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Post by skittish on Dec 30, 2020 15:48:00 GMT
Update 11 April 2021 - We have now adopted two female degus and will be beginning the bonding process soon. We are no longer looking for female degus. Thank you to everyone who commented and provided their support.
Location - Central Cornwall, UK - willing to travel 150 mile radius Covid-19 restrictions permitting.
My partner and I are looking for preferably one older female degu (however we may consider a pair), preferably older than 4 or 5 years old, to join our single neutered male Theo who is 6-7 years old. We recently had to unexpectedly euthanise his brother, Murphy, and desperately seeking a female companion for Theo to share his very spacious bachelor pad - don't worry ladies it's kept very clean!
Theo's enclosure is self-built with 6 levels, which can be split into two 3 level enclosures by inserting dividing mesh windows. It comes with two of all the essentials - sandbaths, metal running wheels, UV lights, food and water bowls, as well as plenty of wooden toys and hammocks. Please see picture below - Theo's enclosure is on the right. The picture was taken just after we installed the two enclosures several years ago so there are more hammocks and hanging toys in there now than there were when the photo was taken. We have also added little platforms on either side of the windows which means when the two enclosures are split they allow the degus to still see and interact with other other.
Theo can take a little while to warm up to other degus and has had occasions where he has fallen out with his brother in the past (hence the two enclosures joined together), so if we could find a female degu with an easy going personality that would be amazing, but that's probably a bit too much to hope for!
Unfortunately our local rescue only has lone / paired males, and one large female group with one male.
We have experience and are knowledgeable with degus. We have very recently bonded a male and female degu together and we have bonded other degus in the past.
Assuming the new companion outlives Theo we would integrate her with our existing male/female pair, or if the female in our current pair outlives her male partner, we would integrate her with Theo and his new companion
We will not rule out degus with known health problems, but please be upfront and honest about any so we can make an informed decision.
Please could you get in touch if you have a female degu you would like to rehome, or have any suggestions where we could find one.
We would be more than happy to share updates and photos of your degu for however long you would like us to.
Thank you very much for taking the time to read this post.
Edit:I thought I would add a photo of the boy himself! Theo is the degu on the left at the front of the picture, and his brother Murphy is behind him on the right
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Post by savvy on Dec 30, 2020 16:04:35 GMT
Wow! I love your degu palaces, they are amazing.
Can you please tell me which rescues you have tried?
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Post by savvy on Dec 30, 2020 16:08:00 GMT
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Post by skittish on Dec 30, 2020 16:13:11 GMT
Wow! I love your degu palaces, they are amazing. Can you please tell me which rescues you have tried? Hi savvy, thanks for the super speedy reply! All praise should be heaped upon my partner who pretty much built them single handedly (I helped hand him the tools on occasion )
We have tried at Maria's Animal Shelter and the RSPCA local Cornwall branch.
I would love other suggestions in the area. The other shelters I know of in Cornwall are dog/cat focussed.
Neither my partner or I have facebook so we can't view any rehoming facebook pages, which I know is where a lot people post them.
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Post by savvy on Dec 30, 2020 16:30:04 GMT
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Post by skittish on Dec 30, 2020 16:36:31 GMT
Thank you! I have looked on Blue Cross before but I don't know if this group were on there!
Ideally we were thinking a single degu or possibly pair, because Theo can be a little impatient with other degus (he wants to be be the boss, but never is!) so the fewer degu personalities we have to try and blend together would be easiest for us, and for him I think.
We'll definitely keep them on our radar though, as seeing Theo by himself his breaking my heart
It's exceptionally unfortunate timing, because our female degu was in a pair and lost her sister in May, and after looking for female degus locally, and not finding any we opted for a single male, who we had neutered, to bond with her. We were reluctant to get a male, for the very situation that we have found ourselves in now (two males and one female), but we honestly thought that Murphy and Theo would have a few more years and we couldn't leave our female by herself for that long.
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Post by savvy on Dec 30, 2020 16:42:45 GMT
Personally I'd consider a larger group as although it can sound more difficult to manage, we have members on here who have found larger groups tend to be more stable than pairs. bouncy has larger groups and can possibly advise further.
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Post by skittish on Dec 30, 2020 17:02:45 GMT
Personally I'd consider a larger group as although it can sound more difficult to manage, we have members on here who have found larger groups tend to be more stable than pairs. bouncy has larger groups and can possibly advise further.
