scrawny and 2 weeks old. refusing food

[KaprikaAZ]

i had a baby hatch on the 10th of this month. and it hasnt eaten a thing since birth.


it was born appropriately sized, but just really scrawny. LIVELY energetic and active, but thin. and doesnt squeak.

i didnt realize just HOW thin till i had a second baby hatch far more pudgy and with more meat on dem bones. side by size scoot is REALY worrying me.
hasnt shed, or taken food. and ive taken up shringe feeding it every other day. here is a picture for comparason. what else aught i be doing???

and does anyone have a better diet i should be striving for?
ive been squeezing the guts out of a superworm, and mixing it with a few drops of water and a puff of calcium and stirring it.
what else should i do

the albino was born just a few days ago while the darker one is over 2 weeks old

 

[Phoenix1115]

I had this happen with one of my hatchlings and unfortunately it passed away. Your mix sounds okay, you could add a bit of chicken baby food. I'm not sure if you're putting in on his nose or in his mouth but just in case, I'd put it on his nose and let him lick it off. It can be easy for liquid to go down the wrong pipe when you syringe feed directly into the mouth. Also, you can feed him every day.

 

[KaprikaAZ]

yea, im nose feeding. i didnt feel comfortable holding him down to shove it in his mouth and hurt him, and i did it every other day cause i wasnt sure if every day would be overdoing it.
and where do i get chicken baby food?

 

[favrielle]

Dave from DavidsFineGeckos put up a great video on YouTube on how to assist-feed reluctant hatchlings. I had to do this with one earlier this year, and it took several days, but the little booger caught on. I'd say give it a try before you attempt any more syringe feeding.

How To Assist Feed a Leopard Gecko by Davidsfinegeckos - YouTube

 

[Phoenix1115]

You can get the baby food at the grocery. Just make sure it's just chicken and not anything else

 

[stager]

I had one far worse that lived break a mealworm And squeeze some of the guts out and stick it in its face with tweesers it may take a while but it will work

 

[DrCarrotTail]

That assist feeding video is awesome. I've fed several of mine in a similarly assisted way and had them flourish and start eating fine on their own after a week or so of hand feeding. I've also had several that refused food completely and passed away. Assist feeding is worth a shot, I gave mine one mealworm every other day until they started eating on their own. Any more often than that and I think the stress of handling outweighs the benefit of helping.

 

[KaprikaAZ]

so far so good. im feedin it 5-8 a day. the lil mini mealworms. thats about all i can get him to eat, he stops opening his mouth after a while. but hes startin to poop regularly so thats a start.

 

[Phantom240]

Any updates on the little bugger?

 

[DrCarrotTail]

When I assist fed I gave mine 1 medium work (3/4 inch) every other day. I wanted them to eat so they would live but I didn't want to fill them up so they would have some motivation to hunt and eat on their own. I hope your guy is doing well!!