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Post by sugarised on Nov 26, 2010 6:32:00 GMT
Hello all! I am a new Degu owner and felt i should get myself set up on a site, as being on a chinchilla site was priceless for information! I have literally had them about 3 days, they are settling in well and starting to nest and be more comfy around their new cage. I got them from the evil that is pets at home, although it was because i was rescuing them from ending up in a rescue centre, as they are 6 months old and almost 'too old' to sell. Poor things. I'd gone in weeks running and watched these guys grow up, so now i have Basil and Bruce. (i have sexed them, deffo 2 boys ) Bruce on top of Basil for sleepy times sleep moved to the comfier rope hammock I have 2 chinnies called Dita and Starrkey, and 2 rats called Dexter and splinter. Check out you tube link to meet my furry family www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHZfc4Zh8r0NB: please don't panic about my cages, these are their 'holiday' homes, where they spend at tops 4 days. Their much much larger cages are at my flat in liverpool (im currently at my parents house). I have to double up and travel a lot. I know all my animals need space. Which is why sat in my hallway is a liberta explorer awaiting construction! I swear its heavier than me! Hopefully i can get myself settled in and get some queries sorted..... the main one being, is it normal for degu urine to be white, and i mean, white, like battery acid colour. I know its highly concentrated, and has left bleaching on some shelves/card i've put in the cage, but wondered if this is all normal and healthy in er liquid form thanks!
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Post by deguconvert on Nov 26, 2010 6:49:48 GMT
Hi there, Sugarised! Welcome to the forum!! Yeah, that is pretty much normal! We have three boys, and their urine tends to be anything between white to VERY yellow, and since they all pee on me when I take them out for cuddles, my tops end up with either yellow pools or these weird looking white markings. I think it sometimes depends on the mineral content in the water at the time, or whatever they are eating . . . probably both! It's the way they are, and that isn't even the WEIRD stuff yet! LOL! But having familiarity with chins . . . maybe they (the goos) won't psych you out too much with their little oddities. ;D
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Post by sugarised on Nov 26, 2010 6:56:56 GMT
ahh that's ok then. Yeah im glad i have a chinny background, considering at p@h they were like ''their diet is nothing like''...err...its pretty much identical (my chins have no sugary things) so at least they'll get nice apple twigs and herby things all round hehe. They are SOOO much more destructive than chins though, on one of my pics you can see a properly gnawed shelf....it was brand new when i got them. Impressive chewing!!
They chewed me today though, Bruce drew blood, a lot of blood from me, he escaped the cage, i needed to catch him....he doesn't know me too well and i could have easily been a fox or a hawk. So no hard feelings haha, all because i was helping Basil with his nest (he had cardboard piece the size of him, trying to get to the top shelf to shred it, but he kept falling as it was too big. I passed it to him, he squeaked a thank you and Bruce was off! haha
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Post by nickymills30 on Nov 26, 2010 7:03:58 GMT
oh dear! They can be little monsters, can't they,
Its nice to have another chin owner, as i have only just recently taken in 2 new chins, harry and sam, after losing my darling merlin, who i hadn't had for very long.
I also have goo's, but, i;ve got to be honest and say the chins are more distructive, then the goo's lol
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Post by sugarised on Nov 26, 2010 7:08:47 GMT
maybe my chins are lazy, Starrkey definately is. Since he lost his manhood he's not that boisterous anymore. And dita just cuddles and popcorns. My goos are prolly destructive right now to make the cage theirs, they spend months in the same one, and suddenly is all new, so im sure its all a ''i want that THERE'' haha. Theyre the only ones not to have broken my rubbishly made cardboard nest box. Chinnies have bounced on it and its collapsed....Starrkey's a right fatty ahhaahaha
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Post by amie on Nov 26, 2010 7:16:10 GMT
Hey, Welcome to the forum I have to agree that Degus are VERY destructive! I've just had my nails done for the first time in ages (fakes) and they're all going mad for them! They just won't leave them alone. Stefan clean chewed the end of one off earlier. Don't worry, HE'S OK.... my nail's not, lol. I poke my finger through the bars to give them a tickle and the first thing any of them do is bite my nails now, lol. Stefan actually grabs my finger with both of his little paws to hold the nail in place while he tries to munch it! lol. I guess it because they're long? But as far as destructiveness goes, nothing lasts long in my older boys cage. They chew everything.
