Age at which they lay less eggs?

[lhousesoccer]

Hi - I have 11 egg layers - variety of breeds (Silver-Laced Wyandottes, Golden-Laced Wyandottes, Buff Opringtons, Black Australops, Light Brahmas). 4 of them just turned 1 year old. The rest are 2 years old. Until last Sunday, I was getting 7-8, sometimes 9 eggs a day. For the last 7 days, I haven't got more than 5, most of the time it's 4. Are the "old girls" getting too old, or is something else going on? They don't appear to be moulting.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Likely something else. It is spring time, North America and a two year old isn't old. If you are certain about the ages, then I'd suspect a host of variables.
Parasites, worms, lice, mites, stress from a host of issues, including attempted predation, laying off site, egg eating, flock tension, etc. The list is rather long in possibilities for laying cessations.

 

[lhousesoccer]

Likely something else. It is spring time, North America and a two year old isn't old. If you are certain about the ages, then I'd suspect a host of variables.
Parasites, worms, lice, mites, stress from a host of issues, including attempted predation, laying off site, egg eating, flock tension, etc. The list is rather long in possibilities for laying cessations.

Thanks for narrowing it down

. As far as I can tell, my chickens are perfectly healthy and normal. There have been no predator break-ins, no evidence of egg eating in the nest boxes .... I don't know. I'll just ride it out and see if they lay more at some point. I may set a motion-activated video camera in the nest box area and see who's laying and who's not. Then, we'll have some chicken soup with the ones that are not

 

[speckledhen]

I have several hens who are 5 1/2 and laying regularly, though at a greatly reduced rate. Seems once they hit 5, they lay about half the year when you average it out, though some of mine lay 5-6 eggs per week even at 4 years of age (my best layers are the BRs who are not direct from the hatchery).

Hatchery hens don't do as well, in my personal experience, mainly because they tend to die before that age, unfortunately, from internal laying/ egg yolk peritonitis. My remaining original hen is 6 1/2, a hatchery Buff Orp, and hasn't laid an egg in over a year. I think she just ran out of yolks, the first one ever to do that. Wish that's why all of them would quit, rather than die of some reproductive malfunction or ovarian carcinoma.

Fred is right, though. There are so darn many factors. Hens are living creatures and as such, affected by many things.