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Post by sarahc on Jul 2, 2018 10:30:20 GMT
Fingers crossed all goes smoothly for Sweeps and that it is a small litter. Are you prepared for the birth? Is the nest in a reasonable place, not perched high up? Is the bar spacing OK to stop babies escaping? We have poo guards all around the cage sweeps and Ella have been making a nest on the ground floor of their cage out of hay and toilet paper. Is there anything else I should have in place?
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Post by savvy on Jul 2, 2018 10:51:43 GMT
Yes, the most important piece of equipment for pups - a camera!
Make sure you remove anything they can fall off, or get stuck under or behind.
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Post by sarahc on Jul 2, 2018 10:57:43 GMT
Haha I've just got the new Samsung s9+ with the best camera on it so I'm covered on the camera front haha. On that floor the have a tree to nibble and a bridge. Tic tac wheel is up a bit so no way to get stuck.
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Post by winic1 on Jul 2, 2018 15:46:15 GMT
sarahc after the first few days, baby degus are like toddlers on steroids, all motion and no brains yet, ability to get into places and things you'd never imagine they could, and of course that is the first thing they will head for. You may need to re-think the baby-proofing very quickly. Keep an eye on that!
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Post by sarahc on Jul 2, 2018 15:48:55 GMT
sarahc after the first few days, baby degus are like toddlers on steroids, all motion and no brains yet, ability to get into places and things you'd never imagine they could, and of course that is the first thing they will head for. You may need to re-think the baby-proofing very quickly. Keep an eye on that! What about the baby proofing do I need to 're think?
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Post by deguconvert on Jul 2, 2018 18:18:05 GMT
How is the ticktack wheel attached? If they can figure out how to climb up behind it, they absolutely will. They are adventure addicts from day one. We went through a baby phase in my home and I had to put mesh wire on the outside of our cage because they would climb up the wires to get past the poop guards and then they would just walk right through the open wires and start exploring my house. They can get through the tiniest of places so easily it's scary!! The "rethinking" isn't necessarily a comment that what you have is insufficient, as a warning that even when we think we are prepared for the pups, they can and will surprise us. Without going into details . . . my experience with pups was vastly more than I bargained for, and due to veterinary certified males being females, they were huge surprises. While I had an excellent cage to deal with the needs, they still managed to shock me, and with every correction or prevention I made, they found ways around it. So . . . LOVE them to bits as they are awesome sweet loves, but be on your guard as though they are there to destroy and pillage if your guard slips.
I would strongly encourage you to know the exact number of pups and then count them every time you are near the cage to make sure none are missing. You should also know that until they are around 4 weeks of age, they are unable to generate enough heat on their own to keep themselves warm, so if you find one out somewhere in the cage, or who has managed to escape the cage, don't be afraid to pick it up and check to see if it is cool. If it is cool, warm it in your hands for a bit (unless you have cold hands that is . . . or put it in your shirt) and put it back in the nest with momma and aunty to get warm again.
You will also need to give momma some high calorie foods such as seeds and nuts and some daily oats won't hurt for the first week or two, as the demand on her body is huge! Also, pups will be weaned around four weeks though some go longer, but most definitely by five weeks. At that time you will find that your food for them is disappearing at an unbelievable rate. Pups eat MASSIVE amounts of food, so be prepared.
I guess what I am saying is . . . pups are wonderful and the experience and joy of them passes too quickly, but they are a fair lot of work to keep up with. Hopefully for you, it will all be smooth sailing with no bumps, but be prepared just in case.
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Post by sarahc on Jul 2, 2018 18:26:58 GMT
We still ha e our old pets at hone wheel so I'll switch to that for the time being. We have extra chicken wire we can attach to the cage to baby proof more above poop guards. I have seeds and nuts here ready for her and always have plenty of oats to hand. I'll make sure I count them as soon as they arrive. Done some maths before and it's just over 3 months since the incident with brain so should be soon so cage had a good clean out today (left their nest) and I'll get onto securing chicken wire around the cage tomorrow when I have a bit of help. Thanks for all the advice 😁
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Post by bouncy on Jul 2, 2018 19:28:16 GMT
I would strongly encourage you to know the exact number of pups and then count them every time you are near the cage to make sure none are missing. You should also know that until they are around 4 weeks of age, they are unable to generate enough heat on their own to keep themselves warm, so if you find one out somewhere in the cage, or who has managed to escape the cage, don't be afraid to pick it up and check to see if it is cool. If it is cool, warm it in your hands for a bit (unless you have cold hands that is . . . or put it in your shirt) and put it back in the nest with momma and aunty to get warm again. Lol the UK currently looks on target for a summer comparable to 1976 (when we had standpipes in the street to get our water)! I can't wait to see the size of the noses they'll have to grow into!
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Post by sarahc on Jul 2, 2018 19:41:11 GMT
Yeah it's still 26 here and 8 40pm just glad my living room where they are is coolest room in the house. Here's sweeps right now 😁
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Post by sarahc on Jul 7, 2018 21:54:22 GMT
Spent the last 2 hours putting chicken wire around the cage front poo guards arrive Monday to cover the gap in the pull out trays. Going to do the top of the cage tomorrow we ran out of chicken wire and cable ties, but I'm quite happy with how it's gone. Also makes it so much easier to hang toys for them 😝 Sweeps weight now up to 350 so we'll have to be quick doing the top 😁
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Post by deguconvert on Jul 7, 2018 23:40:30 GMT
Look at you go!! (I hope you were wearing leather gloves??) Can't wait to hear of the birth any day now!
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Post by sarahc on Jul 7, 2018 23:51:45 GMT
Didn't need any good pair of wire cutters and sliced through easy.
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Post by sarahc on Jul 10, 2018 10:06:57 GMT
364g now still running around the cage like a loon. Pup proofing all finished now. Just want them here now so excited 😁
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Post by bouncy on Jul 10, 2018 16:27:49 GMT
Can you see or feel nipples yet?
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Post by sarahc on Jul 10, 2018 16:32:47 GMT
I'll have a look couldn't yesterday
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Post by sarahc on Jul 10, 2018 16:49:25 GMT
Feels like little grains of rice
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Post by deguconvert on Jul 10, 2018 17:25:27 GMT
To me . . . she looks like she still has a bit of time to go yet . . . .
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Post by bouncy on Jul 14, 2018 8:16:33 GMT
So, any sign of the patter of tiny paws? And has Brain been allowed to move back in permanently yet?
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Post by sarahc on Jul 14, 2018 8:23:56 GMT
Brain is back in with the girls and no sign yet sweeps nipples are showing now. I allowed brain down Thursday night and yesterday morning I came down sweeps was in snuggle bed and didn't move so I looked in and got all excited because I could see fur under her and a different colour then I noticed it was brain haha. I'm unbelievably excited now got help us when it's me pregnant haha
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Post by bouncy on Jul 14, 2018 9:52:41 GMT
You're definitely not the only one!
My friend hated being pregnant, so I was the super excited one on her behalf!
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