Dying, then dead chick . . .

I have been raising eleven chicks with their mother in my bathroom, and keeping the floor as clean as I can. I have been feeding what you call "cream of wheat." We call it rava. I have also fed cracked wheat, rice and grit. They love it. They were hatched nine days ago. Because the bathroom is right off my bedroom, I woke this morning to a frantic chirping of one chick. I dashed in to see what might be the problem being certain it was not a rat because they would all have been in an uproar.

There, lying on the floor was one of the chicks that I would never have suspected anything to be wrong with. There are no peck marks, no blood or other signs other than what appears to be a broken neck. Tried giving it water but it would shake that off, which made me wonder how the neck could be broken. Then tiny bubbles came out of the beak and finally died.

Whu happened!?

My only guess is that mom accidently stepped on him. The place is plenty big enough, so it would have to have been an accident especially since it was right in the middle of the entire bathroom. Closer examination found an unknown bug, not a tick, but only in the fur. No open wounds anywhere.

These are our first ever chicks and you older folks probably know the feelings that goes with these even though they are to be meat and eggs for our survival. I hated to lose even one, but know there must be a lesson here to learn.

Any ideas?

Thanks,

Sky~