Thanks Karen, yes we have the mealworms, she loves those. I throw the grapes in the water for her too. I am probably being over worried especially as there is someone in most of the day, and perhaps 25 c isn't as bad as all that.

I read that about the cider vinegar too. Thanks for your advice.

Yes, she' s out from 7 in the morning until 9 at night. She actually lives in the old outside toilet house attached to the house, has her nesting box in there etc. So at night she is completely secure, we have been leaving the door open a little at nights until the early hours as it has been warm, b...

I always worry about how chickens cope in hot weather. We are due for a mini heatwave again next week, with temperatures due to rise here to about 25 degrees. There are parts of the garden which has shade, and the chicken house in the shade, plus I also let her out the front garden which is a lot co...

Things haven't been too bad this afternoon and evening again, the odd squabble, but nothing vicious. The always seem noisier in the mornings too, I suppose I worry too much, especially with it being Sunday. I don't worry too much during the week as there is plenty of other noise going on outside.

So sorry about Winnie.

Yes, we only have one nest box, but it covers the width of the shed and they both lay in the same corner. It would be nice to have another hen or two, but with the noise issue I just can't. Patti was crowing out there this morning after she had layed her egg and Rita had gone in to lay.

After a quiet night it has started up again this morning, I think I will have to think about rehoming one or both of them. I don't want to, but it can't carry on like this much longer. It is a Sunday morning and there is just too much noise out there.

The last few hours things seem to have quietened down, just the odd little peck, but not vicious, and no loud clucking, plus they have been sitting together and pecking around together too. Could we be turning a corner?

Sorry to hear about Alice. Unfortunately I just haven't room for any more hens, although the garden is more than big enough there wouldn't be enough room in the out shed for another nest box, although there is plenty of room for them to move around in there, and there is a perch etc too. Also with t...

To be honest, there isn't too much of a problem with the food, they both go in and out of their house for the food, but they squabble sometimes when we scatter treats over the soil for them, even though we scatter in different places somehow they manage to end up in the same patch. But they cans til...

We tried the spray on her, doesn't seem to have made a lot of difference. However when they went in tonight they settled down with no squabbling.

Is that Pets at Home? We have one just down the road, will go down there this afternoon. They are both out at the moment and stood together pruning. I if do put one of them in it is only for a few minutes and then let her back out again, and do it alternately.

Does anyone think an anti peck spray would help?

Yes, I realised as soon as I had posted I had probably put it in the wrong section. The Blackrock is eating ok, sometimes when we scatter bits of food in different areas of the garden, the speckledy has to come and eat in the same place as the other, but she just moves out of the way and pecks somew...