An older hen starting to lay again, after not laying for months

[Country4ever]

Anyone know what this might mean? My 7 hens are 7 and 1/2 years old. I had a couple eggs earlier in the year, but then they all stopped. I figured they were in "henopause".
But then one of them started laying an egg about every 3 days, about 2 weeks ago. This is the same hen that I found on the floor, under the roost last week and she couldn't use her legs and she was very weak. I put her in a crate and started antibiotics, thinking she had a broken egg inside, but she had no symptoms of anything, except weak in the legs. After 3 days, she was normal, so she's back with the flock. I'm thinking she had a fall and a concussion. But I can't help thinking it had something to do with her late egg-laying..??
But.........is this normal, to stop laying eggs all summer, and then start back up in the late fall, when you're 7 and 1/2 years old??? Seems very curious to me.

 

[Imp]

I have no idea why she would do that, but wanted to say I have an EE that is very erratic also. I was told she was only 1 year old when I got her. She doesn't lay for 3 months then will lay 8-12 eggs in about a 3 week period. Nothing else strange about her. I suspect that she is much older then I was told.

Imp- I'm totally impressed that you have 7 1/2 yo chickens. The oldest I ever got to was about 5+ yo.

 

[Country4ever]

Thanks Imp,
I have noticed over the years that my easter-eggers have been the most consistent layers too. They would lay longer into the Fall than the others, and once they all got into "henopause", a couple of the ee's kept laying.
My chickens are in a very fortified run (except for the time a coon got into a very small loose area in the top net), so that might explain their long lives.
They are definitely slowing down though. I am too, so I can empathize!
Thanks again.