What Do You Do With Chickens Once They Stop Laying (and you don't want them to be eaten or killed)??

[cnodgaard]

I am only able to accomodate about 5-6 chickens in my stealth city backyard.
I understand chicken only lay for about 3 years.
I'm wondering if there are any chicken "retirement" options.
I love the eggs and I have some chicks in a brooder waiting to be the next egg layers.
I love my girls, but I also love having eggs.
What to do????!?!?

 

[devora]

Unless you get incredibly lucky, you are the retirement option.

You don't want your slow-laying hens (they do lay after that, just not as much) but you don't want them culled...it's hard to imagine where they would go.

What is a "stealth city backyard"?

 

[CMV]

If you just want to get rid of them then Craigslist is always an option. If you are hoping that they live out the rest of their days in a big bird sanctuary, then you may be overly optimistic. There is little need for worn out layers, unfortunately.

 

[Oregon Blues]

If you don't want to eat them, and you don't want anyone else to eat them, your option is to keep them yourself.

There are no safe pet homes for non-productive chickens. You don't even want them yourself. You can't expect someone else to take over your responsibility. If you want them in a forever home where they are cared for until the day they die of old age, you will have to be the one to provide that home.

 

[chickenzoo]

It might be hard, but there are people out there that have chickens just to have them... I don't care if I get an egg out of my old girls... Have some 6 years old that still lay, just not as much. I have a farm and chickens are great pooper spreaders. They see a horses tail go up... they are right there waiting for it to drop so they can dig through it and eat bugs, left over feed etc... LOL.