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Post by queenie on Feb 20, 2011 17:50:04 GMT
Sooo I came home from work today, and spliter has a puffy face :S his eyes were not as open as the others, and he seemed lethargic... has picked up a bit now. anyone else ever experieced this? my friend who looked after them said she noticed it alot too Hmm
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Post by deguconvert on Feb 20, 2011 22:34:47 GMT
One of our degus seems to like having his facial hair all fluffed up. He doesn't do it all the time, so I know it's not "Just the way he is," and I have also felt all along his jaw lines, gently around his eyes (as much as he would tolerate), and the top of his head to see if I could feel any hard knobs that would indicate that the roots to a tooth are growing out too long, or that there is an infection anywhere. He has nothing, so decided after a time that he just likes his facial fur fluffy. I would recommend having a similar gentle probbing round his face to see if you can feel anything that doesn't seem to belong. If you do find something, take him to the vet. If you notice further lethargy, I would also consider that reason to have him looked at. Lethargy is a big warning sign in degus that something is wrong and needs attention quickly. Degus hide their injuries and illnesses so well, that by the time it has progressed enough to cause lethargy, they may be in serious trouble.
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Post by queenie on Feb 21, 2011 1:06:36 GMT
Yup, checked him out, his face is fine, but he does have cataracts on his left side, why has that happened? I'm really gutted, thought they were healthy boys and getting the right care
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Post by deguconvert on Feb 21, 2011 7:12:39 GMT
Cataracts can occur either genetically or as a result of diabetes. Just because your degu has cataracts in one eye, or even two, isn't an immediate indicator of diabetes in your goo. If you want to check and be sure, you can by the urine test strips from almost any pharmacy that carries them for human diabetics. They will work for degus as well. Degus have a genetic predisposition to forming cataracts, just as they do for diabetes, so it really isn't something to panic about. Your little guy will live quite as well with them as without them. Breathe deep and relax . . . he'll be OK.
If you do test his urine for diabetes and get a positive result, keep the testing strips on hand so that you can regularly test his urine, and be very strict and careful with his diet. LOTS of hay, very limited treats, no fruits or sweet veg at any time, and a good degu food for daily eats. This can greatly prolong his life, unless he goes into a steep increase in blood sugars which often results in a dramatic loss of weight, lethargy, and death. It can be almost impossible to reverse if this happens, but the rare turn about does happen.
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Post by queenie on Mar 8, 2011 11:25:46 GMT
I didnt even reaslise there was such a thing as strips to test for diabetes! they seem to be dissapearing now, but I've not done anything different :S they never have fruit or sugar, mainly cause I hate fruit so its never in the house! odd Thank you for the advice deguconvert, I phoned the vets, and it turns out I should have just listen to you! haha they were useless
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