How do you know when you have a broody hen? Well, for starters, she won't leave the nest box. Look for feathers: she'll have plucked out all of her breast feathers in order to have a very warm patch of soft skin to keep those eggs warm. She won't be laying, but she'll be sitting on everyone else's eggs and keeping them warm (alas, no rooster in our coop, those eggs are NOT fertile). She'll be clucking and shrieking and puffing herself up if you get near her. She might peck you if you try to touch her, she'll definitely be pecking her flockmates and chasing them away from the nestboxes.
Also, check out the turkey-like tail display:
Have you ever heard the phrase, "Madder than a wet hen" ? Well, one way to 'break' broodiness is to reduce the core temperature (I liken broody hens to menopausal women) - and a method employed by farmwives was to dunk broody hens in ice water. Once you've met a broody hen, you'll fully understand that particular colloquialism.
Here is our garlic patch - looking good!
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