
Gillian Hughes' MSc Defence
Probiotics influence mood and social behaviour, and could help manage gentle and severe feather pecking (GFP and SFP) in hens. While GFP is considered beneficial, SFP damages feather cover over time. In previous research, single-strain Lactobacillus rhamnosus reduced SFP under stressed conditions, and increased GFP overall, and multi-strain synbiotics could reduce SFP while providing other benefits. This thesis aims to as-sess the effect of a synbiotic containing Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium on GFP, SFP, productivity, and body condition in hens.