MissHiggles
Member
Hello! So we've had Tad Cooper for about 3 months and he's about 4 months old. We've been through the RINGER with him, from an MBD diagnosis after a month of having him, mouth rot soon after, and about a month of syringe feeding, during which he lost 7 grams.
We've FINALLY gotten him back on bugs and off the syringe (and up 10 grams!) but I'm running into an issue. I'm the one who feeds him in the morning because his dad is at work. He will not eat for me. He closes his eyes, refuses to take bugs out of the tongs (he hates to hunt), and is just a brat. When his dad feeds him, though, he's a pig! Doesn't matter the time of day, if I try to feed him dinner and he won't eat - dad tries five minutes later and Coops will eat 15 bugs!
Do you guys think it's the "trauma" of me being the one to syringe feed him for over a month that makes him apprehensive to take bugs from me? I didn't have a problem feeding him at all before all his health problems started - I'm wondering if he associates me with a painful mouth so he's apprehensive to eat for me? Otherwise he's fine - I can handle him no problem, he'll fall asleep on my shoulder and watch tv, no aggression - but he's definitely missing out on food especially this morning when he absolutely wouldn't eat and neither of us will be home until it's almost lights out.
Do I just let him "starve" in the hopes that he'll be hungry for lunch or dinner? I'm really not interested in continuing to syringe feed him because I don't like what it does to his mouth and if he's not sick or not eating at all I don't see a reason to re-traumatize him.
Thanks in advance for any advice!
We've FINALLY gotten him back on bugs and off the syringe (and up 10 grams!) but I'm running into an issue. I'm the one who feeds him in the morning because his dad is at work. He will not eat for me. He closes his eyes, refuses to take bugs out of the tongs (he hates to hunt), and is just a brat. When his dad feeds him, though, he's a pig! Doesn't matter the time of day, if I try to feed him dinner and he won't eat - dad tries five minutes later and Coops will eat 15 bugs!
Do you guys think it's the "trauma" of me being the one to syringe feed him for over a month that makes him apprehensive to take bugs from me? I didn't have a problem feeding him at all before all his health problems started - I'm wondering if he associates me with a painful mouth so he's apprehensive to eat for me? Otherwise he's fine - I can handle him no problem, he'll fall asleep on my shoulder and watch tv, no aggression - but he's definitely missing out on food especially this morning when he absolutely wouldn't eat and neither of us will be home until it's almost lights out.
Do I just let him "starve" in the hopes that he'll be hungry for lunch or dinner? I'm really not interested in continuing to syringe feed him because I don't like what it does to his mouth and if he's not sick or not eating at all I don't see a reason to re-traumatize him.
Thanks in advance for any advice!