The egg hunt has come early here on the farm.  Some of the girls have taken to laying in nests other than the hen house.  So each day while they nibble on their afternoon treats we search for their secret spots.  

We are hoping to "smoke out" a broody hen any day now.  To trick them in to believing their nests are intact, we replace the fresh eggs each day with older, marked eggs.  The girls don't notice the difference and it keeps them from seeking out a new, undiscovered nesting ground.  Once a hen is ready to brood she won't leave the nest.  At that time we will move her to a safe and secure nesting box away from the flock and switch the marked eggs with good eggs.  If all goes as planed, we will have little peeps 21 days later.

Keep your fingers crossed for us.  Unlike incubating eggs, relying on a brooding hen is miles away from fool proof.  Just the same, we prefer this natural way.  It is our hope to have some Silver Laced Wyandotte available later this spring for those who may want to raise a few birds of their own.   

As we continue on our daily hunts, we wish you the best of fun on your egg hunts this coming weekend!