If I buy eggs I want to know that I'm buying them from chickens which have lived a happy life and if I buy chicken I want to know that it has had a good death too. And from the comments here, it's just very hard to me to be confident about that. I live in London, I can go to a farmers' market easily enough, but given the absence of independent verification for their claims that their animals are thriving, how can I trust them? I don't see why buying locally makes a difference, or buying from the milkman.
Given my values, I think I'll pass on eggs and chicken meat from now on, so that I can sleep at night.
I'm not sure that your values reflect anything other that a walt disney film.
I know that we would prefer animals to be treated well, to be 'happy' in an animal kinda of way and to die without pain.
I'd wish that much on a right wing politician!
But if you live with animals, or really know their lives you will know that...
they have no concept of that sweet life. They wake up, they take a shit, they look for food. Once full they check around for sex, and, if no, they eat some more. If it rains, they get what shelter they can, and sometimes, they have a midday kip.
In the wild their life is very short and they die horribly, often eaten alive.
On any farm they live an average life span, are fed well, and never ever are eaten alive.
Any non battery chicken does ok on those terms.
You should not impose human values on a chicken any more than you should impose a chickens values on a human (tho I know humans who wouldn't notice the difference).