A few days ago I was on the phone with a friend while I collected my morning eggs. I couldn’t help but expound my enthusiasm, once again, on collecting and cooking fresh eggs from my yard. After giving a her a taste of chicken narrative (please see One Girl’s Rant on hazards of backyard hens) she proposed a question to me…how long to chickens live?
Sarah – Looks a bit like a Barred Rock but lays white eggs.
I explained that most live 5-7 years but I had heard tales of some living into their teens and 20s. The conversation led naturally to how long they lay and what will I do with them when they no longer produce. At this time, in a small backyard, it would be unreasonable to keep hens that don’t produce eggs regularly.
To be true, I had not given this much thought. Considering my girls are all a year old this month I have some time to look at the options.
But then I stumbled onto a post at one of my favorite blogs, The Prairie Homestead, discussing “homeless chickens”. The idea that people tire of the coolness of raising backyard hens (or slow/stop egg production) and these unfortunate birds end up abandoned in shelters. These “hipster farmers” (please excuse all the italic and quotes…needed for effect) don’t know what to do with their hens so they are simply dumped. The article she quoted seemed to be calling the raising of backyard hens nothing more than a ridiculous fad…I can’t say there is no truth in that.
However, it is a blanket statement that dismisses a wonderful and powerful backyard movement!
Whoa nelly…almost got on my soap box.
So that brings me back to the question, for myself and any other small-time backyard farmer; what happens to the hens we raise when they can no longer meet our egg needs and we have not pasture to retire them to?
Lucy & her “get out” look. :/
Dare I agree with her and say our hens should be….EATEN??????????????
Could I bring myself to put Miss Lucy or Ethel in a crock pot to make my bone broth? Or worse, could I drop her off at some shelter and let her life end with no purpose because I could not “do the deed”? *It should be noted that I have participated in humane backyard processing.*
I believe that is the course I will be following, when the time comes. How could I truly call myself a backyard homesteader if I cannot face that reality?
I encourage you to read the Homeless Chicken post for yourself. Chicken owner or wanna -be, there are questions that must be answered!
Ugh…No!!!! I had to share a story a lady from Church told me … She had a 10 year old hen who was her favorite animal a few days went by and she could tell that her hen wasn’t feeling good so she did the humane t thing and had her euthanized at the vet…The vet told her he had never had such a request before but went ahead and gave the hen the blue shot..The hen required more then a dog t usually does…funny story people get really attached to their chickens I have 3hen which are the ones I started with and they no longer lay but one will brood so I justify her life the other two I happily waste feed on.. I don’t think I could eat them in a surival situation maybe but until then I am happy to purchase chicken from the grocery store…I don’t have a bond with those chickens ..
An interesting perspective. When you say you’re happy to waste feed on them, it reminds me of old farmers putting their plow horses out to pasture for the remainder of the horses’ lives. This was out of respect for the work they had given the farmer. No one would ever suggest the farmer eat the horse at the end of its life to give their death purpose. Then again, horses are not animals meant to directly produce food. Just some food for thought.
This is wild I tell you