Why are we raising chickens?

[bkydfarmer-4]

My hens are pets. MY pets. My husband doesn't take much interest in them, though will occasionally go get the eggs in the warm months. When one dies he buries them. But the caring for them is up to me. I'm fine with that. I have an older one no longer laying. She will live out her life with the rest because they are pets, not a business. Egg money buys their feed. And, I enjoy seeing them, talking to them, and caring for them. They are fun to have. That's enough reason to keep them in my book.

 

[BantyChooks]

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I have 10 hens, 8 of them are just new to my coup. They are my pets, they come to me for their treats and follow me everywhere. We have a no kill farm so everything grows old here. I have an old meat hen that was hurt buy a dog that I keep in a penned in area in the coup with the other hens. I could never kill them and put them in the freezer any more than I could kill my dog and freeze him. They are my pets. I do sell the eggs to my friend who has an egg house but they do help offset the price of the feed. I am 77 years young and my girls make me get moving in the morning to check on their feed and water and to collect the eggs and again at night to lock them up in their coup. They have free range on the farm and especially enjoy getting into the horse barn. Men just don't understand about attachment to an animal.

Over here, it's the men that get attached. I do all the processing because they just can't.

 

[bkydfarmer-4]

Totally different subject. We are looking for a little dog to adopt. So I'm reaching out to fellow Backyard Chicken folk in Maine for help. Favorite breed is Chihuahua. Love them and have had several. We prefer a female. Also like Japanese Chin. Can't pay hundreds of dollars. Hoping there's one that needs a home. So if anyone hears of one please let me know. Have a great day fellow chicken lovers.

 

[Vicker]

After being a chicken tender for years, I sometimes get to the point when I think this will be my last flock. But then, I can't bring myself to give them up. I can't imagine not having them around. Culling is not that important since I'm not in it to make money. The old girls just aren't worth the hassle of processing for the freezer and trying to cook in a way that makes them tender enough to chew. I have never calculated the cost of the fresh eggs, many of which I end up giving away. Old chickens can still serve the purpose of pest control, compost processing and some predation prevention. Larger flocks seem to confuse a predator and make enough noise to alert me in time to intervene.

 

[aart]

Totally different subject. We are looking for a little dog to adopt.

Well, then best to post somewhere else.
Try your state chat thread:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/maine.1370/page-1874
or:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/other-pets-livestock.22/
or:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/everything-else.19/

Best place to get a dog might be your local dog rescue....SPCA, Humane Society, etc.

 

[Judy Todd]

There is debate in my house over why we have chickens. I like the life and companionship my flock offers. I like to watch them grow and interact and just be chickens. My husband likes this too, however he has more of an economical point of view. He sees all the money and time it takes to raise them. We make a little from the eggs we sell to help offset the cost of feed, by no means are we making a profit.

But what happens when they slow or stop laying? I would prefer to let them live out their life. My husband sees something we feed and get nothing from and would prefer to cull them for the freezer.

He grew up on a farm and I did not. That has had a tremendous impact on our lives as we do not share the same view of life and death (when it comes to our animals). I can’t find the line between pet and stock. I prefer everything to live and in the world of farming that is just not realistic.

My husband and I have laid out somewhat of a plan to raise a new flock every year and cull the oldest flock at around 3 years of age, like a cycle.That way we have them through the laying years and are getting the most from our investment by stocking the freezer.

What do you do? What is the purpose of your flock? How do you manage your attachment and feelings toward the animal you have raised and now have to kill?

You might remember the article about culling. If you start out with 20 chicks, get 5 or more new chicks every spring and do not cull. In five years you will have 40 or more hens, not good. Hope you have a huge chicken house. I cull at a bit less then 3 years, and make lots of chicken soup. Good for the farm and your health. A good farmer culls humanely for the good of the flock.

 

[citygirlfarmer3]

I cull after two years and sell some of the meat to a local Amish butcher shop. I get about 2 dozen eggs per day so I sell at our local farmers market and here at the farm. I have no attachment to my birds and they net me a small profit. I cull non-producing birds and any excess rooster (I keep 3).

How do you determine a layer is non producing?

 

[ARose4Heaven]

In the past, it was for eggs and meat. The new flock I got in the mail yesterday is entirely for pets. Well, the ones I actually ordered anyway. The nine roos the hatchery included for warmth are gonna taste real fine.

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

How do you determine a layer is non producing?

I don’t, after 2 years typical production slows so I just cull and replace.

 

[GC-Raptor]

How do you determine a layer is non producing?

The vent will be dry, not moist. The protruding bones on either side of vent will be close together, not two fingers width apart.
They may not sit in nest boxes. I have a hen that retired from laying last May at 2 years of age.
For a couple of months after she would sit in nest and even sing the egg song when coming out of coop. I would check nests and nothing but a ceramic egg in the nest.
Also the combs and wattles will get pale.

Can you tell which two are not laying?
This pic was taken January 6. The hen in the middle has resumed laying after molting and her comb is red again. GC