Poll: When is the right time to cull a chicken?

[HenriettaPizzaNolan]

I have only been keeping chickens for a year (started my flock with older birds) and have had to cull two Golden Comets who developed what I believe was salpingitis. It got so bad and I wanted to put them out of their misery. Right now I have another hen who is having trouble with egg-laying but otherwise seems healthy. I was thinking I will have to cull her if she starts showing signs of salpingitis or something, but is it really humane to wait until they are suffering so much? It got me wondering: when is the right time to cull a chicken?

Some people cull at a certain age, some cull when sick, etc. I wanted to get BYC's opinions so I can help form my own. I'm mostly concerned about when is the most humane time to do it, but I would love to hear any opinions you have.

 

[Mrs. K]

Whenever it is best for your flock, individual birds, or your preferences. The only “right” thing to do, is maintain good husbandry. Culling is a part of good husbandry.

 

[NatJ]

My views on when to cull a chicken:
every option in your poll (except "never"), plus quite a few more.

The thing is, I like to eat chicken. I expect to eventually eat every chicken I ever raise, unless it is killed by a predator or has an illness. So the chickens that I like best will to stick around longer (ones that are pretty, healthy, lay well, and get along well with the other birds and with me.) The chickens I don't like as well get culled (butchered) sooner rather than later.

Reasons I have culled/butchered chickens include:

--I wanted to eat chicken
--I got tired of hearing him crow
--she sang the "egg song" all day long for so many days that I got tired of hearing it
--I wanted to buy new chicks, so I needed to make space to house them
--the chicks grew bigger, so they became crowded, so I needed to remove some
--she bullied others
--she was bullied by everyone else
--she was injured, and I wasn't able/willing to provide proper care for her to heal
--there were too many males
--I had a breeding project, and this chicken was not the right color
--someone wanted to learn how to butcher a chicken, so I butchered one to demonstrate

I've probably culled/butchered chickens for quite a few other reasons as well, but I don't remember them all.

With small chicks, I have culled them (not butchered for eating) if the chick had a deformity or was failing to thrive, or occasionally if I was doing a breeding project and could identify from an early age that some had the wrong color or other traits. "Culling" healthy chicks can mean I give them to someone else, or that I dispatch them (behead) and dispose of the bodies. For me, "big enough to butcher" is about the same size as an adult quail, which is still pretty small but definitely larger than a newly-hatched chicken.

 

[Mrs. K]

I think NatJ - you keep a flock, I keep a flock. My hobby is having a flock of chickens. I try to have the healthiest chickens I can. But birds come into and go out of my flock. I do not expect forever friends, but I rather expect to keep a flock of birds for another 20 years.

I never quite understand the posts about the longevity of chickens, why would you want a 9 year old non laying hen? I enjoy them, but I have realistic expectations about keeping chickens.

Mrs K

 

[alwaystj9]

The number 1 reason I cull is for convenience. If I have a bird that simply doesn't get along with the program...the persistent flyer that keeps getting out and is a pain to get back in. The bird who figured out where to get over the fence - then makes a beeline for the carport to eat the dogfood and poop on my air compressor. The aggressive hog-chicken that spends all her time trying to get into the goat pen or the stall where I feed another animal. I dispatched a bird yesterday who figured out how to get on the barn roof and sidle down the corner wall to get into the barn cat access and eat all the cat food. I culled a persistent broody who wouldn't brood in the chicken pen.
It sounds like I have starving chickens but they are fed quite well and free range on 3 acres most days.
I also cull for rooster issues, too many or constant fighting or any human aggression. I culled a roo who would attack goats, cats and dogs, his perceived area of control/dominance was my whole pasture and no other animal was safe!
Culling is often rehoming, especially for hens. There is a demand for laying age hens. When I have a bunch of young roos, I will put them on CL for $5/each or as a group at a discount and they sell pretty well that way. I can and have processed birds, I just don't do it all that often.

 

[TwoCrows]

I guess I double-posted this thread somehow. Not sure how it happened but I can't figure out how to delete the other one. If a moderator is able to, it would be appreciated.

I moved over 1 post to this thread and deleted the duplicate thread.

BYC Staff

 

[NatJ]

That makes sense. I guess I'm also trying to get more "realistic" about things too. Old hens can have a lot of issues. I'm not sure I believe in trying to keep something alive that's clearly heading toward death. I grew up kind of the opposite. In my family we'd try to "save" any animal we had or found that was sick or injured. But now I think of it in a different way. I wouldn't want to be suffering for a prolonged period of time, so why should I make another creature suffer for longer than it needs to?

