efficiency in cage-free systems.
在澳大利亚，无笼产蛋现已成为主要的生产体系。然而，地面蛋（即产在指定产蛋箱之外的蛋）的出现给这些生产者带来了重大挑战。为了解可能与地面蛋产蛋相关的因素，对无笼产蛋鸡群进行了一项全国性的范围界定调查。通过电话访谈，使用预先设定的问题，对多个农场的43个鸡群进行了调查。地面蛋水平在0.01%至17%之间。褐壳蛋鸡品种之间的地面蛋水平没有差异。产蛋高峰期的年龄并未改变地面蛋的水平，但较高的产蛋高峰期产蛋率与较少的地面蛋有较弱的关联（r = -0.31，P = 0.049）。鸡群规模越大，地面蛋的比例越低（r = -0.5，P = 0.002），规模较大鸡群的养殖户认为较低水平的地面蛋是可以接受的。与使用其他通风系统的鸡舍相比，采用隧道通风鸡舍的农场报告的地面蛋较少（P = 0.013）。较高的地面蛋水平与劳动力成本增加相关（P = 0.023）。这些发现表明，可利用鸡舍设计和环境管理来减少无笼养殖系统中地面蛋的出现并提高运营效率。
