Post by degumad on Jan 6, 2010 10:54:24 GMT
Hello to everyone.
I want to say hello and introduce myself.
I'm Rachel and I have three degus and a chihuahua. I live in Wakefield, UK.
Can I tell you how it all began?
My boyfriend Roy and I adopted two degus from Pets at Home at the beginning of November - I had seen degus before and knew a bit about them. They were at Pets at Home because their previous owner didn't know much about them and kept them in a hamster cage - and then wondered why they fought.
So we brought them home and they settled in fine. They are in a much bigger cage than previously - and they enjoy running around in it - and they have a wheel which is in constant use. We learnt a lot more about them very fast! We are feeding them on degu nuggets, which they love! We bought a wood nest box, hay for their beds and to eat, chinchilla toys and wood bundles for them to chew. Another customer at the store said he had given his degus toilet roll and kitchen roll cardboard inserts to play with - I gave these to my two and they love playing with them.
Then at the beginning of December I saw an advert on Preloved for a single male. His missus had bitten the end of his tail off and had been given away and Sam needed a new home urgently. So a quick trip from Wakefield to Chesterfield was made - and Sam was ours! It's taking longer than I anticipated to introduce him to the other two but we are working on it!
I am also a member of the Yahoo groups Degumail and Degu Information so if any of you are also on there you may've seen me! So anyway did everyone have a great Christmas? I hope so, we did, it was fantastic (my first Xmas with Roy, and the goos)! Although there was one slight hiccup!
On Christmas Eve, Roy and I packed our gifts into the car for the following day - we were travelling all over Yorkshire visiting different family members. We organised the goos and made sure they had enough food and water till we got back the following day. I gave them a treat, a sea grass plait, to keep them a occupied - and we were underway to Roys! Yay!
Well, we did all the family visiting, present giving, food eating fun (that was all fantastic) and came back to my house on Christmas Day evening.
All was very quiet in Chip and Dale's cage. Sam was sat happily in his cage, chewing on his hay. I had come into the living room first when I suddenly heard a Chip-like squeal - but not from his cage! Roy came in behind me and saw Chip dart across the floor and under the sink unit. He said either the degus were out or I had rats! Quick inspection - and the nestbox was empty! Aaargh!
We looked around, there are two bags of degu nuggets on the floor in the kitchen - one was half full and the other WAS a new bag. This was the bag that had a hole in the side - a degu-type chewed hole! It looked like a fair bit of food had been eaten from the bag! We went back in the living room to work out where Dale was - and saw him sat behind the sofa. He is the easiest to catch as he is so laid back so we tried to coax him out first. He looked huge!!
We didn't think that food would work as he had seemed to have eaten so much - but it did! He was a little nervous but none the worse for wear!
He was happy to be back in his cage and went for a lie down in the nest box. Chip was a different matter, as he was under the sink unit he was a little more difficult to get to. We were talking to him and he kept popping his nose out, but when we moved towards him he kept disappearing under the unit. He even came out for a nugget - grabbed it and ran back under the unit! Huh! Foiled by a degu! But this is no ordinary degu - it is Chip Degu!
Well, we got one of the food bowls, made sure he saw and heard us putting nuggets in there, and Roy held it up on his lap (we were both kneeling down at the time.) Chip was slowly coaxed up onto Roy's lap where he started tucking into the nuggets, even though he was huge too! Slowly, gently, carefully, we managed to catch him and put him back in the cage. And do you know the first thing he did? Jumped on his wheel and went for a mega mad run!!
They had been living under Sam's cage - the poops gave it away. The cage for when they are cleaned out is stored there - and I think they thought it was a safe place to be, especially as the sand baths are kept there too!!
I was just so very relieved that they were found and back in their cage!
Yes, it was MY fault they had escaped - I felt really guilty, thinking what if they had escaped completely somehow and ended up outside! I have learnt my lesson BIG STYLE!
Meantime they are now on a strict diet!! With exercise restricted to the wheel, rather than the whole house!
At the moment the snow is keeping me at home, so I have more time to spend with the degus!
