SESSION 4: Allison Pullin

Welfare and Turkey Production Allison Pullin

Dr. Allison Pullin, Ph.D. Prestage Department of Poultry Science North Carolina State University

Bio

Dr. Allison Pullin joined the faculty in the NC State Prestage Department of Poultry Science in August 2022 as an assistant professor of animal welfare. Her lab aims to understand how farm management practices and housing design influence the welfare of farmed poultry. Specifically, Allison takes an interdisciplinary approach to assess animal welfare by utilizing tools in animal behavior, health and physiology. She also enjoys working with the industry on animal welfare. She is a PAACO-certified poultry welfare auditor. Since 2016, she has been inspecting poultry farms and processing facilities (shell eggs, processed meats) for animal welfare and traceability standards with Humane Farm Animal Care’s Certified Humane Raised and Handled program.

Prior to joining NC State , Allison completed her Ph.D. at University of California, Davis, where she investigated how the design of pullet rearing environments affected behavior, floor eggs, and keel bone fractures for laying hens in multi-tiered aviaries. She also received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in animal science from The Ohio State University, where she studied weaning strategies for pastured lambs.

Abstract

Animal welfare is defined as how an animal is physically and mentally coping with the conditions in which it lives and dies. In order to evaluate physical and mental coping, we can use “the Five Domains” framework, where four physical domains (nutrition, environment, health, and behavior) interact to influence a fifth domain – the animal’s mental state. There are exciting opportunities to apply this framework to welfare in turkey production, such as investigating injurious pecking behavior in toms, evaluating lighting programs, using precision technologies for early detection of health issues and more. In this talk, I will review the “Five Domains” and my current and future plans to evaluate turkey welfare through my research and extension programs in the Prestage Department of Poultry Science.