Mayhem as Pip searches for unusual tastes

Wiring in the Land Rover and its front passenger seat, chair legs, rugs, pillows, towels off the washing line, play slide and a rubber dinghy are just a few of her gourmet nibbling.

The merest whiff of actual food sends her berserk. You would think we never fed her.

Turn your back in the kitchen and carcases of ducks or joints of meat will go walkabout; an apple pie was gulped down yesterday and my ham sandwich the day before.

Nothing is sacred. A week ago I came down to what I thought was a snowstorm in the porch. But how? Till I realised she had attacked her bean bag and shredded the contents all over the place.

I'm still finding little polystyrene balls everywhere. To replace the bean bag in its fluffy outer case I filled it with three old pillows.

Somehow she unzipped the bag and ravaged the pillows. She's sleeping on an empty fluffy bag for the moment until I can think up an indestructible alternative.

Three new point of lay hens are creating another form of mayhem in the hen house. They are a rather handsome trio of Speckledy hens.

The Speckledy is a modern hybrid bird and comes from a Rhode Island Red crossed with a Maran. The feathering closely resembles that of a Maran but it is apparently a far more prolific egg layer.

All the info I have on them is that they are docile, easily handled birds. Excellent and reliable layers of dark chestnut brown eggs which are usually speckled with strong eggshells and deep yellow yolks.

Another plus point is that they are well suited to free ranging and enjoy foraging.

But the guinea fowl hate them. What a fuss and palaver. They have been used to the hen house to themselves as the other hens and bantams have abandoned the real hen house and gone back to roosting in the big shed and laying eggs on the straw bales.

The guinea fowls, like good'uns, lay me half a dozen eggs, every day, in the hen hut. The eggs are wonderful. Like concrete to crack but with a sunset orange yolk. The whites make fabulous meringues too.

However, the guinea fowl gang strongly object to the Speckeldies. And the Speckeldies aren't too keen on the guinea fowl either.

They kick the guinea fowl nest around and disturb the neat piles of eggs (guinea fowl all lay in one nest), and as yet, haven't laid an egg themselves to make up for the mayhem.

The other good thing about the Speckledy hens is that they are a nice compact bird with a good amount of flesh on them.

If they go on at this rate and don't start laying eggs to make up for all the upset they are causing to my proven egg layers, they could end up as point of roast chickens rather than point of lay.

That's certainly what Pip is hoping.