I realize that some 9 year old non-laying hens may be otherwise in good health, so that makes it a tougher call for me, but it seems that at that age a health issue is bound to come up anyway. Idk, I guess it kind of is a tough call if she is otherwise in good health. Not sure what I would do.

Continuing to keep a hen as a pet, even when she's not productive, can sometimes be a reasonable choice.

But I think it should BE a choice, something you think about, not just the thing that happens because you didn't think whether to keep her or not.

It may be worth picking one or two times each year to actually consider every chicken you have, and whether to continue keeping them.

Sometimes fall is a good time to think about which ones to cull. Winter can be hard on older chickens. Also, summer provides more opportunities for them to spend time outdoors, but in winter the weather is more likely to force them inside, where they feel crowded and get bored. Having fewer chickens means more space for the ones that are left.

Spring can also be a good time to think about which chickens to cull. Spring is a good time to get new chicks (buying or breeding), so you might remove some older birds to make more space, and as you consider any breeding goals.

Many people like to get chickens in the spring, so it is also a good time to re-home any chicken that is healthy but that you just don't want to continue keeping (maybe she's a good layer but a social mis-fit in your flock, or you don't like her color, or some other reason that might make her perfect for another flock but less-than-perfect for your own flock.)

 

[Mrs. K]

This is actually a very good discussion. Right now, three of my friend and I have an order in for 50 chicks. so 15-20 new chicks for each of us. Fresh blood in the flock. The days are getting longer, the chicks will be tiny for months to come. Half will be males. There will be a unknown variety of breeds. Thing is you can cheat a bit on numbers going into the spring. But it does not last forever.

First cull will to be pull the cockerels somewhere around 2-3 months of age to another coop. I am not particularly fond of the rooster I have now, so will be looking these over carefully.

Right now, I have Mrs. Feathers - a successful broody, and 5 pullets from last year. I will keep the pullets, or at least a couple of them. Mrs. Feathers is on the maybe list. I do rather like her, she is a good broody, but she is getting some age on her.

Thing is - I really need to fit my coop and set up going into winter. I would like that number to be below 12. That is what fits in my coop, but 10 would be better. So in September, I will have laying hens for sale. Last year I made more than my expense of adding new chicks.

Culling is hard. It makes your heart beat fast, and can be like a hard job waiting to be done. But like any hard thing, it makes you feel accomplished when you get it done. You have handled life reasonably, respectfully, and responsibly. A very confident way of living. Always solve for peace in the flock.

Mrs K

 

[NatJ]

@NatJ Are your chickens pets too or strictly eggs/food? I ask because I feel it is harder when they are pets, but I also respect people who can draw the line and cull anyway.

I'm never sure how to answer that question. It's either both, or some third category that falls in between the "pets" and the "strictly eggs/food" groups.

I like chickens enough to keep a flock even when that costs much more money and time than buying eggs & meat at the store. I like to have a variety of breeds, and I care that each one looks pretty to me. I recognize individual chickens and give them names. If you ask me about any chicken in the flock, I expect to be able to tell you approximately how old it is, who its parents were or what hatchery it came from, something about a hen's laying & brooding abilities, something about the genetics of his/her coloring, whether he/she is an escape artist or tries to peck me in the face or is very shy, and probably a bunch of other stuff.

But I also kill and eat chickens, including those same named chickens, and it doesn't bother me too much. They would die anyway at some point, since nothing lives for ever, but that usually happens at a time I decide when they are still in good health, and they are put to good use as meat rather than being wasted.

I'm not entirely sure how I ended up this way, but my parents did things similarly, so maybe growing up with these attitudes is what did it. I appreciate that I can have the pleasure of knowing each individual chicken, while not suffering too much pain on butchering day.

 

[HenriettaPizzaNolan]

I think NatJ - you keep a flock, I keep a flock. My hobby is having a flock of chickens. I try to have the healthiest chickens I can. But birds come into and go out of my flock. I do not expect forever friends, but I rather expect to keep a flock of birds for another 20 years.

I never quite understand the posts about the longevity of chickens, why would you want a 9 year old non laying hen? I enjoy them, but I have realistic expectations about keeping chickens.

Mrs K

That makes sense. I guess I'm also trying to get more "realistic" about things too. Old hens can have a lot of issues. I'm not sure I believe in trying to keep something alive that's clearly heading toward death. I grew up kind of the opposite. In my family we'd try to "save" any animal we had or found that was sick or injured. But now I think of it in a different way. I wouldn't want to be suffering for a prolonged period of time, so why should I make another creature suffer for longer than it needs to?

I realize that some 9 year old non-laying hens may be otherwise in good health, so that makes it a tougher call for me, but it seems that at that age a health issue is bound to come up anyway. Idk, I guess it kind of is a tough call if she is otherwise in good health. Not sure what I would do.