oldest chicken

[Nicos]

I was chatting to a guy yesterday about his old hens and he says he has a hen who is 9 1/2 yrs old who still lays the occasional egg. She demands a head scratch from him every morning before she has her breakfast!! (His wife won't let him kill them!). How old do hens get and who has got the oldest one on the 'vine' ???

[Lorna]

Hi Nicos,

I've just seen mentioned on a website that Black Rock hybrids have been reported to be laying at 8 and living to 12. Friends of ours who keep chickens had a few of their original birds still laying at 8.

Lorna.

[nick the grief]

I suspect that bettery hens don't live to long as they'll be burned out after a few years.

I used to work for someone who had chickens so old we had to show them pictures of eggs to remind them

[Jaxom]

I would imagine that all females are born with a certain amount of ova in their ovaries. Nature dictates how often an egg is released and then the rest as they say is history. Perhaps this is why Battery hens get their minds and hormones messed round with in order to get them to lay more per week. All those short days they are given in one 24-hour period can't help much.

[Nicos]

what type of eggs do you buy eh?