pics

My primary plan is to hatch extra and expect some losses. Wildlife needs to eat, too, and I can’t fault it for doing so, even if it’s inconvenient for me.

However I’ll also employ roosters, which are annoying but do great protecting the flock (even sacrificing themselves to save their ladies). If you can’t/won’t have roosters for whatever reason, a couple geese will help as well, or you can add them to the roostered flock for extra protection, I believe.

Personally, the only way I’d ever shoot something going after my flock would be if it’s a threat to the enclosed run/coop where they stay at night and in bad weather. Or if they were habitual about raiding my flock.

But chickens should be in a coop at night so as long as you have one critters can’t get into, you probably won’t have too many losses.

Unleaded gas became standard in the 70s. If you live in a dense city that was built 40+ years ago and eat eggs daily and are a small child, you may reach the non-recomended intake amount, barely.

Most people with a backyard big enough for chickens don't live in the urban areas that had such dense lead exposure anyways