Dying Degus

[ilia]

So far most pieces of information on the internet suggest that degus live for 4-6 years in captivity. However I have had 3 degus die on me (one is unfortunately dying right now) and they have not been older than 2/3 years.

Their diet is good and so is their cage. I've read up enough to know which food to give them and what not to give them; their cage is cleaned and I don't have any toxic material in the cage.

They are a great pet but I just can't bear to have any more of them if they die after 2 years which is too soon as you become attached.

I have taken them to the vet and she would give me some antibiotic and anti inflammatory meds to give them however these have been useless. I've decided to take a video of my current degu dying (painful as it was) because I want to whether this is the normal way they pass (perhaps the bunch I got off pets at home have weak genetics and die early) or whether they look ill as I can't believe that they are dying naturally after 2/3 years. Too young!

dl.dropbox.com/u/3688407/Videos/IMG_0069.MOV

I really can't understand why this is happening and it's heart-breaking. I am now going to be soon left with only one degu (her sister) and as they are the same age I know that she is probably going to die soon two.

I've had 2 boys (3 and 6 months when I bought them - who died after 2 years) and now a girl who was about a month when I got her die after 2 years.

[Cherpi]

I'm sure it's not your fault that they are dying, it's a natural thing and you can't stop it! I think you should get one more to keep your female entertained and such!

[nickymills30]

oh hun, i;m sorry to hear about you losing you babies. I think, their genetics, can be a major factor, especially if they are dying this young. I;m no expert, as i;ve only kept goo's for around 12 months, xxx

[ilia]

I can't understand why I haven't had a goo live longer than 2 years. I've been a keen reader of these forums (reading degutopia), taking them to vets if needed so I hope I can say that I haven't been stupid enough to feed them sugar or give them toxic wood.

And it's just SO heartbreaking watching them die because from experience I know that I will have to take them to the vet who will give them some antibiotics and they get stressed and I feel annoyed for taking them to the vet when they die because I begin to think that they got stressed for no reason. They will crawl around the cage for around 30-40 hours squeaking and not eating and getting cold; you can see I tried giving her a raisin and some nuts (her treat food) and she wouldn't take that. They will drop weight in front of you over the hours until they can barely move.

I don't know what to do about her sister. In a way I don't want to get any more degus because I've already had 3 (soon 4) die in around 3 years and I don't want to keep going through this and also judging by the current trend I know the remaining girl hasn't got long. It's awful watching them suffer when you know you can't do anything.

She is there; tiny and cold, barely squeaking in her cage right now and I feel awful knowing I've got another several hours of this to go through with her and probably soon with her sister (who doesn't seem to understand what's happening with her sister).

They can't die after just 2 years can they?

Maybe there is some kind of tree, fumes around my house, radiation ... I don't know what is causing this.

[deguconvert]

Here, try this emergency food. deguworld.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=health&action=display&thread=6023
Also, you can try buying some kitten milk to give her through a dropper or a syringe, to try and give her some strength as well as fluids.

I would stop giving her any kind of fruit. How often do you give nuts and things? It could be that they have been developing diabetes, not due to diet so much as it is something degus are prone to even with PRISTINE food sources. However, if there is trouble with inbreeding, that will increase the potential for developing it, even dramatically if they are greatly inbred. Inbreeding will also make their systems weaker and their life expectancy shorter.

For their health, try to increase the amount of hay they eat. I know this can be difficult . . . you can lead a degu to hay, but you can't force them to eat it!!! Always have abundant amounts available for them, and maybe even try some of the alphalfa cookies that I understand you can buy at P@H to see if that will tempt them.

Lastly . . . the P@H you frequent may be getting their degus from a breeder that is careless and is therefore producing pups that are coming from father/daughter couplings, or brother/sister, and who knows how far back in degu generations the inbreeding may be going! I would suggest that if it is possible to find out the name of the breeder, that you do so. Then if it is possible, find some other P@H and discover who their supplier of degu pups is . . . this would allow you to know if they come from the same source. Then if you were to choose to buy from P@H in the future, you could decide if you needed to go to a different store to buy another degu. Another route to look is with the RSPCA, or any of the rescues, to see if they have any that you can adopt. There are a number that are often recommended on here . . . and hopefully someone else can remember what they are . . . being from Canada myself, I fear they slip my memory. Also, there are often pups listed on here, so look in the adoptions section of these boards and you may find some cage mates for your pair, or the last if the ill one has regretably passed already, that will hopefully be of stronger constitutions.

