The best way to keep your poultry safe from predators is to surround the shelter with strong chicken wire. Even the doors and windows should have a screening system for double protection. In the case of those that burrow or dig under the ground, burying chicken wire around the coop at least one foot below the soil should be able to prevent entry. The hens, especially the "bantam" types, are docile in nature, not to mention that they are total beauts! Many types of breeds are beautiful in appearance, most notably Barred Rocks, Wyandottes, Orpingtons and Cochins. You can always go to the internet for photographs of certain breeds to decide better which breeds are to your liking. They could scratch near the fence and before you knew it, the fox and raccoons gets the idea and figures out a way to get their dinner easy. The way to prevent this is to sink the bottom of the fence about 10" into the ground. The area near the fence are usually forgotten so don't. If that is not possible in some areas along the perimeter, sink 8" planks to prevent predators from scraping underneath. There is not much study to support this but the fact is man will only be preyed upon when a predator is starving and there is nothing else available, when a predator is sick and is unable to hunt or is very old that their movement and ability has been limited, when the animal is threatened with its back to the wall and escape routes are closed and sometimes when a man is mistaken for another identity. An automatic waterer device is a great tool for water distribution because you can set its timer to release drinking water in particular times of the day. It s also easy to clean and has an adjustable height for the growing chicks. Chickens being raised for meat need a lot of protein in their diet for their growing needs. Vets and pharma research terminologies explain technical terms and causes better, but for most of us these will only be gobbledygook and so here is how laypeople will see it and prevent it. The symptoms An abscess forms in the sole of the feet of the chicken and often these are overlooked as bumble foot in chicken looks very much like calluses.