Turkeys and a Little Chick

We lost one of the porcelain chicks today, and it was very disappointing, because I think I was the reason. 

When chicks are frightened, they pile.  This morning I cleaned the old feed that was mixed with feces out of the trough the chicks are in, and they piled in fright. I obviously did not pay attention closely enough, because tonight, I found one of the porcelain chicks almost buried in the feed/footing.... dead.

An example of "piling". 

Here most of the chicks were about the same size, but the pullets are now twice the size of the bantams. I think this poor little chick got trompled in the dash, and I did not see it was in distress.

It looked like one of the older porcelains, which I got from Heartland Hatchery on April 28, and not the lone purebred hatched here.

Here is a good picture of Jackson, taken this evening.

It shows very clearly his snood, the piece hanging limply over his beak... when he is excited, this snood enlarges and hangs down impressively.  His caruncles turn bright red at the base of his throat, and the head that is blue right now will turn red and then very white.  Jackson is still a pretty young jake, and though he is proprietary of his girls, I still have seen no reproductive behavior, so I don't think all the eggs accumulating in the nest in the pasture could be fertile.  He has also lost quite a few white feathers lately, but he was in a distressed condition too, when we got him.  He still does not display an impressive beard from his chest, either.

I hate to lose any chicks, but losing a porcelain was harder!