Amber Link life span.

[Flock Master64]

Hello everyone, I have 2 amber link hens. They’re about 3 or 4, maybe 5 years old. They’re starting to slow down with laying eggs but otherwise are very healthy and active. I was just wondering what the average life span for this or any breed of chicken is. Thanks.

 

[Chick or Treat]

6-8 years is typical, but some live longer! It all depends on care and health.

 

[Mrs. K]

I would expect them to be closer to the end of their life span. Some may die rather soon, but others may live for some time. I would be more inclined to expect the former, rather than the latter, but there is no real way to predict.

 

[Biddybot]

Chicken life spans was one of the hardest topics to find any good info on when I first got poultry because, until recently, how many people really let their chickens live out their lives until they dropped dead of old age?

Anyway, that said, I now expect 8 to 12 years for a good basic dual-purpose breed or mixed-breed and heritage-style layers...maybe 5 to 10 for well-bred bantams...only 2 to 4 years for anything designed and sold by a hatchery primarily for commercial use. My current brown-egg layers are commercial hatchery birds. They don't even have the dignity of a proper name or number, they're just generic brown-egg layers designed to live 18 months, and because of that, I think they'll be lucky to see another summer. Which is sad. On the other hand, my longevity champion to date lived 16 years, a little Polish hen, and was healthy to the end, even pumping out a dozen or so eggs her last spring. So, lots of variation out there when it comes to chicken life spans, depending on what you get. Hope your amber links fall into the 8 to 12 year span.

 

[Mrs. K]

The thing is, not to feel guilty if they do not last that long. There are parts to this equation that are beyond our control. I have never come close to keeping a bird alive that long. I feed and water them, they have protection from the elements, and some safety against predators.

I think when people set these long lives as expectations, people feel guilty when their birds do not live this long. Most do not in my experience. Perhaps climate has a great deal to do with this too.

Instead of focusing on single birds, focus on keeping a flock. Birds in the flock come and go.

 

[Jase The Butcher]

Hello everyone, I have 2 amber link hens. They’re about 3 or 4, maybe 5 years old. They’re starting to slow down with laying eggs but otherwise are very healthy and active. I was just wondering what the average life span for this or any breed of chicken is. Thanks.

I've had 11 year old laying hens that I sold off so I don't know if they lived longer