Swollen baby mouse belly has me worried!

Question
I rescued a wild baby mouse on Tues. 8-31-10. At that time "he" had some fur and eyes still shut. I did alot of research online, read everything I could find, and I believe he is 5 days old. I went with suggestion of an egg yolk & a small amt of milk mixture because there was no time to get to a pet shop/vet for KMR.  Went to Rite-Aid, got my glass eye dropper and proceeded.  I keep my egg mixture in a small plastic container (always refrigerated) and take out a teaspoon of mixture and put it in a small glass Pyrex bowl.  I microwave a cereal bowl with 1 1/2 inches of water for 1 1/2 minutes.  I place my Pyrex bowl in the water bath and stir to warm.  I use the warmed water to warm up my eye dropper too.  I wear latex gloves.  I carefully take him out of the tall box home I made him and caress him for a bit.  He likes to flip around, likes to be on his back, and starts pooping.  Maybe the flipping helps to relieve?  I do a fresh warming of the dropper in the water bath, fill it about 1/2 inch, test it on my wrist for hotness, and search for his mouth.  He has taken it in his feet and eaten, he has laid down in my palm and eaten and I have held him upright and fed him.  Lately, the side lay down is his favorite.  Careful about getting it in his nose but he is alert enough to wipe his face and he does it if too much is on his nose. I have been doing the warm cotton ball wiping after every eating because he flips/rolls in the egg mixture and I want him clean.  I use the warm water bath water and start on his face and back, then dip a new cotton ball for the lower belly area. His underside is cream color, but it has a "see thru" look that concerns me.  Yesterday I noticed a dark area on his lower left side, between leg and testicle "bumps".  To the right of this dark area is a mustard yellow area and I think that is his stomach.  Today he is 9 days old.  His belly was swollen yesterday so I did a warm cotton ball bath on his belly before I fed him.  He eats enough and then stops.  I read not to force food.  He curls up in my hand and gets ready for his nap.  I do another warm cotton ball bath all over, using seperate balls for face/fur, then lower belly area.  He has let out a few squeeks since yesterday whenever I wipe the belly area, which I hope I am not hurting him.  I understand a swollen belly could mean constipated but he is pooping.  I have droppings on the paper towel in his box and I see it coming out during feeding time, both mustard yellow color.  Should I switch my homemade egg mixture to KMR?  Should I take him to the vet for some antibiotic as a precaution...I don't want to lose him.  I am feeding him about every 4 hrs. Any thoughts/ideas would be appreciated, thank you.  

Answer
Dear Bobbi,

Definitely switch to KMR right away.

The "see-through" look is normal until he gets more fur. You didn't mention how often you feed him; it should be at least every two hours. It sounds like you are doing a really great job.

However, if he squeaks when touched that's not a good sign. Usually if a mouse is bloated you can massage a little to relieve constipation, but not if he squeaks.

Raising a baby mouse is very hard. No matter how hard you try, you can't do nearly as good a job as a mother mouse. And it isn't always successful, no matter how meticulously one follows the regime, many foundlings just don't make it. I'm really sorry if this is the case with your little orphan. No matter what happens, it's not your fault.

I wish him the very, very best of luck and health.

squeaks,

Natasha