Rescue snake not eating, overreacting momma?

[Bogertophis]

...Zuko update! I was still doing a couple more weeks of assist feeding to get a little weight back on Zuko and to make sure that the gut was moving And in order.

We had a scary first urate pass that was bright orange and had me panicked for a couple days worrying about his kidneys but thankfully, it returned to normal with the next bowel movements.

After that we waited it out and had one fluke of a week where he pounced on a fresh kill mouse. I got too excited too soon I guess. But he ate! It was excited. And then that was that...

But now, he has officially eaten on his own for two weeks in a row! I have finally gotten the right size down and he is wanting to eat live at the moment. He's wary of my hands after all the fussing and dealing over the months, but he's managed to eat a small mouse, a rat fuzzy and a rat hopper.

I am super excited. I'm hoping that over time he'll start building up more confidence to try bigger prey and hopefully f/t soon, but I will take any kind of self feeding for now. ♡

The troublesome part is that even though the wounds have healed over great, the scarring is still a heavy concern. He's had a 2nd great shed with me with only a little bit still stuck over the scarred bits. Zuko is still super sensitive about anything touching near the tail as that was where the worst of it was. And we still get a little nervous and nippy about being handled when it comes to belly checks.
Over time I don't know how much the skin may loosen and allow him to eat better... But right now I think he wants the small meals because of how the size fits in the tight sensation from the belly scars.

I think you're doing an awesome job with this poor guy. Very slow going- he is SO lucky to have you on his side!