Recent Projects: 

Supporting the transition from colony cages to cage-free systems. With Dr Siobhan Abeyesinghe and Dr Kate Norman, RVC. A project to support a large commercial producer in making the transition to cage-free systems, whilst protecting and enhancing bird welfare. 

Improving the welfare assessment of broiler chickens. With Dr Siobhan Abeyesinghe RVC and Dr Sophie Elwes, RSPCA. A vital project to evalute the robustness, health and overall welfare of emerging breeds of broiler chicken, funded by the Open Philanthropy Project. Alongside assessing various breeds of bird we will validate a behavioural assessment protocol to be used for future assessments for inclusion in the RSPCA Broiler Breed Welfare Assessment Protocol.

A formal analysis of behavioural structure as a tool to assess the impact of chronic equine disease.  Equine PhD studentship funded by the Horse Trust, with Freddie Daw, Charlotte Burn, Ruby Chang.  The impact of chronic conditions such as sweet itch and gastric ulceration on equine welfare will be assessed using subtle behavioural analysis. Is the horse sleeping normally? Is the behaviour fragmented? Are some activities delayed to prioritise shorter-term needs?

Social buffering in horses. Equine PhD studentship with Claire Ricci-Bonot, Daniel Mills and Teresa Romero, University of Lincoln. The role of social support in reducing harmful stress responses in horses. 

 

 

 

 

Orcid ID:  https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6734-2177

 

Daw, F., Burn, C., Chang-Y-M and Nicol, C.J. (2025) Effect of Turnout Rugs on the Behaviour of Horses Under Mild Autumn Conditions. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 288: e106661

Nicol, C.J. (2025) Behavioural indicators of infectious disease in managed animals. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 285: e106573, doi: j.applanim.2025.106573

Abeyesinghe, S., Stanley, I., Nicol, C.J. and Cardwell, J (2025) Stakeholder views on a UK transition to production of chicken meat using slower-growing broiler chickens. Frontiers in Animal Science 6: doi.org/10.3389/fanim.2025.1534108

Bouquet, A., Nicol, C.J., Knowles, E., Schofield, I and Menzies-Gow, N. (2025) Development of a health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) assessment tool for equines with Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction (PPID). Equine Veterinary Journal 1-13. doi.org/10.1111/evj.14513

Bouquet, A., Nicol, C.J and Diez-Leon, M (2025) An Observational Study of Wood-Chewing in Mares and Their Foals Kept in Fenced Outdoor Paddocks with Variable Browsing Access Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/10888705.2025.2496496

Freire, R and Nicol, C.J. (2024) A novel method to measure the impact of water quality on judgement bias in juvenile fish. Global Ecology and Conservation, e03086

Nicol, C.J., Abeyesinghe, S.M. and Chang, Y-M (2024) An analysis of the welfare of fast growing and slower-growing strains of broiler chicken. Frontiers in Animal Science doi: 10.3389/fanim.2024.1374609

Ricci-Bonot C., Romero, T, Nicol, C.J and Mills, D.S (2024) Mind your language! Lessons from the application of an English published version of a Japanese horse personality instrument to a French population. Appl Anim Behav Sci 273: e106237, doi: j.applanim.2024.106237

Nicol, C.J. (2023) The Gordon Memorial Lecture: Laying Hen Welfare. British Poultry Science, doi: 10.1080/00071668.2023.2211891

Allen, S.E., Parker, C.D., Verheyen, K.L.P., Nicol, C.J. and Chang Y.M. (2023) Effects of ambient temperature, journey duration and flock characteristics on the dead-on-arrival rate in British broiler chickens transported to slaughter. Poultry Science, doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2023.102634

Paul, ES., Browne, WJ., Mendl, MT., Caplen, G., Held, S., Trevarthen, A and Nicol, CJ (2023) Affective trajectories: are hens influence by positive and negative changes in their living conditions. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 261: e 105883

Ricci-Bonot, C., Romero, T., Nicol., CJ and Mills, DS (2023) An inconsistent social buffering effect from a static visual substitute in horses (Equus caballus): a pilot study. Journal of Veterinary Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2023.07.004

