A brief but ugly life; however, having had chickens once in my long-ago earth mother past, and having dealt with the “organic” Amish and their practices, I’d say it has always been thus.
And at least we don’t have to chop their heads off anymore. The children, little ghouls that they are, were always ready to be there when my husband did in our latest crop of chickens. If it weren’t for human beings eating them, chickens would rule the world, even more than cockroaches.
That said, I’m glad they’re trying other methods of feeding them, because a lot of herbal things (oregano and rosemary, for example) are very effective and don’t overdose you on antibiotics that you might need at some point in your life.