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Post by uglibug on Dec 10, 2014 9:30:57 GMT
Hi. Not posted for a while but still checking in regularly.
We noticed the other day while she was at the water bottle that one of our girls has no fur on her chin. It is a completely bald patch about the size of a 5p from her bottom lip. There have been no major changes for them so I can't see stress being an issue and everyone recovered from their eye infection and the bald patched around the eyes have grown back in. They are overdue a cleaning but being late with a cage change has never bothered them before, tbh they seem more bothered when we keep up and do it every 2 weeks, lol.
She is eating, drinking and playing just fine. Any ideas as to why she has no fur there? Is it something we need to worry about?
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Post by ilikedegus on Dec 10, 2014 12:05:46 GMT
My only thought is to watch and see if one of the others is over-grooming or barbering her chin?
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Post by moletteuk on Dec 10, 2014 15:21:47 GMT
As long as the skin looks healthy, I would just keep an eye on it and watch for grooming activity. My degu, Molly, the fur under her chin sometimes goes a bit thin, but I've never sussed out what is going on.
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Post by deguconvert on Dec 10, 2014 17:32:23 GMT
Potential issues with her teeth?
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Post by uglibug on Dec 11, 2014 8:11:53 GMT
That was my concern but she seems fine in herself, wouldn't she show other signs?
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Post by deguconvert on Dec 11, 2014 18:08:48 GMT
It can depend on what the problem is. Is it root overgrowth? Spurs on the molars? Teeth growing in the wrong direction? Some teeth things can be silently going wrong and show no indications until they are really bad.
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Post by uglibug on Dec 12, 2014 10:20:10 GMT
Would overgrown roots account for snoring? She has been snoring for months, we just thought it was cute.
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Post by saddlers on Dec 12, 2014 11:01:26 GMT
One of our degus who recently had teeth problems developed a bald patch next to her mouth, whether it was due to her drooling or pawing at the area I am not sure
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Post by moletteuk on Dec 12, 2014 14:44:17 GMT
I would think dental issues could cause snoring, the teeth roots can get very close to the nasal airways and sinuses. But I wouldn't necessarily say it's the only possible cause. Do they have a big dusty nest? Sometimes this can cause nasal irritation, which could cause snoring. When I recently had Flossie checked out at the vet, before we moved on to sedation to do a thorough mouth examination, the vet gently pressed down on the nose sort of between the eyes, to get an indication if there was any sinus pain, and you can also feel underneath along the lower jaw line to see if you can feel any unevenness or bumps. Obviously this can only give an indication, but it's fairly easy to do if you get a good hold of her. How has her weight been? If she has lost any weight I would get her checked out by the vet.
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Post by uglibug on Dec 15, 2014 19:57:29 GMT
Home with one sleepy little goo. Took her to the vet this afternoon and he lightly sedated her and gave her a good all over check as well as her teeth (the girls are not very friendly, they need to be sedated to handle). She's in good general health and, as far as he can tell without taking an x-ray, there are no dental problems. She is a little overweight, although she is a big goo, and is full of beans generally (she gave the vet a nip despite the sedation, lol). No spurs or overgrown teeth and no lumps or bumps in her jaw or other signs of overgrown roots.
She has got a little bit of a whistle but the sound is almost certainly nasal and not a chest problem: he did comment that her face is a little out of shape but this is almost certainly genetic and a result of inbreeding so she may end up having a slightly reduced lifespan than a normal looking goo.
He seems to think that she is probably being treated a bit roughly by another goo, probably due to the time of year, and hopefully it will stop over time. If she starts losing weight or showing other signs of distress we will take her back but hopefully we were worrying over nothing.
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Post by deguconvert on Dec 15, 2014 21:31:37 GMT
Well, that is a nice report to hear! You must be relieved.
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Post by uglibug on Dec 16, 2014 8:04:00 GMT
So pleased we were stressing over nothing. She had a bit of a fight with Lofty when she woke up properly but otherwise all seems well, just got to see if we can spot who is pulling her fur out and try and stop it (easier said than done, lol).
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Post by moletteuk on Dec 16, 2014 10:43:52 GMT
Always nice to get the all clear  |
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Post by Karma on Dec 16, 2014 14:52:05 GMT
One of my degus had a bald patch on his back that would come up every time he shedded (so twice a year) for his first two years. I don't think his was caused by over grooming because it was so regular when it came and when it would go away. And now it has suddenly stopped doing it - this last shed it started to thin out a bit it then just grew back in without a bald patch.
Could just be him and hopefully will go away soon.
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