3yr old flock laying few eggs - keep / eat / sell?

2ndTink

Free Ranging
Premium Feather Member
Aug 23, 2020
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I know I am the only one who can make this decision, but I would really appreciate some input from other chicken keepers. Three years ago we got our first chicks, I had chickens as a kid, but hadn't had any in years. Our plan was to butcher the chickens when they stopped laying or when they really decreased in laying. This is all good until I've now had these girls for 3 years and am attached.

For some background, I'm an engineer, I live on logic, facts, numbers, and ROI's, but I also love animals and now I'm looking at these lovely ladies who almost all have had something (egg bound, off days, etc) that I've nursed them through and they've been so entertaining and are basically my therapists who pick me back up after my crazy stressful days at work. I have 2 GC's that I know it's best for them to become dinner, I am resigned to that, they are starting to have egg laying issues so I know they aren't going to have lovely long quality lives. But, I can't bring myself to butcher and eat them personally, but I am ok to have my friend come pick them up to eat.

My hardest question for the time is 3 BR's, they are very healthy but since starting to lay again this spring I was getting 1 egg / day from the 3 of them. Not much of a return for the price of feed, but they are healthy... lol. Two weeks ago I integrated them into my other 3 yr old flock of 5 birds, plenty of room in that coop for all 8 chickens and they've lived side by side their whole lives and free range together. No drama, all went well. But, since then, I've only gotten 3 or 4 eggs from those 3 chickens. I gave them a pass due to the stress of being moved, but saw Mosa has laid a shell-less egg off the roost 2 times now.

At what point does the cost of feed input outweigh the egg production to where I should either give them to someone else to eat, or try to muster the oomph to butcher and eat them myself? I have 3 BAs that are also 3 yrs old but still laying very well, and one of those is a favorite who I will keep even if she stops laying.

I think if someone else butchered them I could eat them, but I don't know of anyone locally who would do that. I know some of you would never ever butcher a pet chicken and they'd live out their lives until the very end, and others would have no issues butchering and popping a delicious home raised bird into the pot. I enjoy cooking and baking, so I know I'd really enjoy good flavored chicken and chicken stock... I'm over-thinking all of this I'm pretty sure.

I know only I can make the right choice for me (my husband seems ok to butcher them, but other times not so much...) what are some questions I can go through to help me find the best path? Sorry for the long post, but I've been thinking this one through in so many scenarios over the past few months and I need a kick in the pants to head in a direction 😂
 
It's not easy. My first slaughter was very difficult, subsequent ones still hard. I also worked in the engineering field and my goal from the beginning was eggs and meat. I hatched new birds every late winter and slaughtered cockerels at about 14 weeks and older birds by late fall to get the numbers good for my winter housing.

free range together.
They could be laying in range area?
Knowing that could help you for timing your decision.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/who-is-laying-and-who-is-not-butt-check.73309/
Free range birds sometimes need to be 'trained'(or re-trained) to lay in the coop nests, especially new layers. Leaving them locked in the coop/run for a week or so can help 'home' them to lay in the coop nests. Fake eggs/golf balls in the nests can help 'show' them were to lay. They can be confined to coop and maybe run 24/7 for a few days to a week, provided you have adequate space and ventilation, or confine them at least until mid to late afternoon. You help them create a new habit and they will usually stick with it. ..at least for a good while, then repeat as necessary.
 
When I started raising chickens, it was already ingrained in my mind that they were going to be a food source for our family. So, we treat them really well and make sure they are happy and safe. But when the time comes, they are culled and replaced with younger hens. We do this about every 2-3 years.

But my neighbor does not cull any of her chickens. She cares for them until they die. She actually rescues chickens.

So yes, ultimately you will need to decide which route you plan on taking😊. Both ways are acceptable in my book, LOL.

But as Aart mentioned, the birds could be laying elsewhere. Our hens do not really free range, we move their run around so that they are always on fresh grass. But even they sometimes lay outside the coop.
 
So, I haven't eaten meat in many years, and this is only going off of things I have heard others say, but isn't a 3 year old hen not that pleasant to eat?
 
As an engineer you know that if your assumptions are off any numbers you run are bogus. So, yeah, you may want to check your assumption that they are not hiding a nest. As the client you have to determine what return on investment meets your criteria. So, yes, purely your choice.

