Setting the stage to tag “n” track: a guideline for implementing, validating and reporting a radio frequency identification system for monitoring resource visit behavior in poultry

• Published in: Poultry science Vol. 102; no. 8; p. 102799
• Main Authors: Alindekon, Serge, Rodenburg, T. Bas, Langbein, Jan, Puppe, Birger, Wilmsmeier, Olaf, Louton, Helen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Inc 01.08.2023; Elsevier
• Subjects: animal behavior; ANIMAL WELL-BEING AND BEHAVIOR; Animals; automated tracking; automation; Behavior, Animal; Chickens; decision making; guidelines; Poultry; poultry behavior; radio frequency identification; Radio Frequency Identification Device - methods; Reproducibility of Results; RFID installation; validation; poultry behavior; automated tracking; validation; RFID installation
• ISSN: 0032-5791; 1525-3171; 1525-3171
• DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2023.102799

Passive radio frequency identification (RFID) can advance poultry behavior research by enabling automated, individualized, longitudinal, in situ, and noninvasive monitoring; these features can usefully extend traditional approaches to animal behavior monitoring. Furthermore, since the technology can provide insight into the visiting patterns of tagged animals at functional resources (e.g., feeders), it can be used to investigate individuals' welfare, social position, and decision-making. However, the lack of guidelines that would facilitate implementing an RFID system for such investigations, describing it, and establishing its validity undermines this technology's potential for advancing poultry science. This paper aims to fill this gap by 1) providing a nontechnical overview of how RFID functions; 2) providing an overview of the practical applications of RFID technology in poultry sciences; 3) suggesting a roadmap for implementing an RFID system in poultry behavior research; 4) reviewing how validation studies of RFID systems have been done in farm animal behavior research, with a focus on terminologies and procedures for quantifying reliability and validity; and 5) suggesting a way to report on an RFID system deployed for animal behavior monitoring. This guideline is aimed mainly at animal scientists, RFID component manufacturers, and system integrators who wish to deploy RFID system as an automated tool for monitoring poultry behavior for research purposes. For such a particular application, it can complement indications in classic general standards (e.g., ISO/IEC 18000-63) and provide ideas for setting up, testing, and validating an RFID system and a standard for reporting on its adequacy and technical aspects. [Display omitted]