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Post by sugarised on Nov 26, 2010 7:19:14 GMT
haha yeah, in my first steps of introducing my hand to them they've chomped on my nails! Chinnies did it when i first had them, but not so much now....clearly nails are nommy! So typical that you just had em done and the goos were like '' a treat?! for us?! NAILS!!" hahaha
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Post by amie on Nov 26, 2010 17:07:40 GMT
Oh, but everything is for THEM for to CHEW!
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Post by Cherpi on Nov 26, 2010 17:11:49 GMT
AWW so cute
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Post by Whizz on Nov 28, 2010 14:45:33 GMT
Welcome the forum! Awh, the joys of owning Goo's, it really is wonderful. They're so cute aren't they? My four boys just adore destroying a toy every week! but you have gotta love them and their little paws I've wanted Chins for.. YEARS. And will hopefully be getting some when I leave home or when I successfully persuade my mum. I watched your Vid and I see you have rats too! They look lovely, I've always liked rats. (I'm a Furry lover I guess) You're Chin looks lovely and amazing (I adore the colour variations).
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Post by sugarised on Nov 29, 2010 5:25:07 GMT
The chins were the easiest things to persuade the parents into....rats my dad isn't a fan of, but their characters are so lovely both parents melt....the degus were the hardest, as really i'm pushed for space, but we'd watch them grow up in the store and knew they wouldn't last much longer there...
They have definately set themselves as characters though today- so funny! I walked into my room to start the almighty clean out. As i approached my degu cage Bruce was chilling in his rope hammock. As i looked closer i saw plastic....now i'm no fool, why the hell would there be plastic in his 'nest'. I pull it out, much to his annnoycance, and found another bit under him, so i retrieve that too! But where did he get it from? There were no carrier bags around the cage? Or were there?
Now for nesting stuff i give the goos shredded paper, everyone gave me tonnes of it for rat bedding, but the ratties had other ideas...so i finally had a use for it and posted bits around the cage as they scutter around grabbing bits to nest with....this knowledge is relevant i swear...
I open the curtain behind the cage and there it was, a carrier bag- chewed to bits, but why? They had chewed through it to get at the shredded paper- they were helping themselves to the nesting stuff. Clearly I hadn't provided ennough! What initiative!
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Post by nickymills30 on Nov 29, 2010 7:10:32 GMT
but didn't you know, they must have everything!!! Even if they already have loads! ;D
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Post by emz on Dec 4, 2010 23:31:56 GMT
Welcome to the forum - cute fluff bombs you got there.
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sarahh
Foraging Degu
Posts: 65
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Post by sarahh on Dec 19, 2010 19:04:22 GMT
Welcome to the forum your goo's are lovely. The urine that's fine it's normal, aww you have ratties too I am a big rat fan I have 23 bucks of my own living in 2 cages, liberta explorers are really nice cages my rats live in those. Food wise for goo's I feed mine oxbow chinchilla deluxe and oxbow timothy hay. Shredded paper is fine I throw mine in a pile on the cage floor and let them nest build to take up in the sputniks. Pets at home are a nightmare they drive me mad. If the pets at home you got them from has an adoption the boys would have gone in there, they don't often send out ones to other rescues unless the animal has special needs problems. Little monkey escaping I had the same happen here they run very fast. I must get a cargo net. Love the pics yours are gorgeous.
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Post by Cherpi on Dec 19, 2010 19:34:21 GMT
I'm a new owner too! It's really exciting isn't it?
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