Rae, F., Simmonds, M and Nicol, CJ (2023) Expert assessment of the impact of ship-strikes on cetacean welfare using the Welfare Assessment Tool for Wild Cetaceans. Animal Welfare 32, e18, doi: 10.1017/awf.2023.7

Paul, ES, Browne, WH, Mendl, MT, Caplen, G, Trevarthen, A., Held, S and Nicol, CJ (2022) Assessing animal welfare: a triangulation of preference, judgement bias and other candidate welfare indicators. Animal Behaviour 186: 151-177

Baker, PE, Nicol, CJ and Weeks, CA (2022). The effect of hard pecking enrichment during rear on feather cover, injurious pecking behaviour and beak length in beak-trimmed and intact-beak laying hen pullets. Animals 12, 674  

Winter, J., Stratmann, A., Toscano, MJ., Cardwell, JM and Nicol, CJ (2022) Piling behaviour in British layer flocks.  Applied Animal Behaviour Science 253: e105686 

Mandel, R, Bracke, MBM, Nicol, CJ, Webster, AJF, Gygax, L (2022) The unexpected welfare impacts of dairy production. Animal 16, issue 9, 100622

Freire, R, Massaro, M, McDonald, S, Trathan, P and Nicol, CJ (2021) A Citizen science trial of a tool to assess perception of wild penguin welfare. Frontiers in Veterinary Science https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2023.07.004

Abeyesinghe, S, Chancellor, NM, Hernandez Moore, D, Change, Y-M, Pearce, J, Demmers, T and Nicol, CJ (2021) Associations between behaviour and health outcomes in conventional and slow-growing breeds of broiler chicken. Animal 15, e100261. 

Nicol, CJ (2021) A Grand Challenge for Animal Science: Multiple goals – convergent and divergent. Frontiers in Animal Science. Doi: 10.3389/fanim.2021.640503

Ricci-Bonot C., Nicol, CJ, Romero, T and Mills, DS (2021) Social buffering in horses: influences of context, companion familiarity and companion habituation. Scientific Reports 11, 8862

Norman, K, Tarlton, J, Weeks, CA and Nicol, CJ (2021) Rearing experience with ramps improves specific learning, behaviour and welfare on a commercial laying farm. Scientific Reports 11, 8860

Christensen, JW., Ahrendt, LP, Malmkvist, J. and Nicol, CJ (2021) Exploratory behaviour towards novel objects is associated with enhanced learning in young horses. Scientific Reports 11, 1482

Giles, SL., Harris, PA, Rands, SA and Nicol, CJ (2020) The relationship between foraging efficiency, social status and body condition in gorup-living horses and ponies. PeerJ 8 e10305

Nicol, C.J. Bejder, L., Green, L., Johnson, C., Keeling, L., Noren, D., Van der Hoop, J. and Simmonds, M. (2020) Anthropogenic threats to wild cetacean welfare and a tool to inform policy in this area. Frontiers in Veterinary Science https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2020.00057

Olsson, IAS, Nicol, C.J., Niemi, S. and Sandoe, P (2020) From unpleasant to unbearable: why and how to implement an upper limit on pain and other forms of suffering in research with animals. ILAR ILAR Journal, ilz018, https://doi.org/10.1093/ilar/ilz018

Freire, R. and Nicol, C.J. (2019) Bibliometric analysis of animal welfare science. Animal Welfare 28: 465-485. 

Norman, K., Adriaense, J. and Nicol, C.J. (2019) The impact of early structural enrichment on spatial cognition in chicks. Behavioural Processes 164, 167-174. 

Buijs, S., Nicol, C.J., Booth, F., Richards, G. and Tarlton, J. (2019) Light-based monitoring devices to assess range use by laying hens. Animal https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731119002830

Fernyhough, M., Nicol, C.J., van de Braak, T., Toscano, M.J and T Tønnessen (2019) The ethics of laying hen genetics. Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics doi: 10.1007/s10806-019-09810-2

Norman, K., Weeks, C.A and Nicol, C.J. (2018) The effect of experience of ramps at rear on the subsequent ability of layer pullets to negotiate a ramp transition. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 208: 92-99

Paul, E.S., Edgar, J.L., Caplen, G. and Nicol, C.J. (2018) Examining affective structure in chickens: valence, intensity, persistence and generalization measured using a conditioned place preference test. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 207, 39-48.

