Weddings and a Brooding Hen

We've been busy but not too much with the chickens. My sister got married in Greenville, SC on the 17th, so I had to find a sitter for the chickens. Luckily, my across-the-street neighbor, Cindy, agreed do it. She seems to have done a great job (not to take away from her efforts, but sitting mainly entails cleaning poo, filling food dishes and counting heads to make sure they're all still doing well). I hope she wore closed-toe shoes when she came to take care of them. When she came to get the rundown on the Thursday before we left, they were very interested in pecking at her cherry-painted toenails.

In other news: Rosie is brooding. She wants to set on eggs, even when there are none. If one of the hens lays an egg, she is Johnny-on-the-spot to go sit on it. Somehow, she has convinced the other hens to lay in the same spot on the floor of the coop. I feel bad that she doesn't have a real egg to sit, but since these eggs will never hatch, I take them out from under here. She's okay with me moving her around a bit, but she goes back to setting and occasionally clucking. I try to take her out of the coop in the evenings so she'll be sure to eat and drink. Apparently, setting hens can be so committed to their nest that they'll neglect themselves.