life span of a pet chicken

[pfgjudy]

I'm planning to keep chickens as pets. What is the productive time span for hens? How long do they live on average? I want to keep them as pets and have some production each year, so I want to stagger the purchases so I'll always have some that are laying. Do the smaller varieties live longer or shorter lives than larger varities? Thanks everyone!

 

[SilverPhoenix]

In my experience, standard sized laying hens usually live seven to nine years, and bantams can easily reach ten to twelve years, and I'm sure fifteen isn't a stretch at all! I have several bantams that are eleven years old and still going strong, very healthy and they behave like any normal hen. I lost a few around age ten one by one to simple old age, but I've still got those few left that are doing great. I won't be surprised if they make it to fifteen.

 

[Mrs. K]

I know many people on here have some very old chickens, I do see a lot of them live in CA where the weather is mostly nice. But truthfully, if everything goes very well, I think once you are past the first few weeks, you can reasonably expect your bird to live about 3 years. You may get lucky and have them live longer, but a lot of them are gone between the 3-4 years. However this is no guarantee, a lot of chickens under reasonable care, will not make 3 years old. Some will live longer. It is a crap shoot.

If having the same pet for years is your goal, I don't think chickens is for you. It is better to think of having a flock for years to come, but the chickens in it will change.

Mrs K

 

[Three Cedars Silkies]

I think this is quite variable. See below:

There is no agreement on the specific number of years as regards to
the lifespan of chickens. It seems that based on the articles I was
able to find, the lifespan of chickens is 5 to 10 years but can go as
long as 12-15 years.

"Chickens and ducks can live anywhere from 5 - 10 years depending on
the quality of life provided."
http://www.petinfo4u.com/chickens.htm

"7 years"
http://www.angelfire.com/oh/ZebraDirectory/faq.html#lifespan

"The average lifespan of a factory farmed chicken is 7 weeks .The
natural lifespan of a chicken is 7 years."
http://library.thinkquest.org/J0111448/Didyouknow.html

"7- or 8-year normal lifespan for a chicken."
http://www.usatoday.com/news/offbeat/2004-06-18-old-chicken_x.htm

"The natural lifespan of a chicken is about ten years."
http://www.g21.net/news45.html

"The average lifespan of a chicken is eight to 10 years..."
http://www.portlandtribune.com/archview.cgi?id=33795

"The 'natural' lifespan of a chicken could be over 12 years."
http://www.glasgowzoo.co.uk/articles/birds/poultry.php

"Pet chickens average lifespan is about 15 years."
http://www.birdhobbyist.com/articles/BirdHobbyist/Species/PetChickens.html

 

[usschicago1]

Very Informative Oldtimer
I agree

 

[MareeZoCool]

I had a RIR, she lived to be 10, lay her last egg at 8 1/2. No, never had a clutch hatch out with her.

 

[vfem]

I recently met a 15 year old rooster. But I saw if its a quality bird for laying (not a meat bird) Expect between 7-12 years of feeding... with an after thought of maybe beyond that. Its really just based on their good health over that time.

Don't expect eggs for all that time! You'll get the majority of eggs for the first 3 years, after that it will slow... but can still go on and off for years to come!

 

[rittert3]

I would think 10 would be a good average lifespan with a 7-12 range and would agree that you should expect the majority of her production in the first 3 years. Also the length of their life would depend on the lack of preditors, these can include pet cats and dogs, among other things. I also want to add that in button quail males have a longer lifespan due to the amount calcium the hen sacrafices to lay, the majority of chickens don't live to die of old age so I am unsure if the same is true for chickens.

 

[Harleena]

I gave my mom some hens and she still has one or two of them that must be about 9 or 10 years old now! "The old gals."

 

[RockwaterFarm]

If you feed it correctly and don't breed it, she can live up to or past 15 years. i'm aiming for that goal with my first chicken, Rosetta, she is 2 years old. All her brothers and sisters got killed by a dog. She mainly stays to herself though, sitting on the highest nest box, over seeing her coop.