Even though your newly rescued hens have laid a lot of eggs before ‘the rescue’, it doesn’t mean that they won’t lay plenty of eggs for years to come. In fact, chances are they are going to be great egg layers.
How they are cared for and importantly how they are fed is very important for their wellbeing and for their egg laying. A rescue hens diet should mostly consist of layers pellets, not just so that they lay eggs, but the fact is it is a balanced diet and helps them to stay healthy. Changing their diet to discourage laying leads just leads to problems.
In my experience with rescue hens, 4 -5 eggs a week is fairly typical. All perfectly formed and deliciously tasty from happy healthy hens. The eggs will have lovely orange yolks and really hard eggs shells, particularly if the hens can roam in the garden.
Eating eggs produced from your own hens reduces the demand for commercially produced hens. Sharing them with family and friends reduces the demand even further.