THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2021/2022

Information in the Degree Programme Tables may still be subject to change in response to Covid-19

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies : Veterinary Sciences

Postgraduate Course: Poultry Behaviour & Welfare in Commercial Systems (VESC11163)

Course Outline
SchoolRoyal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies CollegeCollege of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate)
Course typeOnline Distance Learning AvailabilityNot available to visiting students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryThis course will describe the general principles of poultry behaviour and welfare, what influences behaviour and welfare and the behavioural and physiological indicators used to measure welfare. Production and welfare factors for different intensive and non-intensive meat and egg production systems as well as transport and slaughter methods will be discussed. This will enable the student to critically evaluate commercial production systems in terms of both production and welfare factors.
Course description Week 1: Introduction to behaviour and types of learning
Week 2: Control of behaviour (brain, senses, cognition, motivation)
Week 3: Maintenance and comfort behaviours
Week 4: Social and reproductive behaviours
Week 5: Abnormal behaviours
Week 6: How to measure behaviour. Activity: watching video and recording behaviour, discuss on discussion board
Week 7: Introduction to poultry welfare and welfare indicators
Week 8: Egg production systems and assessing welfare
Week 9: Meat production systems and assessing welfare
Week 10: Depopulation, transport and slaughter
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2021/22, Not available to visiting students (SS1) Quota:  None
Course Start Flexible
Course Start Date 09/08/2021
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 200 ( Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 196 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) Formative:
Week 5, MCQs including the use of pictures to test knowledge and understanding of material in weeks1-5; Weeks 8-9 case study, discussed on discussion boards with feedback from instructor.

Summative:
1) Give a presentation on a main behaviour pattern of poultry (presentation with recorded audio) (50%)
2) Design an audit for an egg or meat production system with expected standards of production and welfare (50%)
Feedback Students will receive written or oral feedback on all formative and summative assessments within 15 working days of each assessment being due.
No Exam Information
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the main behaviour patterns of poultry and how these are affected by sensory perception, cognition, motivation and learning (2)
  2. Apply critical analysis, evaluation, and synthesis to issues of poultry behaviour and welfare (3)
  3. Communicate with specialists and colleagues about poultry behaviour and welfare (4)
Reading List
To be provided during week 1
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Knowledge and skills will include:

A. Research and Enquiry
Graduates of the University will be able to create new knowledge and opportunities for learning through the process of research and enquiry. This may be understood in terms of the following:
- be able to identify, define and analyse problems and identify or create processes to solve them
- be able to exercise critical judgment in creating new understanding
- be ready to ask key questions and exercise rational enquiry
- be able to critically assess existing understanding and the limitations of their own knowledge and recognise the need to regularly challenge all knowledge
- search for, evaluate and use information to develop their knowledge and understanding
- have an informed respect for the principles, methods, standards, values and boundaries of their discipline(s) and the capacity to question these
- understand economic, legal, ethical, social, cultural and environmental issues in the use of information.

B. Personal and Intellectual Autonomy
Graduates of the University will be able to work independently and sustainably, in a way that is informed by openness, curiosity and a desire to meet new challenges. This may be understood in terms of the following:
- be independent learners who take responsibility for their own learning, and are committed to continuous reflection, self-evaluation and self-improvement
- be able to make decisions on the basis of rigorous and independent thought, taking into account ethical and professional issues
- be able to use collaboration and debate effectively to test, modify and strengthen their own views
- be intellectually curious and able to sustain intellectual interest
- be able to respond effectively to unfamiliar problems in unfamiliar contexts

C. Communication
Graduates of the University will recognise and value communication as the tool for negotiating and creating new understanding, collaborating with others, and furthering their own learning. This may be understood in terms of the following:
- make effective use of oral, written and visual means to critique, negotiate, create and communicate understanding
- use communication as a tool for collaborating and relating to others
- further their own learning through effective use of the full range of communication approaches
- seek and value open feedback to inform genuine self-awareness
- recognise the benefits of communicating with those beyond their immediate environments
- use effective communication to articulate their skills as identified through self-reflection

D. Personal Effectiveness
Graduates of the University will be able to effect change and be responsive to the situations and environments in which they operate. This may be understood in terms of the following:
- appreciate and use talents constructively, demonstrating self-discipline, motivation, adaptability, persistence and professionalism
- be able to manage risk while initiating and managing change
- be able to flexibly transfer their knowledge, learning, skills and abilities from one context to another
- understand social, cultural, global and environmental responsibilities and issues
- be able to work effectively with others, capitalising on their different thinking, experience and skills.
Keywordsbehaviour,welfare,motivation
Contacts
Course organiserDr Laura Dixon
Tel:
Email: Laura.Dixon@sruc.ac.uk
Course secretaryMs Carina McIntosh
Tel: (0131 6)51 7475
Email: cmcinto4@exseed.ed.ac.uk
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