went from 11 eggs a day to only 2 within days

[slslone07]

So we have 15 chickens 10 are hens and 5 are roosters ( my parents will be taking all but 1) anyway our girls went from laying 8-11 daily to only 2 a day within 3 days. They are free-range and I'm afraid they might be laying outside of the nesting box's but I can't find any. If they really are only laying 2 a day is there a problem? We did bring home 2 guinea fowls but that was about a week ago and they are caged up until they don't want to run back to their old home (our neighbors).

 

[ChickenCanoe]

How old are the hens?
A new laying nest is always a possibility but this time of year (molt and shortening days) a dramatic drop is common.
It could also be stress from that many roosters.

 

[slslone07]

They are about 7 months

 

[Mutt Farm]

Hi!

That's a pretty dramatic drop. I would guess they found a different spot to lay. Are the Guineas caged close to the nest box? Are they full time free-range or do you have a coop where you could lock them down for a few days to see if they are in fact laying? If not, How big is their area? Could you possibly pop out there in the early am and listen for egg songs?
They usually don't molt until 16+ months old.
They're all eating well? Bright eyed and bushy tailed as they say? As
@ChickenCanoe suggested, with 5 roos especially if they are hormone raging teenagers they may be tormenting and stressing the hens. Keep us posted! Good luck!

 

[slslone07]

They are about 10 feet away from the nesting boxes. They are free range 24/7 they have all 7 acres but they stay really close I have never seen them more then 20 feet from the barn except when they want to play with the kids in the fenced back yard (like today lol) or when they boys go to the pond. We have one rooster we are killing this weekend bc he has become very mean and is attacking me and has cornered my 4 yr old multiple times. My husband will be home early tomorrow morning and is going to check around the barn for me where I have been finding them bc it's a storage part and I don't want to mess with snakes and mice haha I'm hoping he finds some! I'll definitely keep you guys updated

 

[aart]

Free range birds sometimes need to be 'trained'(or re-trained) to lay in the coop nests, especially new layers.
Leaving them locked in the coop for 2-3 days can help 'home' them to lay in the coop nests.
They can be confined to coop 24/7 for a few days to a week, or confine them at least until mid to late afternoon.
You help them create a new habit and they will usually stick with it.

 

[slslone07]

So my husband went out to feed the guineas and clean the cage.. well on top of the cage is where we keep our hay or straw and he went up to get some and saw a hen up there that was on eggs... ladies and gents we found the mother load of eggs. They laid behind the hay where we couldn't find them. We found 40 eggs.. are they a loss or can we still eat them/sell them?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Eureka!!!

I wouldn't sell them, just to be safe.
I would do a float test. If they float, you may want to cook them for the dogs.
If they don't float, open them individually in a bowl and if they don't stink, you can eat them. The sniff test is key.

Do you have a rooster?
If so you may have chicks in your future - or balut eggs.

 

[Mutt Farm]

So my husband went out to feed the guineas and clean the cage.. well on top of the cage is where we keep our hay or straw and he went up to get some and saw a hen up there that was on eggs... ladies and gents we found the mother load of eggs. They laid behind the hay where we couldn't find them. We found 40 eggs.. are they a loss or can we still eat them/sell them?

X2 on
@ChickenCanoe you have roos...fertilized eggs. If some are a week old...heck, throw them in an incubator or let the hen set them and see what happens.