What is the average life span of your chickens?

[Ducclelover10]

For those of you who have kept chickens for a long time, what would you say is their average life span? And what would you say most of your chickens died of?

 

[Mrs. K]

I have always just had hatchery birds, and really I think the average would be close to 3 years. However, we do have winter up here, and I think that might wear them out sooner.

Death causes are mostly predators, but sometimes, you just find a hen dead. You feel a little bad, but then you think, hmmm, I can have new chicks

MrsK

 

[4 the Birds]

For those of you who have kept chickens for a long time, what would you say is their average life span? And what would you say most of your chickens died of?

10 years. 8 to 16 is the range that most die from old age. We have old hens that still produce eggs.

 

[Ducclelover10]

10 years. 8 to 16 is the range that most die from old age. We have old hens that still produce eggs.

Wow!

I have always just had hatchery birds, and really I think the average would be close to 3 years. However, we do have winter up here, and I think that might wear them out sooner.

Death causes are mostly predators, but sometimes, you just find a hen dead. You feel a little bad, but then you think, hmmm, I can have new chicks

MrsK

Yeah! I know what you mean! I'm sorta looking forward to when two of our 4 year old chickens' die, I know I'll be sad but I want more chicks so bad! And we don't have much winter down here, we're in Florida! We keep our chickens locked up, so they shouldn't get eaten!
Have you ever had a chicken die of old age?

 

[bobbi-j]

"Old age" for our chickens is 3 or more years. Depending on when we decide to butcher our old laying hens... Cause of death is usually a hatchet. I guess it all depends on why a person keeps chickens. For pets or as productive farm animals.

 

[Ducclelover10]

"Old age" for our chickens is 3 or more years. Depending on when we decide to butcher our old laying hens... Cause of death is usually a hatchet. I guess it all depends on why a person keeps chickens. For pets or as productive farm animals.

We have one that seems really healthy; she is still very lively at 4 years of age and pops out an egg about every other day. But her face looks wrinkly, do chickens wrinkle with age?

 

[satay]

Wow!

Yeah! I know what you mean! I'm sorta looking forward to when two of our 4 year old chickens' die, I know I'll be sad but I want more chicks so bad! And we don't have much winter down here, we're in Florida! We keep our chickens locked up, so they shouldn't get eaten!
Have you ever had a chicken die of old age?

I agree just lost a 9 year old black sex link the other day and she was still laying right til the end.

 

[jammyjammy2112]

the first 5 hens i got are still alive there 5 years oldd now not sure any of them 5 are still laying.

 

[bobbi-j]

We have one that seems really healthy; she is still very lively at 4 years of age and pops out an egg about every other day. But her face looks wrinkly, do chickens wrinkle with age?

Good question. And good for her! My mom has had them as long as 7 or 8 years, getting eggs every now and then from them. She keeps them until they die of what appear to be natural causes.