A Review on Identifying and Monitoring Technology for Individual Hen Information

Abstract.

The information of an individual laying hen mainly includes body temperature, weight, production performance, and behavior information. All these data can be used to analyze the hen‘s physical and psychological conditions. The temperature information is a significant reference when it is used to diagnose hen diseases; the weight information can be used to measure the growth situation of hens; and the animal behavior is an important index for evaluation animal welfare. These parameters are the basis of precision feeding and intelligent farming. Now in China, the work of data acquisition and monitoring mainly relies on manual observation and measurement, which has shortages of strong subjectivity and time-consuming. Therefore, accurate and efficient monitoring technologies are in urgent needed. In this paper, the current studies and applications of some key technologies are discussed, including individual temperature monitoring, weight monitoring, egg weight monitoring, egg production time monitoring and behavior monitoring. Other technologies used in livestock farming, like the estrus monitoring and delivery monitoring, are also mentioned. The research direction of the intelligent farming for laying hens in the future is put forward.