What's goin' on!???

[chanty]

I have a 3 year old chanteclerc that lays 3 days, stops 4 days, lays 2 days stops a couple of days. She ranges with her two sisters all day, free food as she wants. She is very healthy, has been through a few traumatic events, but is well now. Are her egg laying days waning?

 

[Judy]

I would guess so.

 

[SampyArctica]

I'm likely to say yes, that is exactly what's going on. The first year of laying is the most productive for the hen, and though they may lay eggs up to about five years old (my grandma has one that's about five and a half and she reckons she gets the occasional one), once they hit roughly 18 months and have their first adult moult, laying frequency starts to decrease. It's also why many battery farms will cull their hens at 18 months, as they have a higher priority of eggs being laid rather than the lives of the girls.