She’s no spring chicken! Teenaged Pearl has arthritis but the oldest hen still loves life
Over 14 years ago, Sonya Hull (USA) helped to welcome a chick with downy white feathers into the world.
That chick grew up to be Pearl, a hen that defied all the odds to become the oldest living chicken.
Domestic chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus) have a typical life expectancy of 3 - 10 years – but Pearl overcame a broken leg, a raccoon attack, arthritis, and chicken pox (“Yes, chickens do get chicken pox,” said Sonya) – to take home the title on 22 May when she was 14 years and 69 days old.
“She’s been through a lot in her long lifetime,” said Pearl’s proud owner.
But despite all the ups-and-downs, something that remained consistent in the chicken’s life was the love and care lavished on her by her family, who treat the domesticated hen like one of their own.
Pearl has been a beloved member of the Hull family in Little Elm, Texas, USA since Sonya hatched her in her personal incubator on 13 March 2011.
In her early years, she lived outside in a coop with their other chickens – but as old age slowed her mobility, Sonya created Pearl a space in their laundry room for the elderly hen to spend her days in peace.
She does go outside daily to wander and fluff her feathers in the sun, but the Texas heat is just too much for the senior chicken, who starts to pant when she’s been outdoors too long.
“Due to her advanced age, she cannot walk very well, but she can scoot and tries to stretch her arthritic legs and claws,” said Sonya.
“She’s defied all odds because most Easter-Egger Hens live an average of five to eight years.”
Pearl as a chick
Every day, the adorable hen gets to feast on a diet of fresh spinach and lettuce, a fruit and nut wheel, and chicken food like scratch, cracklings, and crumbles. She enjoys cuddling up with the mop in the laundry room, and Sonya says she loves to sleep with her flip-flop!
“She is welcome to come out into the living room, because she likes to watch TV when she hears it on,” Sonya added.
Pearl in her home in the laundry room!
The elderly egg-layer also gets along well with the other two animals in the Hull house – an aging cat, and a new kitten the family found in a parking lot.
“She doesn’t seem to mind the other animals, and the kitten will sometimes sit with her,” said Sonya.
And even though Pearl’s egg production has decreased because of her age, Sonya said that when her Guinness World Records title was approved, the excited hen laid an egg!
So congratulations, Pearl – you’re Officially Amazing!