My Pet Hopper Mouse, Banjo.

Question
Im Nirvana and Im 10 Years Old, Turning 11. I Have A White, 2 Week Old, Hopper Mouse Named Banjo. I Have A Heater(Not A Heater Pad) And I Place Banjo's Tank Around 1 Foot Away From The Heater, That Works. But Banjo Hasnt Been Eating, Drinking, Or Being Very Active. Last Night, I Literally Slept By Its Tank(There Were Alot Of Babies Over)To Make Sure That The Babies Dont Try To Pet Or Play With Banjo. I Failed Once Because When I Go Up to Get A Drink, The Oldest Baby(4) Tried To Pet Banjo But He Made Banjo Flip Over. There Was Smoke All Over The House Because My Mom Was Cooking And So I Tried To Fan Away The Smoke From Banjos Tank. Then They Started Doing Karaoke. Which Im Sure Was To Loud For Banjo. I Tried Giving Banjo Some Baby Formula, But Banjo Wont Take It, Hes Only Licked The Saucer Twice. Banjo Looked Healthy When We First Got Him.(First We Got 2, Frazz And Banjo. But Then Frazz Died For Some Reason). We Have Toilet Rolls With 2 Cotton Balls On The Inside To Keep Warm. And Pine Bedding, Which I Hear Is Bad. Please Help.! What Can I Do.! Banjo Is Somewhat Smaller Than It Was When We First Got It. Helpppppp.!

Answer
Hi Nirvana,

Mice should not go to their new homes until they are 5 weeks old at a minimum, and it is almost always better to wait until they are 8-12 weeks old.  This will give the breeder plenty of time to spot for health or developmental problems, so they don't give you a mouse that becomes ill, still needs care (like a heat lamp), or is unable to survive the move.

In the meantime, you can take Banjo by a vet, as there are numerous things that could go wrong and it would be extremely difficult to tell what the problem is in time.  I would back the heat lamp off of him, as the concentrated warmth can quickly overheat a mouse pup.  If you do keep it on his home, move it so it only warms half the cage (more difficult to do with a lamp than a pad).  Pine bedding is toxic, and paper beddings (such as Carefresh or Yesterday's News) or Aspen bedding would be better choices.  Keep adult mouse food in the cage (such as commercial mixes) and water at all times so he can learn to use them at his own pace.  You will almost certainly need to experiment with different ways to give him formula (kitten or puppy milk replacement, not infant formula) to find one he will accept, here is a link explaining how to do it:

http://www.rmca.org/Articles/orphans.htm

Best of luck!!
-Tam