There really is no way to fully determine what may be causing such early deaths for your little sweethearts . . . although diabetes can be detected in the urine using the keytone testing strips that you can buy in a pharmacy . . . and that makes it so very difficult for you. I know it hurts so deeply, and I feel for you! I really do! My hope is that if you do find you have the strength to try again, that you will be able to get future degus from a different source that will be bursting with great good health and long life!

[nickymills30]

Hi, i;ve just watched your video, poor little girl, and noticed there is a chestnut in front of her?

this is what someone posted on here, about chestnuts recently:

Chesnuts are mostly starch, so I'd say not safe for an animal prone to diabetes.
They apparently don't have much food value other than the calories in the starch anyway - no good vitamins or minerals.

have all your goo's had chestnuts? i hope i haven't upset you, as this isn't my intention, but you asked a question, and i was trying to help answer it xx

[ilia]

Thanks very much for both of your replies.

The sultanas and chestnuts have been my attempt of finding anything edible around the house to get her to eat (as she hasn't eaten for 2 days now). Normally her diet consists of timothy hay, and a mix of petsathome degy nuggets and the third edition of xtravital degu. Sometimes over the weekend I would give them a raisin, sultana, or peanut as a treat.

I've got her on the bed now as she is stone cold, eyes closed for several hours, and barely breathing.

[nickymills30]

that good, has she eaten anything today? I really feel for you, i can only imagine how helpless you feel. Sending loads of googles cuddles to you both x

[smux]

One thing I would do is cover her lower body with a towel or something to keep in some of the warmth. Then there is the real no-no foods, chocolate or peanut butter, I give these in very small doses (because of sugar content with chocolate and fat content with peanut butter) to a few of my degus and they both work well (the degus love it). I suggest you try her with a blob of peanut butter on a spaghetti stick to see if she'll have a taste of it and the fat will help her to regain strength and energy as well as fat reserves to keep warm.

I had a degu pine away to nothing recently in much the same way as yours is, when you put her to bed hope for the best but prepare for the worst, it's not a happy feeling to discover they've gone in the night.

DeguConvert has already said one thing I was going to mention about inbreeding and lifespans, so I won't add anything to what she's already said...but perhaps if you get more degus you could try another source for them.

It is possible that the degus are dying from illnesses you have failed to notice, although it's never nice to find out that you were at fault for it. Do you regularly check your degus for suspected problems or notice when they're a little under the weather long before it becomes a problem for them? Do you weigh them regularly, degutopia suggests it's a good way to watch their progress so if they lose weight regularly then it would be a good idea to get them checked out or look into why they might be losing weight (depression, perhaps?)

[amie]

I've been looking at this thread on and off all day now and trying to build up the courage to watch the video. I wasn't sure if I could. I'm so sorry.about what keeps happening to you and your Degus. As other people have mentioned, I would source your Degus from elsewhere if you decide to have more. I hope you feel you can have more in the future without this worry.

Weighing them regularly is a good idea, as Smux has said. Also, do they have a large cage which allows them regular excerise? Just trying to think of every angle really.

[smux]

I've not watched the movie either, but I've seen the sort of thing first-hand recently so I think I can be excused :-)

[malteser60]

If environmental conditions are ok then the only thing I can think of is illness and genetics.

Illness, well, that's difficult. Normally when rodents get ill it can be over quite quickly, however degus apparently have got quite high pain thresholds and can hide it quite well. They could have been diabetic, to the point where diet won't even be of help. One of the consistent symptoms you get when a rodent is ill is the weight loss.

However I suspect in your case it may be more due to poor genetics caused by inbreeding. Who knows, they may have had a weak heart, malfunctioning immune system, etc.

I'm at work so I can't see the video but will do when I get home. I'm so so sorry for you, and wish that you weren't going through this right now.