should i let my chickens die naturally?

[writerskramp]

Said my PEACE.. and now putting down this horse today and beating it..

 

[Araucana Nest]

@Awakening Forest do you have heritage breeds? Not super-producers, sort of just the happy medium.

Hi PioneerChicks, I raise breeds that lay colorful eggs at a healthy rate. I also breed F1 Cinnamon Queens that are over three years old and healthy to lay fewer eggs . Welsummer, Barnevelder, Silverudd’s Blue, Araucana, Cream Legbar and Lavender Orpington. My heritage barred rock pen won’t be producing until 2022.

 

[writerskramp]

To both writerskramp and Aapomp831, while I always enjoy a healthy, civil debate about religion, the whole "your god is imaginary" vs "you're a heathen who's going to hell" argument is so tired I'm about ready to close this thread, which is unfortunate cuz I thought it was going in some really interesting directions.

Can we just agree that all people, whether Christian or athiest or whatever else, have their own valid and personal reasons for believing what they do and, more importantly, the right to hold those beliefs as long as they're not hurting anyone else, and stop using ad hominem attacks to try to prove to each each other that some of us hold the monopoly on truth?

I have seen this debate play out what feels like hundreds of times and I can tell you no one's mind is going to be changed; you're just going to make yourselves angry and anyone else on the thread annoyed and bored.

Planted mustard seeds.. because I enjoy watching these things grow.. Now the remainder depends on the fertility and the depth of the rocky soil, and some rain. So I too am outta here.. PEACE

 

[Aapomp831]

Whew. I am finally caught up. So this thread started out as an opinion thread, and I voted. And now I am going to ignore the side issues (fascinating as they were, cough) and answer the OP question. I have had a few chickens, over the last ten years, apparently die of old age. More likely, they died of ignorance and a lack of observation on my part. Since I joined BYC, however, I keep a closer watch on my birds, and have probably saved a few lives. Having said that, we have had to cull/euthanize a few.

One was an older hen who appeared to have suddenly developed a prolapsed vent. We didn't catch it till late in the afternoon, as she hid in the coop most of the day and we thought she was going broody. When we realized she was in trouble, it was far too late to help her. There was too much tissue protruding, and most of it was dried out and necrotic. She was obviously in pain and suffering. There was only one thing we could do to help her, and we did it as quickly as we could.

Our chickens are not pets, but we do enjoy them and care very much for them. They actually belong to God, who created them. We are their stewards and keepers. He cares for them as well; we are told He sees when a single sparrow falls. We take the bast care of them we can. So we could never allow one to suffer unnecessarily.

Not everyone believes this. There are millions of people who believe in different religions. You believe the one you were taught to believe.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Not everyone believes this. There are millions of people who believe in different religions. You believe the one you were taught to believe.

Not so. I rejected the one I was taught to believe; I now believe the one that makes sense to me. As should everyone. I should have added that if my chickens are not sick, they do get to live out their retirement in comfort, which I think was the point of the OP question. We do not cull them just because they are no longer productive. But our purpose in getting chickens was not primarily eggs or meat, it was insect control. Even an old hen can still eat ticks!

 

[Angelique123456]

hi!

since chickens would not lay that much eggs if they would be in the natural habitat is it moraly right to let them die because egg laying problem... 300 eggs a year is too much and it doesnt seem like it is fair to let them suffer from liver damage egg peritrosis etc.
what do you think?

I don’t put a light in the winter so they don’t lay as much. I believe it is much more natural for them and have a rest to recoup their bodies. In my opinion would you like to lay eggs every day for one year or slow it down to create a much more longer natural life.

 

[Quaicken108]

I think that @crazy_chicken99 created this thread seeking an answer to a personal intrigue of theirs, which is quite complex. I however, don’t think that they created this thread to start a brawl that seems to have come to a close. As it has ended I wanted to remind everybody that everyone has their own beliefs, myself included. I know that my beliefs are true otherwise why would I believe them. Love is a complex word and a world in itself. BYC is a community full of feathery friends that all come from different backgrounds, different ages and walks of life. So let’s try to listen to each other, not be quick to tread on others and push them down but rather build one another up because there’s already enough hatred in this broken world.

 

[NickyS2512]

Sorry, do you have a hen who is suffering? I would keep mine and let them pass naturally if nothing is going wrong and they’re just old. If there’s nothing you can do like one of my girls last year had an injury that I couldn’t do anything for and the best solution is humane euthanasia but if they’re just not laying and have a will to live than leave them be.

Totally agree. Simply not laying is not a good reason, but if there is suffering, then do the kind thing, and hasten the end in a humane way.

 

[Aapomp831]

Not so. I rejected the one I was taught to believe; I now believe the one that makes sense to me. As should everyone. I should have added that if my chickens are not sick, they do get to live out their retirement in comfort, which I think was the point of the OP question. We do not cull them just because they are no longer productive. But our purpose in getting chickens was not primarily eggs or meat, it was insect control. Even an old hen can still eat ticks!

In most situations. I also rejected the one I was taught to believe - what I’m saying is people are convinced their god is real because they were indoctrinated as children to believe what their parents believe. That is all.

 

[NickyS2512]

yes but eating the apple and throwing the core in the garbage destroys the potential life of all those seeds. So it does hurt the plant's ability to reproduce.

Not if you put it on the compost heap. Some plant seeds need to pass through a digestive tract to trigger germination.