Edgar, J.L. and Nicol, C.J. (2018) Socially mediated arousal and contagion within domestic chick broods. Scientific Reports, e10509

Pettersson, I., Weeks, C.A. and Nicol, C.J. (2018) Internal roosting location is associated with differential use of the outdoor range by free-range laying hens. British Poultry Science 59, 135-140

Pound, P. and Nicol, C.J. (2018) Retrospective harm benefit analysis of pre-clinical animal research for six treatment interventions. Plos One 13,3, e0193758

Mandel, R., Harazy, H.,Gygax, L., Nicol, C.J., Ben-David, A., Whay, H.R. and Klement, E. (2018) Detection of lameness in dairy cows using a grooming device. J. Dairy Science. 101, 1511-1517

McGreevy, P., Berger, J., de Brauwere, N., Doherty, O., Harrison, A., Fiedler, J., Jones, C., McDonnell, S.., McLean, A., Nakonechny, L., Nicol, C.J., Preshaw, L., Thomson, P., Tzioumis, V., Webster, J., Wolfensohn, S., Yeates, J and Jones, B. (2018) Using the Five Domains model to assess the adverse impacts of husbandry, veterinary and equitation interventions on horse welfare. Animals 8, 41

Buijs, S., Booth, F.J., Richards, G., McGaughey, L., Nicol, C.J., Edgar, J. and Tarlton, J. (2018) Behavioural and physiological responses of laying hens to automated monitoring equipment. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 199, 17-23

Pettersson, I., Weeks, C.A., and Nicol, C.J. (2017) The effect of ramp provision on the accessibility of the litter in single and multi-tier laying hen housing. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 186, 35-40

Mandel, R., Nicol, C.J., Whay, H.R. and Klement, E. (2017) Detection and monitoring of metritis in dairy cows using an automated grooming device. Journal of Dairy Science 100, 5724-5728

Mandel, R. and Nicol, C.J. (2017) Re-direction of maternal behaviour in dairy cows. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 195, 24-31

Pettersson, I., Weeks, C.A., and Nicol, C.J. (2017) Provision of a resource package reduces feather pecking and improves ranging distribution on free-range layer farms Applied Animal Behaviour Science 195, 60-66.

Pettersson, I., Weeks, C.A., Norman, K. and Nicol, C.J. (2017) The ability of laying pullets to negotiate two ramp designs as measured by bird preference and behaviour Peer J DOI 10.7717/peerj.4069

Bennett, R.M., Jones, P.J., Nicol, C.J. Tranter R.B. and Weeks, C.A. (2016). Consumer attitudes to injurious pecking in free range egg production. Animal Welfare  25, 91-100

Hothersall, B., Caplen, G., Parker, R.M.A., Nicol, C.J., Waterman-Pearson, A.E., Weeks, C.A. and Murrell, J.C. (2016) Effects of carprofen, meloxicam and butorphanol on broiler chickens’ performance in mobility tests. Animal Welfare 25, 55-68

Brantsaeter, M., Tahamtani, F.M., Moe, R.O., Hansen, T.B., Orritt, R., Nicol, C. and Janczak, A. (2016) Rearing laying hens in aviaries reduces fearfulness following transfer to furnished cages. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 3 (13) 10.3389/fvets.2016.00013

Pettersson, I., Freire, R. and Nicol, C.J. (2016) Factors affecting ranging behaviour in commercial free-range hens. World’s Poultry Science Journal 72, 1-14

Mandel, R., Whay, H.R., Klement, E. and Nicol, C (2016) Environmental enrichment of dairy cows and calves in indoor housing. Journal of Dairy Science 99, 1695-1715

Pettersson, I., Weeks, C.A., Wilson, L. and Nicol, C.J . (2016) Consumer perceptions of free-range laying hen welfare. British Food Journal 118, 1999-2013