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!
Rachel
xxx
I want to say hello and introduce myself.
I'm Rachel and I have three degus and a chihuahua. I live in Wakefield, UK.
Can I tell you how it all began?
My boyfriend Roy and I adopted two degus from Pets at Home at the beginning of November - I had seen degus before and knew a bit about them. They were at Pets at Home because their previous owner didn't know much about them and kept them in a hamster cage - and then wondered why they fought.
So we brought them home and they settled in fine. They are in a much bigger cage than previously - and they enjoy running around in it - and they have a wheel which is in constant use. We learnt a lot more about them very fast! We are feeding them on degu nuggets, which they love! We bought a wood nest box, hay for their beds and to eat, chinchilla toys and wood bundles for them to chew. Another customer at the store said he had given his degus toilet roll and kitchen roll cardboard inserts to play with - I gave these to my two and they love playing with them.
Then at the beginning of December I saw an advert on Preloved for a single male. His missus had bitten the end of his tail off and had been given away and Sam needed a new home urgently. So a quick trip from Wakefield to Chesterfield was made - and Sam was ours! It's taking longer than I anticipated to introduce him to the other two but we are working on it!
I am also a member of the Yahoo groups Degumail and Degu Information so if any of you are also on there you may've seen me! So anyway did everyone have a great Christmas? I hope so, we did, it was fantastic (my first Xmas with Roy, and the goos)! Although there was one slight hiccup!
On Christmas Eve, Roy and I packed our gifts into the car for the following day - we were travelling all over Yorkshire visiting different family members. We organised the goos and made sure they had enough food and water till we got back the following day. I gave them a treat, a sea grass plait, to keep them a occupied - and we were underway to Roys! Yay!
Well, we did all the family visiting, present giving, food eating fun (that was all fantastic) and came back to my house on Christmas Day evening.
All was very quiet in Chip and Dale's cage. Sam was sat happily in his cage, chewing on his hay. I had come into the living room first when I suddenly heard a Chip-like squeal - but not from his cage! Roy came in behind me and saw Chip dart across the floor and under the sink unit. He said either the degus were out or I had rats! Quick inspection - and the nestbox was empty! Aaargh!
We looked around, there are two bags of degu nuggets on the floor in the kitchen - one was half full and the other WAS a new bag. This was the bag that had a hole in the side - a degu-type chewed hole! It looked like a fair bit of food had been eaten from the bag! We went back in the living room to work out where Dale was - and saw him sat behind the sofa. He is the easiest to catch as he is so laid back so we tried to coax him out first. He looked huge!!
We didn't think that food would work as he had seemed to have eaten so much - but it did! He was a little nervous but none the worse for wear!
He was happy to be back in his cage and went for a lie down in the nest box. Chip was a different matter, as he was under the sink unit he was a little more difficult to get to. We were talking to him and he kept popping his nose out, but when we moved towards him he kept disappearing under the unit. He even came out for a nugget - grabbed it and ran back under the unit! Huh! Foiled by a degu! But this is no ordinary degu - it is Chip Degu!
Well, we got one of the food bowls, made sure he saw and heard us putting nuggets in there, and Roy held it up on his lap (we were both kneeling down at the time.) Chip was slowly coaxed up onto Roy's lap where he started tucking into the nuggets, even though he was huge too! Slowly, gently, carefully, we managed to catch him and put him back in the cage. And do you know the first thing he did? Jumped on his wheel and went for a mega mad run!!
They had been living under Sam's cage - the poops gave it away. The cage for when they are cleaned out is stored there - and I think they thought it was a safe place to be, especially as the sand baths are kept there too!!
I was just so very relieved that they were found and back in their cage!
Yes, it was MY fault they had escaped - I felt really guilty, thinking what if they had escaped completely somehow and ended up outside! I have learnt my lesson BIG STYLE!
Meantime they are now on a strict diet!! With exercise restricted to the wheel, rather than the whole house!
At the moment the snow is keeping me at home, so I have more time to spend with the degus!
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!
Rachel
xxx