6. HLLP design for livestock and poultry welfare

Producers of food animals place animal welfare at the forefront of their operation. Several building design changes have evolved as a result of public pressure stemming from concerns related to animal welfare. The most prominent changes have been made in pig gestation and egg-laying facilities. Traditional gestation housing uses individual stalls (Figure 9a) from which precise nutritional needs can be maintained and monitored. Due to public pressure, the traditional stall gestation has given way, in some cases, to group housing gestation facilities, with, in many cases, electronic feed dispensing and pig monitoring (Figure 9b).

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Figure 9. (a) Sow gestation housing using stalls [10], and (b) the alternative group housing with electronic feeding and monitoring systems [11].

Unquestionably, the biggest change in HLPP systems has occurred in the egg-laying sector. Many large fast-food chains have demanded bird space allocation changes and overall freeroaming requirements that have significantly changed the hen housing system. The conventional caged-layer system is rapidly being replaced by enriched colony or aviary systems where birds are allowed extensive movement and ample opportunity for perching and nesting behavior. An excellent overview of the various hen housing systems can be found in [12].

### 7. Conclusions

Thermal modification for housed livestock and poultry production (HLPP) systems has evolved from outside raised or uncontrolled naturally ventilated building systems into sophisticated computer-controlled cloud-analyzed complexes in the quest for producing a safe, reliable, sustainable, and efficient protein supply for our ever growing population. This chapter summarized a few of the various HLPP systems used in the USA. Specific emphasis was placed on general building characteristics, general ventilation design features, heat stress control, and systems designed to address animal welfare. Significant advances have been made in HLPP systems in response to global food demand and as a matter of efficiency. Advances will continue as we strive to ensure a safe, environmentally sustainable, and efficient food supply.

#### Author details

Steven J. Hoff

Address all correspondence to: hoffer@iastate.edu

Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Air Dispersion Laboratory, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA
