I have a very loud Bond Brown hen in a suburban setting. Her sister hens are quiet enough, but this one spends her day squawking with the same volume as a small dog barking, unless she is given free-range of the yard. We don't free-range our flock unless we are home, and we are both at work 5...
I have a Golden Comet hen that is normally a good, consistent layer.
In the last couple of days I've been finding soft-shelled eggs on the poop tray below where she roosts. On one occasion this week she did lay in the nesting box, but it was a white, speckled, small egg that is quite different...
