what to do with your old chicken

[babalubird]

Well, if you don't have the heart to butcher it or kill it, you might take it to your city shelter and let them put it down for you. I had to do that with a sick ferret one time. I can't remember if they charge for that or not--too many years. You could call and find out.

That is, provided your city allows chickens in the first place.

If they won't do it, but I can't imagine their not doing it for you, you or someone will just have to break it's neck. And then either bury it in your backyard or hide it well in a garbage back with other discarded items, and put it out on the curb on garbage day.

Connie

 

[DrakeJake]

lol...my husband was telling me just that last night, he was shown by an old timer how to wack a duck real fast. grab his neck and thug is fast and hard on the side of an object, the body goes rolling off somewhere...if its quick and painless so thats a good thing, but he cant and wouldnt deal with it either. it would appear that i was hasty in my assessment anyway, shes runniing around just fine today and i really only saw her looking slumpy once the other day...it was freakin cold here anyway and i tend to be a worrier. so far today i got 6 eggs out of 12 possibilities...will check again as I sometimes get 9 out of 12 chickens and one molting

 

[flockhearted]

I know this is an old string, but what do you mean by rotating the flock? I have 4 chickens who seem to be getting to the end of their laying years - I don't want to eat them, but still want to get eggs. I am not opposed to butchering them in theory but don't know where to take them and am not sure I want to eat them...still contemplating this option.
I am considering just adding a couple more new birds to the flock. Just gathering more thoughts and ideas on what to do when layers stop laying...
(I am in sf bay area, peninsula)

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

I know this is an old string, but what do you mean by rotating the flock? I have 4 chickens who seem to be getting to the end of their laying years - I don't want to eat them, but still want to get eggs. I am not opposed to butchering them in theory but don't know where to take them and am not sure I want to eat them...still contemplating this option.
I am considering just adding a couple more new birds to the flock. Just gathering more thoughts and ideas on what to do when layers stop laying...
(I am in sf bay area, peninsula)

I'm hoping that I'll be able to do the deed myself when it is time to rotate out my laying hens. I actually raised 35 meat birds this past summer and learned to slaughter and butcher myself, but it will be different with my layers, who all have names and were hand raised.

I know of one family who sends their chickens to the zoo when they want to rotate out older hens. The family's children believe that the chickens end up in the petting zoo and happily live out their low-egg-production lives surrounded by pygmy goats and such. While some have actually been added to the petting zoo, many of them end up feed for various meat eaters.

If you have no objection to your aged chickens becoming someone's lunch, you just don't want to do it yoursel, you might check with your local zoo. I would be compelled to ask how they dispatched the chickens, because the idea of one of my girls being miss-handled inhumanely slaughtered would give me nightmares. I'd rather do it myself and know that they were handled gently.

 

[beinginspired]

When do they actually STOP laying in general? I have 5 girls that are about 3 years old now. I got 4 eggs yesterday. They are all fine, one moults, one goes broody, one is a bully, two will be "normal", then they all trade places and go again. Same story, with different girls. Just wondering when they "might" stop laying.

 

[roostersandhens]

what do the backyard chickeners do when the chicken gets old. i dont want to see what happened the first time when i first got my flock. being inexperienced i watched as this poor old hen spent her time alone just standing, sometimes leaning. and one day woke up dead. i have another doing this and i dont want her to suffer so what do people do. im in town so im not butchering, what do i do

I have some old chickens.. I dont care about laying so... I would uthinise her/him if they were REALLY suffering otherwise I would just let them be.