The basic problem
@Shadrach wrestles with, I think, is the attempt to reconcile the reality of the lives of modern domestic chickens which now populate the planet worldwide in one form or another, with the assumed / believed reality of the lives of the original wild chickens from Southeast Asia or thereabouts (lives believed to resemble those of the "wild" chickens on Kauai and those persisting in parts of Southeast Asia). It is an attempt to find a balance that favors the chicken's best interests as a living being (what we perceive them to be).
So everyone's circumstance is necessarily going to make that reconciliation different as we all (here) basically try to give the chickens we care for "good lives." I've been pondering this in terms of domesticated cats and dogs, wondering if that paradigm is helpful in thinking about this.
Tax:
A very fluffy hen: Popcorn
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