It's that time of year when chickens start to hear the pitter of little peeps and the patter of tiny feet. As Spring marches on, hens' urges to raise a clutch of chicks can become unbearable for some birds. The most determined broodies will go to the craziest lengths to exercise their right to hatch their babies; up to and including laying their eggs in obscure hiding places and then vanishing for 21 days to incubate them, before reappearing with a brood of tumbling fuzzy-butts behind them.

Signs of broodiness include your hen huddling on her nest, reluctant to move, making anything from a low 'growling' noise to angry clucking and high pitched squawking if you try to touch or approach her. She will puff herself up and spread her wings to protect her eggs from damage.

Assuming that you don't mind your hen going broody - 'breaking' them is a whole other challenge - then a few simple precautions can ensure that your hen and her new family stay safe.

You've heard the expression, 'a sitting duck'? Sitting on a nest makes a hen vulnerable to attack from predators - and even her own coop mates. Jealous hens and aggressive roosters can all pose a threat to the hen, her eggs and her new-hatched chicks. Keep the hen in a secure area, where she can sit safely on her eggs and leave the nest only once a day to eat, drink and poop. Make sure the pen has good ventilation but no drafts and has protection from the sun, rain and wind. During the period of setting, it is hard for the hen to regulate her body temperature the way she normally would, so she will need a little extra care and assistance with this. Spring and summer temperatures in Georgia can spike unexpectedly, so be prepared to offer your hen some cooling methods, such as a light breeze from a fan, or ice cubes in her water.

If you have to move the hen to a more suitable or secure nesting area, do so at night when she is sleeping, and simply move her and her entire nest carefully, minimizing disruption to the eggs, then keep her dark and quiet the following day until she is settled again. The chances are, if she was truly 'locked on' to her nest and eggs, she will barely notice. 

Offer her an unlimited supply of layer ration and clean water, with added extras if she seems to be losing weight; scrambled eggs are always a great source of protein.

Your hen will set for approximately 21 days, then the chicks will hatch and begin moving around the nest. It will be a little while before they venture too far from momma, but you will want to make sure they cannot escape the secure area or squeeze through any small gaps where a predator, or even a domestic dog or cat, might snatch one.

Seeing a momma-hen and her babies freeranging is a beautiful thing, and she will teach them all the things a young bird needs to know about staying safe... and where to find the best bugs to eat!