The latest news on the hen front is that Irma has gone broody.

Whatever she thinks, and we have tried to explain this to her, she has not been fertilised so her efforts are in vain, especially since she isn't even sitting on any eggs!

This is a new stage for us in hen rearing, so it was back to the books where we discovered that this is apparently not uncommon behaviour.

It lasts for twenty one days, the hen's body temperature rises significantly (to the ideal temperature for hatching eggs), they can go into a trance-like state when they may not stir themselves even to eat and drink to the point of becoming weak, ill and subject to parasite attack. And it may have a negative effect on the rest of the flock.
Various diversionary actions are suggested including dipping the hen's bum, or head, in cold water or removing the brooding bird from the others and isolating her in a cool place.

Irma's behaviour has certainlyconfused the others, if only to the extent that their daily egg production has fallen from 3 or 4 to 1 or 2.

But, as you may have guessed by now, I am very fond of my girls so I was less than keen on the more extreme of these interventions and certainly do not want her to become weak or ill.

So we have applied our own remedy which seems to be working out so far.

The girls get their 'treats' of household leftovers, or grain, on the front lawn each morning. So we remove Irma from her nesting box for this moment to see that she takes at least a little sustenance. She tends then to spend a while with the others before returning to her fruitles vigil.
And later in the day, once the others have laid their eggs (or egg), we will lock her out of the run when she seems to forget, for a while, what is on her mind.........

............and today she seemed to get pleasure from having a dust bath with Helen.