Of course. Thank you for the advice! We will consider it if we can't find a lone female or pair soon
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Post by bouncy on Dec 30, 2020 18:31:31 GMT
That's me! One of my groups is a foursome, consisting of two sets of brothers. They are much more stable than my threesome was (probably because Spidey is a tyrant). It's much easier in this group to see the social interactions because they have a true hierarchy. For example, Spud managed to take in an entire loo roll from the kitchen floor, through various staircases and levels, andrex puppy style, with assistance from the two younger brothers. Every time the paper snagged, one of the pups would run down, trace the snag, free it, and squeak to tell Spud it was okay to continue. It also means they're less dependent on human interaction, but they still climb all over me during free-range. I'm looking forward to having just one big group across the whole cage! Oh, and love Theo! If there's any towards Bristol, I have a friend who can probably meet you half way
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Post by moletteuk on Dec 30, 2020 18:59:30 GMT
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Post by moletteuk on Dec 30, 2020 19:06:37 GMT
The person at Liskeard has 8 females from 8 months to 3 years.
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Post by deguconvert on Dec 31, 2020 1:08:56 GMT
Hello, Skittish, and welcome to the forum! I am so sorry for your loss! I haven't had degus for a few years now . . . but we had a large group for a while as a result of miss-sexed, vet certified, "males." Which created a bit of a population explosion. Our home was FULL for a while there. In our largest home built cage, we had 11 females at one point, until we were able to rehome four of them. They did really well in the large group . . . in fact, I hated to reduce the size because they were so content . . . but the food bill was too much. Anyway . . . they are truly lovely!!
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Post by skittish on Dec 31, 2020 16:11:47 GMT
Hi everyone, thanks so much for all your replies! Sorry for the delay in my own reply - I had bookmarked the thread, but forgot to allow email notifications, oops, so only just seen these! I've searched the facebook rehoming group for you, I searched for Cornwall, Devon and Somerset. One person in Liskeard had females 5 weeks ago, I've asked if they still have any and what age. Thank you so much for asking. Do you know if the 8 females are 1 group or split into smaller groupings? They're a little younger than we were hoping for, but we know our request is so specific so we have to be realistic
I'm also going to send an email to the Woodside Animal Sanctuary you mentioned!
If there's any towards Bristol, I have a friend who can probably meet you half way Thank you, that would be lovely Sometimes I wish Cornwall wasn't so far away (I grew up in the Midlands, so moving to Cornwall so a bit of a system shock!), then our radius would include so many more areas... As it is, even if we travel 100 miles we've only just reached Exeter But then I think of the Cornish coasts and beaches, and I wouldn't trade it for the world! In our largest home built cage, we had 11 females at one point, until we were able to rehome four of them. They did really well in the large group . . . in fact, I hated to reduce the size because they were so content . . . but the food bill was too much. Oh my goodness, wow, I'm picturing a degu pile of 11!!!
Thank you everyone. Hopefully we can find a companion for Theo soon!
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Post by skittish on Dec 31, 2020 16:33:24 GMT
I'm very sorry about Murphy. Your goo palaces are wonderful Hello, Skittish, and welcome to the forum! I am so sorry for your loss! Thank you both so much. We miss him desperately, made so much worse by the fact it was so unexpected.
My partner made the enclosures. The degus and I are very lucky to have him. I will let him know his handiwork is appreciated I'm looking forward to having just one big group across the whole cage! One group, in one enclosure would be the dream for sure! I'm not sure how we'd link our enclosure on the left to Theo's (I'm sure my brilliant partner will think of something ), but I really want one group to occupy and enjoy all 10 levels! Oh yes, he looks all sweet and innocent...because he totally is, but you wouldn't know it, given how loud he issues his territorial warning grunts and mock charges whenever you open the enclosure (or walk by a little too close for Mr Theo's liking!)! At first we thought it was just being in a new environment and eventually he'd grow out of it, but we've had him for almost 4 years and nope, he's exactly the same! The phrase 'His bark is worse than his bite!' would fit him perfectly, except he's never bitten anyone.... so who knows, maybe his bite is ferocious!!! It's so funny trying to explain this to people. I usually just end up showing them he's a big sook, by tickling his chin and belly while he "aeroplanes" with his arms up and down.
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Post by deguconvert on Dec 31, 2020 19:48:29 GMT
LOVE that description of him, Skittish!!
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Post by bouncy on Dec 31, 2020 21:46:08 GMT
I LOVE that! I had a goo who was temporarily alone, and he did aeroplane impersonations too!
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Post by savvy on Dec 31, 2020 22:11:12 GMT
Reggie insists on doing them every morning, just before breakfast.
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Post by moletteuk on Jan 1, 2021 11:44:53 GMT
I have asked about groups for you.
You might want to pm me your email address so I can pass it on if you think you might be interested in them, or give me permission to pass on your email that you are registered with on the forum.
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Post by skittish on Jan 2, 2021 15:04:16 GMT
I have asked about groups for you. You might want to pm me your email address so I can pass it on if you think you might be interested in them, or give me permission to pass on your email that you are registered with on the forum. Hi, thank you very much. I'm not sure right now, but I'll have a think and chat with my partner!
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Post by skittish on Jan 2, 2021 15:05:34 GMT
I'm so frustrated! I found a lone female degu 5 years old in Chard, Somerset, but the number the poster provided on the advert isn't recognised and I have no other way of getting in contact
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