Degus - bad news/good news

[chris_1127]

bit of a sad day today, i had to have one of my male degus put down the pair that i have both suffer from malocclusion of their molars, which means regular expensive trips to the vets for treatment under general anasthetic. Unfortunately one of my guys went downhill really quickly after an op last wednesday, and we had to have him euthanased this morning as he was just too ill to keep going rip little guy

on the up side though, i spoke to a local shelter who have a stray male degu thats been handed in, in need of a home. It might be tricky and take some time; introducing him to my remaining male, but degus need company and form really close bonds, and i think itd be unfair to keep one on his own. so hopefully this thursday i will be picking him up and bringing him home. Fingers crossed that they will get on ok...

 

[Angel Lady]

Well that is good news for you in a way. I am sorry about your other little fellow. RIP little degu..

 

[snowyangel]

Aww the poor dear . Degus are such sweethearts. But ya good luck on the introduction process. Introducing males is alot harder then with females imo. I've suffered quite the bite when seperating a pair of males that acted fine with eachother then turned all of a sudden.

 

[chris_1127]

yeah he wont replace the other guy but i'm hoping that if i take my time introducing them over a month or so that they will get on OK. I have a 4-tier cage so they will have 2 levels each to start with, and i will swap them over so the scents get mixed up.

it was so sad to see the healthier one trying to get some attention from his friend yesterday though, when he was looking so ill. normally they spent hours grooming each other but the other was so weak he couldnt even lift his head up. poor little guy

 

[JackDemp528]

I'm so sorry for your loss. But good for you for rescuing another!

 

[snowyangel]

Good, males need atleast a level per male to claim enough territory and you should have multiple food dishes aswell to prevent aggression. I found one male often guarded the food bowl from the other male.

 

[chris_1127]

yeah i found that, even with the pair that were litter mates one would always get to the food bowl first and make a big show of squeaking, turning around and shaking his tail, and eventually pushing the other one away if he got too close whilst he was eating. If i ever fed them peanuts as an occasional treat, i had to make sure that both got one at the same time, or there'd be trouble!!

After I remove the divide in the cage, i will leave the other food bowl and water bottle in the lower half of the cage, to hopefully avoid any disputes over these issues, and just keep my fingers crossed and keep an eye on them. I did read somewhere about putting vanilla essence in the cage to mask the scents when they go in together, is this worth doing?

 

[snowyangel]

I have also heard of the vanilla idea for rats too, but personally just keep their cage clean. I mean you could try it and see how it goes too. You'll have some pretty smelling boys.

 

[chris_1127]

well, the new guy is home now!! I'm guessing that this one has been kept on his own because he is so demanding of attention! My pair that had been kept together would tolerate a scratch behind the ears, or under the arm, but could pretty much take it or leave it; but the new guy proactically demands it every time you go near him! Every time your hand goes near the cage, he lifts his front arm up, asking to be tickled! hes a real livewire too! Calling him Russel, after all the noise that he made last night!