Davies, A.C., Radford, A.N., Pettersson,I.C., Yang, F.P.,and Nicol, C.J. (2015) Elevated arousal at time of decision-making is not the arbiter of risk avoidance in chickens. Scientific Reports 5, 8200

Edgar, J., Held, S., Paul, E.S., Pettersson, I., I’Anson-Price, R. and Nicol, CJ. (2015) Social buffering in a bird. Animal Behaviour 105, 11-19

 

 

Served as member of BBSRC Appointments Committee, and on Scientific Advisory Board of Messerli Institute.

Writer and presenter of BBC Radio 4 series on animal ethics (produced by Mary Colwell). 

Would you eat an alien? 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06s2w7b

• Assessing and Improving Animal Welfare

  

  Genetics and management can greatly affect the welfare of farm, laboratory, companion and wild animals. We aim to improve animal welfare by understanding how human activities and management practices affect the welfare of animals that are kept, killed or otherwise impacted by humans. Comparative research can identify practices that generally elicit poor or good welfare outcomes, providing evidence that can be used to support initiatives to improve animal welfare. 

  ---

• Breeding for better broiler welfare: balancing sustainability, economic and consumer preferences

  

  We aim to provide a comprehensive analysis of the impacts of, opportunities for and barriers to shifting UK chicken meat production towards slower-growing, better welfare broiler breeds.

  Multiple breed comparison studies have shown that slower growing broilers have better welfare outcomes, in terms of both health and natural behaviour, than traditional fast growing breeds. 

  ---

• Development of welfare assessment protocols and technology

  

  Assessment of animal welfare is continually being improved using new insights in animal behaviour, non-invasive physiological methods, animal-environment interactions, and novel monitoring systems for animal responses and behaviours. 

  Some of our work aims to develop a more fundamental understanding of which measures (e.g. behaviour, activity, posture etc) should most appropriately be targeted with sensor technology. However, technology is not always feasible (or even desirable) in some sectors, so we develop welfare assessments that are valid and practical in whatever context they are needed and tailored to the specific welfare aim.

  ---

• Ethics of animal use and management

  

  Animal welfare issues often arise when there are conflicts of interest between humans and animals. This poses challenges around whose interests to prioritise, and what actions can be taken to produce the best moral outcome. The needs and wants of human, animal, and even environmental stakeholders must be understood and evaluated to decide what is the right course of action, but different ethicists and stakeholders may disagree about the conclusions of any ethical analysis. For example, unnecessary suffering must not be caused to legally protected animals, but what counts as ‘suffering’, when is it really ‘necessary’, and which animals should be protected? Evidence must be gathered and some consensus must be agreed upon as to weight the different possible actions.

  ---

• Fundamental understanding of welfare

  

  Animal welfare refers to animal feelings, health, and environmental suitability. These projects explore which animals are sentient and what feelings they have, and how behaviour, health, environments, and welfare interrelate. We use a wide range of techniques to investigate these fundamental questions, each of which is tailored to the particular hypothesis and species involved. Emotions are subjective (private) to the individual experiencing them, which makes them challenging to investigate scientifically. 

  ---

• Implications of mare life history and mare-foal attachment for mare welfare at weaning - a pilot study

  

  While the welfare effects of weaning are well documented for foals and young from many species, the impact on mares are understudied. Here, we look at whether mare life history (e.g. number of previous foals) and degree of attachment to their foals help explain the varying responses of mares when they are separated from their foals, in order to improve their welfare at weaning

  ---

• Objective assessment of the quality of life of equines with pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction

  

  Pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID) is a common disease of older equines affecting >25% of animals over the age of 15 years. It has various associated clinical signs that could impact quality-of-life (QoL) including the painful hoof condition laminitis, weight loss and lethargy. Owners frequently mistake some of these clinical signs as being associated with ageing and not important enough to seek veterinary advice. Additionally, owners face increased physical care burden (time, money and physical exertion), along with increased emotional burden such as a changed mental state caused by affected animal encountering challenges that require additional care.

  ---