The Broody Hen

Every once in a while, for reasons that are not entirely clear to anyone save maybe the chicken herself, one of the hens decides to become broody.  What this generally means is that, what was yesterday a normal strolling, pecking, scratching, egg laying chicken now becomes the equivalent of a chicken zombie.  They pull out the feathers on their belly to provide warmth to eggs (whether there are any or not) and then they sit.  You can attempt to pick them up and shoo them out the door and sometimes they will seem to snap out of it for a few minutes and act like a normal chicken again, but the minute you look away....they are back on the nest and sitting with that glassy-eyed stare of internal concentration.

Some pure bred chickens have had the "broodiness" bred out of them - programed only to lay eggs and then walk away from them without a second thought.  Essentially, genetically programed infanticide.  But there are other breeds, and often mixed breed chickens, that revert back to the "wild type" and will sit on a clutch of eggs. Some even have enough wits about them to actually hatch them out.  I can  honestly say that chickens are not always the brightest of animals.  The current broody hen that I have been monitoring will get off the nest typically once or twice a day and then seems to forget which nest is hers despite the fact that her nest is the only one with eggs in it.  The state of broodiness seems to be contagious as well.  When one chicken starts it, others are likely sure to follow, which is the case at the moment.  Good thing too, because as one crazy zombie bird gets off her nest the other one will often be at the point of trying to remember where her nest is and will trade nests....again, not the brightest light bulbs in the room, but they (eventually) get the job done.

When the eggs do hatch however, there is an amazing transformation that takes place in a hen. They go from being an easily frightened, squawking, fleeing chicken into a bold, ruthless, and intimidating mother hen.  I have seen hens stand up to (and make cower) pigs, cats, dogs, and even my children. They puff out every feather until they are twice their usual size and will tackle whatever evil obstacle threatens their young.   I credit the last mother hen with teaching our current pig to have a little respect for the lowly chickens in the barn - while watching the hen and chicks one day strolling around the pig pen, I was convinced that they were all about to be snacks for the pigs- pigs being the indescriminate eaters they are, but mama hen took after the pigs with feet, beak and feathers flying and sent all three pigs racing away from her small flock of babies. I have not seen them bothered since and our pig will happily allow the chickens to eat out of her bowl with her. 

This transformation in motherhood is really not all that unusual - most mother animals would likely walk through fire and fend off whatever evil beast is threatening their young...I know I would.  But what amazes me is a chicken who, the week before, couldn't remember which nest was hers, suddenly has it together enough to defend and protect these small balls of fluff that are all running in different directions.  She keeps track of them, teaches them the best scratching areas and techniques, calls them away from danger, and keeps a wary eye out for any possible marauders.  If the weather turns cold, or at night when it is time to roost, she takes them under her wing to keep them safe and warm.  I have seen human children with mothers that are nowhere near this attentive and a human's instinctual ability for child rearing has been severely diluted over the centuries as compared to that of a chicken.  I am not sure if that is a insult to humans or a compliment to chickens, but needless to say, I keep a wary eye out for the mother hens.