You've probably researched all this. On average as the flock ages they tend to lay less. I say on average because it can vary a lot by individual, all the way from stopping from laying to continuing to lay at a good rate. But if you have enough for averages to mean anything the flock overall lays less. So if eggs are that important to you then you need to regularly replace your hens. My goals and set-up are quite different from yours. I keep replacement pullets every year and remove older hens every year on a rotational basis to keep the age of my flock young. There are all kinds of other models. I don't know what model will work best for you.
 
So, I haven't eaten meat in many years, and this is only going off of things I have heard others say, but isn't a 3 year old hen not that pleasant to eat?
People hunt pheasant, wild turkey, ducks, etc. all the time and eat them regardless of age. If you know how to cook them they can be a gourmet meal. The French use an old tough rooster to make Coq au Vin, a gourmet meal. An old tough hen makes delicious chicken and dumplings and the best chicken soup if you use the right recipe. There are other ways to cook them. If you age them to get past rigor mortis and use an appropriate recipe they can be great. If you don't age them or use an appropriate recipe they can be inedible.
 
People hunt pheasant, wild turkey, ducks, etc. all the time and eat them regardless of age. If you know how to cook them they can be a gourmet meal. The French use an old tough rooster to make Coq au Vin, a gourmet meal. An old tough hen makes delicious chicken and dumplings and the best chicken soup if you use the right recipe. There are other ways to cook them. If you age them to get past rigor mortis and use an appropriate recipe they can be great. If you don't age them or use an appropriate recipe they can be inedible.
That makes sense. People back in the day couldn't just throw out edible meat in their right mind, so it isn't surprising they found a way to make it a pleasant experience.
 
Thank you all for your info and input so far! Just to clarify, they don't get to free range every day, I only let them out for a few hours in the evening if I have a chance and the weather is good after I get home. So no chance for a hidden nest out in the yard. I have checked all the nooks and crannies in the coop and run and no hidden nests there either.

Our original plan was to get new chicks every other year and to have 8 chickens total. We now have 33 chickens 😏 not sure how that happened... and to eat the older ones when they weren't laying much, but we didn't define what # of eggs / week was. We had a plan, it just was high level and not exactly detailed.

Aart, thanks for the share that it isn't easy. I always tell my team when they are overwhelmed and think they don't know what to do, to create a plan, and just work the plan. So I think I just need to plan on butchering, and get everything ready and pick a date. I think I'll start with the 3 BRs, and see how it goes. I know I've treated my birds very well, they've lived good lives. We live in an industrial poultry area, the semi truck loads of chickens and turkeys stacked in cages going to be slaughtered are not pleasant to see, they look so sad and pale. If I don't butcher some of my own I won't know for sure what my best flock management plan will be.

Ok, I think I've made up my mind. And, this could be the best chicken I've ever eaten and then the rest of my flock better shape up or they may get a dinner invite 🤣
 
I have no judgement to make on people culling their chooks - l'm a country girl, well used to helping out with the chicken "harvest" as a child, but we chose to start our own flock a couple of years ago because we wanted to see if they'd make an impact on our fruit fly problem, so eggs were going to be a bonus for us, especially as neighbours on both sides had plenty to spare. So, we're happy to let them live out their full lives, as they are still doing 2/3 of their jobs - insect control and fertilising. And we had no idea of the mental health benefits they would come to provide us. Working from home during Covid, at a very stressful job, I had no colleagues to vent with when things were particularly trying. So I'd make a coffee and go sit with the chickens for a bit. It turns out that not only is chicken soup good for the soul, so are live chickens.😂
 
I have no judgement to make on people culling their chooks - l'm a country girl, well used to helping out with the chicken "harvest" as a child, but we chose to start our own flock a couple of years ago because we wanted to see if they'd make an impact on our fruit fly problem, so eggs were going to be a bonus for us, especially as neighbours on both sides had plenty to spare. So, we're happy to let them live out their full lives, as they are still doing 2/3 of their jobs - insect control and fertilising. And we had no idea of the mental health benefits they would come to provide us. Working from home during Covid, at a very stressful job, I had no colleagues to vent with when things were particularly trying. So I'd make a coffee and go sit with the chickens for a bit. It turns out that not only is chicken soup good for the soul, so are live chickens.😂
I did the same thing during that time. So funny, I'll bet a lot of us did.
 

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