Hi,
I start ( and keep ) all my BP's on F/T - it's a pain in the onions at times.
Making sure the mouse is hot enough is a must - I find the hair drier is the best thing to heat the mouses head with as that also blasts hot, mouse scented, air around just before you offer.
Pre-scenting by defrosting it slowly near their enclosures can help get their juices flowing.
Keeping a track of the hatchlings weight is pretty vital so you know how they are holding up before they start eating.
There are loads of tweaks to their enclosures that sometimes help;
Smaller tighter hides.
Smaller enclosures.
Changing the substrate.
Changing the humidity levels.
I have never tried the piece of cotton - I usually just offer it horizontally on tongs from about 3 inches away. I like to hold it level from the back third of the mouse so the nice hot head is clearly presented with no tongs to get in the way of their strike. Getting it too close seems to spook them out of eating at times.
Conversely tease feeding can sometimes induce a strike.
Keep the difference the same but keep pulling it away quickly before slowly returning it.
Sometimes rubbing it agains their back third can irritate them into striking. I wouldn't try and irritate them by touching the first half of their body though - while both can spook them out of eating the front half seems to do it far more often.
Every year though I get some who hold out long enough to end up being assist fed.
I even had one who had to be assist fed for almost a year before she got the idea.
And every year I debate with myself if I should just give in and start a mouse colony a couple of months before the eggs hatch. So far there has always been a reason not to - mainly the rules of landlords.
dr del
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