The new girls get to try some grass

Today we went to the garden centre as we needed a few plants to fill a few boring patches in the garden. They had turfs reduced to a pound as they had had them a week so we bought one for the girls, bargain!

I put a few squares in the run and waited to see how long it would be before Butterscotch and Speckles tried them as they hadn’t seen them before.

The old girls went straight to the turfs

While the girls were occupied with the turfs Speckles eats some apple in peace

Speckles has the apple to herself

Speckles and Butterscotch try some grass

Speckles gets a chance at the grass and Peaches is caught mid scratch

Butterscotch tries the grass

The new girls soon got the hang of it. While we were putting in the plants we had an audience, as usual, waiting to see if we were going to turn up any worms. While the girls were distracted waiting for any possible worms, Speckles had the turf to herself.

I have noticed she uses this tactic a lot. She bides her time then gets whatever is on offer without the competition.

Another weird thing has happened with the pecking order. We have seen Speckles, who is at the bottom, chase Toffee away. Yet Toffee chases Emerald, Peaches and Barley and they never contest her. Emerald, Peaches and Barley all chase Speckles and she runs.

The pecking order is no longer a clear line like it used to be. I think Toffee is a timid girl but because Emerald, Peaches and Barley have always been below her, she has kept her position above them as they just accept it and don’t try to contest it. If they did maybe the order would change but they seem to accept that it’s always been this way.

Speckles who is below Emerald, Peaches and Barley, must have sensed the timid nature in Toffee and although Toffee is twice Speckles size, Speckles chases her off and Toffee runs from her.

So now, bare with me, we have Topaz firmly in first place and no other girl would dare to dispute that. We have Honey in second place and no one disputes that either.

Then it gets a bit odd because Butterscotch is above Toffee, Emerald and Speckles but below Peaches and Barley, who will chase her.

Toffee is above Emerald, Peaches and Barley but will be chased and back away from Butterscotch and Speckles.

Emerald, Peaches and Barley remain below Toffee but Emerald is only above Peaches, Barley and Speckles and she chases Speckles with no mercy to show that she is staying above her. Toffee will chase Emerald and then in turn Emerald will chase Speckles (pay it down again!).

Then Speckles who appeared afraid of her own shadow and firmly at the bottom has managed to have Toffee below her.

I have always seen a straight forward pecking order before and this is weird. You could say that instead of feeling so sorry for bottom girl, at least she has one girl below her. She seems really nervous but has worked out that she can get at the treats while the other girls are otherwise occupied and she does make it to the top perch each evening even though there is a bit of jostling and she ends up in one corner or another and she now definitely has Toffee running from her.

The flock also seem as one now whereas before they seemed to be the old flock and the two new girls. Now in the afternoons they all chill together and when I go up they all run to me together. They are one flock but with their own odd pecking order.

Other news is that Topaz started her moult a few days ago and just like last year I am finding piles of feathers in the chicken shed in the morning and in the run during the day. She doesn’t actually look any different and yet there are so many feathers you would expect her to be bare.

Only Honey is yet to start the moult (and Butterscotch who I assume won’t moult this year) and she continues to snooze a fair bit during the day but is as normal otherwise.

So picking up more feathers than poop has become the norm and all is good with a united flock that has it’s own peculiar pecking order.