What Is Your Long-Term Flock Plan?
Most first-time chicken owners are surprised to find out chickens can be long lived animals! Unlike the very brief and unnatural life a chicken would live in the industrial food system, backyard chickens have the opportunity to exhibit natural behaviors and age. With proper nutrition, predator protection, and housing, backyard chickens can live long and wonderful lives. Hybrid chickens and larger breeds of chicken have an average lifespan of 5 years. Given the option to age and proper support some chickens can even live 10 years of or longer. It’s important as you begin your backyard chicken maintenance and management plan to consider what is your approach to aging flock members.
A hen’s ability to lay eggs is impacted by many factors. Things like breed, heritage, health, environment, the season, and age will all play a factor in the length and robustness of a hen’s productive life. Hens’ bodies naturally take a break from laying around the winter solstice as their egg cycle is impacted by their exposure to daylight. Laying will increase once again as the days get longer. Healthy hens when their basic needs are met will reach the peak of their laying productivity sometime between 2-4 years of age. As they age, their productivity will decline significantly. They will still lay eggs for many years of their life, just not as frequently.
Caring for aging hens can be expensive and there are additional considerations that are necessary to support their health and longevity as they age. There are different approaches to long term flock management and I’m going to summarize some different approaches and then share what we’re doing on our micro homestead.
Some people choose to humanely butcher or have their flock processed every few years and replace the flock in entirety. Butchering or culling any animals should not be attempted until you’ve done proper research about humane and ethical animal husbandry practices related to this. In our area it is illegal to sell any home produced and processed meat unless it has been processed by a professional facility. Meat produced on a homestead is only able to used legally for family use. You can hire the services of a professional processor or butcher in your area but many of these services are in high demand and have wait lists. If this is your flock management approach choice, I would begin to make inquiries locally regarding pricing and scheduling as soon as you purchase your flock. If you will be processing your birds at home, additional research and equipment is needed. Please do not attempt this without research, proper equipment, and the preparation needed to humanely and ethically process an animal.
There are some options to rehome aging chickens but these options are very limited. Humane rescues and farm sanctuaries do exist, but these types of organizations are not intended or capable of taking in every unwanted older hen. Some individuals may be interested in taking a small group of hens as pets, but again, these situations are few and far between. Do not abandon your domestic livestock in the wilderness, that is animal cruelty and as domestic farm animals there is no chance that they will survive in the wild. Addressing their end-of-life needs is part of the responsibility you honor as their owner and as the person who benefited from years of their hard work as producers. There’s no escaping the aging life of an animal, as time impacts all living creatures.
On our micro homestead we plan to support our flock into old age and allow them to pass naturally. Our flock is currently an egg laying flock but as they age, they will transition to a companionship flock and also a pest control flock. Older hens still play a vital role in your flock and still have many wonderful skills they can contribute even if the height of their laying days is behind them. Knowing that you will be planning to support your flock as they age in this way, it’s important to keep your flock numbers at a rate where you will be able to financially support their feed needs as they age. Smaller flocks are less expensive and easier to manage as they age, fewer chickens mean fewer needs.
Older hens and flock members can actually teach skills to younger members. Older hens will teach younger flock members where to forage and where to lay. Even if they can’t physically lay eggs anymore older hens will still participate in the activity with younger hens by demonstrating the safest place to lay their eggs and also lending their presence for protection and encouragement. Older members of your flock will be your best lookouts for predators and will help teach younger members what to be weary of.
Aging flock members still provide an excellent service in the form of pest control! Your older hens will still be very effective bug hunters and continue to rid their area of pests as long as they have access to it. Older hens can still keep away unwanted bugs and insects and enjoy grazing and free-ranging if that is an option for your flock set up.
Older hens can assist processing compost. In addition to continuing to provide nutrient dense manure, aging hens can still scratch and turn compost piles, garden dirt, or any area that would be benefit from the natural outcome of their scratching, exploring, and activity. An aging flock can be used to clear garden areas, lower vegetation levels, or turn compost by scratching and digging.
Older hens make excellent companion animals. Since they will naturally have less energy hens will grow more personable as they age and many become easier to handle and hand-tame. Aging hens will still enjoy treats and provide excellent companionship.
It’s advisable if you’re supporting an aging flock that is laying much less frequently to provide a maintenance or all-flock style feed. Your aging chickens will need different nutrients now that their bodies are producing eggs less frequently. Continuing to provide grit and calcium supplement is advisable as they will still consume these supplements as they need them and they will still lay eggs on occasion just not as reliably. Crumble style feed is considered easier for most chickens to consume especially older flock members. Adjustments to their living space will need to be made overtime including examples like providing lower nesting boxes, perches, and roosts or adding ramps to make it easier for older flock to access higher areas. Some people also add bales of straw for older members who can’t climb or roost anymore to perch on so they have a soft, accessible resting place. Utilize multiple food and water stations so aging members aren’t discouraged from eating and drinking by the more dominant and energetic members of your flock. Monitoring an aging flock also requires an additional sense of medical awareness as aging members will be subject to health conditions your younger flock members won’t have such as arthritis. Always consult a veterinarian when needed.
I hope this is a good start for your thoughts and research regarding your long-term flock management plan.
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Chuck and the Chicks 