Life Expectancy

[NCBonnie]

I’ve searched through the Forum to be sure this hasn’t been discussed (although I’m SURE it’s somewhere) and haven’t had much luck. So, here’s the question (knowing full well there are SO many variables) - what’s the AVERAGE life expectancy of a backyard chicken? Again, I know there are so many variables in play here.

 

[SulkyBantam]

Honestly really hard to know. A HEALTHY bird, living OUTSIDE, should live 3-8 yrs.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Agree with above! Some breeds such as silkies can live 10 years with good care.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Egg production will of course fall with the years, though I have heard of chickens laying into their later years, just not as often.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

My oldest ones were 8 (put down), almost 10 (thinking heart attack) and 9ish (started going down hill and then stomped by a cow). Everyone else is either currently alive and going for a new record, planning on not being here forever or taken by a predator.

 

[NCBonnie]

My oldest ones were 8 (put down), almost 10 (thinking heart attack) and 9ish (started going down hill and then stomped by a cow). Everyone else is either currently alive and going for a new record, planning on not being here forever or taken by a predator.

That’s crazy to me that they can live that long but, again, this is my first “go ‘round” with a backyard flock, so I’m trying to learn all I can. I’ve done the typical Google searches and YouTube vids but I’m so grateful for this Forum of BYC experts, as I’m sure my questions will only increase as time goes by.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Those three were more pets than anythinh. Honestly the 8 year old should have been culled much earlier. He wasn't a healthy bird and he barely ever bothered to breed. The 9 year old was a red sexlink who laid until 8, but not as often as the first 3 years. She ended up with some issue where she tipped over and couldn't get back up on her own. The almost 10 year old was an Ameraucana that was flock master the whole time. He finally was seceded by his son who is about 5 now

 

[Ridgerunner]

what’s the AVERAGE life expectancy of a backyard chicken? Again, I know there are so many variables in play here.

Welcome to the forum, glad you joined.

I don't find the search feature on this forum to be very easy so never hesitate to ask a question even if you think it has been asked many times before. If you can fined old threads on a topic great, but a specific question may be good too, your circumstances may be different. Besides, repeat questions are often easier to answer.

There is no good answer to your question because of all those variables. Many are lost to predators. Disease and parasites get a lot. The older the chicken the more likely disease is. Some just break down. Some are injured or become non-productive so they are removed. That could be killing or rehoming. Many of us raise them for meat, those don't live long. Some of us play with breeding and genetics, that requires a constant turnover.

I don't know what the official record is for how long a chicken can live, I've seen reports on here of some living for 15 years. But due to all the variables the average is going to be a lot less. I'm not going to guess. But once again,

 

[NCBonnie]

Welcome to the forum, glad you joined.

I don't find the search feature on this forum to be very easy so never hesitate to ask a question even if you think it has been asked many times before. If you can fined old threads on a topic great, but a specific question may be good too, your circumstances may be different. Besides, repeat questions are often easier to answer.

There is no good answer to your question because of all those variables. Many are lost to predators. Disease and parasites get a lot. The older the chicken the more likely disease is. Some just break down. Some are injured or become non-productive so they are removed. That could be killing or rehoming. Many of us raise them for meat, those don't live long. Some of us play with breeding and genetics, that requires a constant turnover.

I don't know what the official record is for how long a chicken can live, I've seen reports on here of some living for 15 years. But due to all the variables the average is going to be a lot less. I'm not going to guess. But once again,

Hey, thanks for your reply; much appreciated.

The last Forum group(s) I was a member of was concerning British motorcycles and the search feature on there was garbage, too, if I remember correctly. I’ll heed your advice for repeat questions.

I guess my question stems more from just not knowing much about chickens before diving into BYCing. If you’d asked me a couple months ago, my “guess” would’ve been “hmm, dunno, maybe they live 2 or 3 years?” We’re planning our flock for egg production/pets, so I’ll be curious to see how these ladies fare.

 

[Mrs. K]

The real problem is in the questioning. The idea of an average, is truthfully adding the chicks that live 3 days to really old birds. So as a statistic, not real plausible.

I think what you should expect, is that you will loose birds. Some within days, some within months, and some years. Enjoy them all, the days you have them, give them the best you can and go on.

I think that the best plan is not to keep chickens, but to keep a flock... knowing that you will need to add birds, and sometimes cull birds. I truly love a multi-generational flock. So a few chicks, some pullets, some older birds, and maybe a Grandma or two.

Generally speaking, in my experience, if you get a bird through the first year, I then rather expect them to live to be about 3-4 years, very occasionally a little longer than that.

Mrs K