Blinders, also known as peepers, are devices fitted to, or through, the beaks of poultry to block their forward vision and assist in the control of
feather pecking,
cannibalism
Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is well documented, b ...
and sometimes egg-eating. A patent for the devices was filed as early as 1935.
They are used primarily for
game birds
Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are often ...
,
pheasant
Pheasants ( ) are birds of several genera within the family (biology), family Phasianidae in the order (biology), order Galliformes. Although they can be found all over the world in introduced (and captive) populations, the pheasant genera na ...
and
quail
Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally placed in the order Galliformes. The collective noun for a group of quail is a flock, covey, or bevy.
Old World quail are placed in the family Phasianidae, and New Wor ...
, but also for
turkeys
The turkey is a large bird in the genus ''Meleagris'', native to North America. There are two extant turkey species: the wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') of eastern and central North America and the ocellated turkey (''Meleagris ocellat ...
and
laying hens. Blinders are opaque and prevent forward vision, unlike similar devices called
spectacles
Glasses, also known as eyeglasses or spectacles, are vision eyewear, with lenses (clear or tinted) mounted in a frame that holds them in front of a person's eyes, typically utilizing a bridge over the nose and hinged arms (known as temples o ...
which have transparent lenses. Blinders work by reducing the accuracy of pecking at the feathers or body of another bird, rather than spectacles which have coloured lenses and allow the bird to see forwards but alter the perceived colour, particularly of blood. Blinders are held in position with a
circlip
A circlip (a portmanteau of "circle" and "clip"), also known as a C-clip, Rotor Clip, snap ring or Jesus clip, is a type of fastener or retaining ring consisting of a semi-flexible metal ring with open ends which can be snapped into place, into ...
arrangement or lugs into the
nares of the bird, or a pin which pierces through the
nasal septum
The nasal septum () separates the left and right airways of the Human nose, nasal cavity, dividing the two nostrils.
It is Depression (kinesiology), depressed by the depressor septi nasi muscle.
Structure
The fleshy external end of the nasal ...
. They can be made of metal (aluminium), neoprene or plastic, and are often brightly coloured making it easy to identify birds which have lost the device. Some versions have a hole in the centre of each of the blinders, thereby allowing restricted forward vision.
Benefits
In pheasants, blinders have been shown to reduce the incidence of birds pecking each other and damage to the feathers or skin.
In laying hens, blinders have been shown to reduce feather pecking, improve food utilisation (due to less spillage) and increase egg production.
[Arbi, A., Cumming, R.B. and Wodzicka-Tomaszewska., M., (1983). Effects of vision restricting "polpeepers" on the behaviour of laying hens during adaptation, feeding, on general activity, agonistic behaviour and pecking damage. British Poultry Science, 24: 371-381]
Welfare concerns
Blinders which require a pin to pierce the nasal septum and hold the device in position almost certainly cause pain to the bird. In the UK, the use of these devices is illegal on welfare grounds. The
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United K ...
in their Codes of Recommendations for the Welfare of Livestock: Laying Hens, states: "The Welfare of Livestock (Prohibited Operations) Regulations 1982 (S.I. 1982 No.1884) prohibits ...the fitting of any appliance which has the object or effect of limiting vision to a bird by a method involving the penetration or other mutilation of the nasal septum."
Studies on pin-less blinders indicate these devices are at least temporarily distressful to the birds. In pheasants, fitting blinders causes an increase in head shaking and scratching, and increases in damage to the beak and nostrils of the bird.
Fitting pin-less blinders to laying hens leads to reduced activity, increased resting, adjustment problems in feeding, stereotypic head shaking and protracted
displacement neck preening for a month after fitting.
In another study on laying hens, mortality was greater among hens wearing blinders compared to hens that had been
beak-trimmed.
[Robinson, D., (1979). Effects of cage shape, colony size, floor area and cannibalism preventatives on laying performance. British Poultry Science, 20: 345-356. ]
See also
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Abnormal behaviour of birds in captivity
Abnormal behavior of birds in captivity has been found to occur among both domesticated and wild birds. Abnormal behavior can be defined in several ways. Statistically, 'abnormal' is when the occurrence, frequency or intensity of a behaviour vari ...
*
Blinkers (horse tack)
Blinkers, sometimes known as blinders, are a piece of horse tack that prevent the horse seeing to the rear and, in some cases, to the side.
Description
Blinkers are usually made of leather or plastic cups placed on either side of a horse's eyes ...
*
Cannibalism in poultry
Cannibalism in poultry is the act of one individual of a poultry species consuming all or part of another individual of the same species as food. It commonly occurs in flocks of Chicken, domestic hens reared for egg production, although it can als ...
*
Chicken eyeglasses
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Debeaking
Debeaking, beak trimming (also spelt beak-trimming), or beak conditioning is the partial removal of the beak of poultry, especially layer hens and turkeys although it may also be performed on quail and ducks. Most commonly, the beak is shortene ...
and beak trimming
*
Doggles
*
Feather pecking
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Overview of discretionary invasive procedures on animals
Numerous procedures performed on domestic animals are usually more invasive than purely cosmetic alterations, but differ from types of veterinary surgery that are performed exclusively for urgent health reasons. Such procedures have been grouped ...
*
''Peaky Blinders'' (TV series)
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Peaky Blinders
The Peaky Blinders were a street gang based in Birmingham, England, which operated from the 1880s until the 1910s. The group consisted largely of young criminals from lower- to middle-class backgrounds. They engaged in robbery, violence, racke ...
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Vent pecking
Vent pecking is an abnormal behaviour of birds performed primarily by commercial egg-laying hens. It is characterised by pecking damage to the cloaca, the surrounding skin and underlying tissue.Sherwin, C.M., (2010). The welfare and ethical asses ...
References
External links
1947 Paramount Newsreel about blindersPathe News reel showing blinders on hens in the UK in 1951
{{Eyewear
Animal welfare
Animal equipment
Eyewear
Poultry farming