When your hens stop laying....

[orrpeople]

My husband just asked me this question again last night... I think I probably fall very close to the median consensus: Some of them are pets, and have been pets since day one. They will live on in retirement. Some of them are not. I sold a few of those after their first full summer of laying, so I could still get a nice price for them, and replaced them with new ones. We also have started feeling more and more comfortable with eating the birds we raise, so will probably butcher a few along the way, too. I like what some of you said about doing that before winter when they pretty much stop laying anyway.
Love the variety of opinions and practices.

 

[CarpCharacin]

I'm going to keep mine when they stop laying, they are my pets. I couldn't imagine eating them.

 

[SuperMell]

We don't have space or the extra $ for feed to keep non productive chickens so any non producers or low producers will get slaughtered for food eventually once we get up to a full sized flock (probably next spring/summer). It will be sad but it is part of moving towards sustainable living for our family.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

Both hens and selected roosters will continue to live out their lives on this farm. We have the room and the food to accommodate the retirees. My oldest hens are 3.5+ and they still lay regularly...so I don't see that this will change in the future.

They will have provided us with chicks and eggs. They'll still be providing me with pertinent information needed for selection of their offspring.
There's probably going to be a lot of hugs given.

 

[nova022]

Six of my original nine are five years old and still laying strong. The other three passed away a few years ago. These will get to live out their days with the flock. Their replacements are three years old because most opinions were that hens only lay until about two and I wanted to be prepared. The three-year-olds are still laying strong as well and will get to live out their lives too. I don't particularly like eggs and got chickens because I enjoy watching them in the yard looking for bugs and scratching in the soil, so if they stop laying, I won't have to find someone to take the dozen or so eggs I still get every day. lol

 

[aart]

We don't have space or the extra $ for feed to keep non productive chickens so any non producers or low producers will get slaughtered for food eventually once we get up to a full sized flock (probably next spring/summer). It will be sad but it is part of moving towards sustainable living for our family.

Ditto Dat^^^
I've sold a few as pets, cause they were lousy layers but were of such nice demeanor that they would make good pets. Have sold/given away a couple cock/erels to those who needed one and in one case a cockbird that I bought(my first) that was of such good demeanor I gave back him to the seller as they needed him back and I was replacing him with another breed.
The rest get slaughtered, butchered, and stewed.
I hatch replacement layers every spring, the cockerels are sold (not likely) or in the freezer by 16 weeks to be grilled or stewed. The oldest hens are in the freezer for stewing before winter hits hard.
I love animals, have always had dogs as pets, have had cat, reptile, and bird pets too.
Chickens are neat animals and I enjoy keeping, observing, and interacting with them but they are first and foremost for food.

 

[MammasBabies]

I still have the first chicken we hatched from an incubator 10 years ago. Long since stopped laying, but we can go out and pick her up anytime we want! She is such a love. Have had others that died earlier due to egg hardening and breaking inside before they got them out. That is always sad. Others have come and gone due to various factors in life. We live in the city and these are all pets first, entertainment and then egg layers. I usually pick up 3 to 4 new day old chicks every 2 to 3 years to cover attrition and keep some eggs coming.

 

[NancyNurseCxMama]

First time chicken owner here. Retired, always fond of chickens, finally gave in and brought home seven two-day-old chicks almost six weeks ago.
They are a hobby and they're pets. We've bonded, lol, and they have personalities and names and shall be pets as long as they live and as long as I'm around. I'll enjoy their eggs for as long as they are able to produce them and then they will have the rocking chair life until they go into that great coop in the sky.
Total respect for those who raise them for food, it's just not something I would be interested in doing at this point in my life.

 

[Abriana]

I have my first flock right now, but i plan to let them live out the rest of their lives in peace. Even if I'm not getting eggs from them, the joy of having them around is enough! Of course, what you decide to do is a personal decision.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

The answer to the question is as varied as the chicken keeper. You do what is right for your family.

Things of course to consider are the feed costs, room, and health concerns of aging hens.

If you are needing the eggs, obviously non-productive hens are draining the feed bucket but not producing. Grain gets expensive, so those that aren't producing are literally burning feed dollars. I refresh the flock each year by always having various ages....new chicks, grow outs, current layers.

I find that I can Craigslist fairly easy my 2 to 3 year old hens. We have eaten our roosters, but I'm not a big fan of an aged layer. They are only good for stewing and it always comes out tasting a bit gamey for me with the old hens. So, I Craigslist or give away to fellow chicken friends.

My brooding hens get royal treatment for longer as they are useful as good brooders. But if they stop being a good brooder, they go.

Only 1 or 2 very special birds get to stay as long term pets, but I've phased out most of those for reasons number 2 and 3.

Room. The more crowded your conditions, the more stress you place on your grounds. All those tramping and scratching feet do damage to grass and plants. They definitely produce some wonderful compost, but also a fair amount of fecal material. In time, worm and coccidia loads begin to build up. If you can't rotate fields (ideal), then you have to refresh top soil/bark and watch your numbers or deal with a lot of medicines to be treating the resulting issues. (Unfortunately, my wet Oregon winters don't kill the bugs in the soil like the colder zones do).

Age. Sadly I find as my hens age so do their immune systems. It is my older hens that become vectors of illness for my younger hens. The older ones begin to get a build up of internal and external parasites that the younger ones simply don't have, even though I treat everyone the same with meds and applications. And it is generally the older ones that catch the virus going around. Another reason I find to keep my flock younger.

So as I have a smaller area to work with (1/3 acre of which the house has to also sit), I have to consider long term conditions of my land and overall health of the flock for sustainability.

If I had more room, I could be a bit more lenient, but again, grain is expensive, birds age, and I can only keep so many "pets." If they aren't helping to produce eggs to sell that purchase their grain or furthering the flock's overall health and productivity, then they have to go.

Just what I do.

LofMc