HELP! Mother died leaving 7 pups--8 days old.

[degudaddy]

Our mother Degu died today in front of me and my 7 year old traumatized daughter.Our Degu had recently given birth and we are trying to figure out how to take care of the 7 squeaking 8 day old pups! It is heartbreaking and I don't think my daughter can handle watching the babies slowly die!

After hours of searching the internet we are still not sure if we are doing the right thing. We are currently hand feeding the babies EBSILAC puppy milk replacer every two hours. I bought a heat lamp at a pet store to keep them warm and the current temperate is 85 degrees inside the 40 gallon aquarium. They don't seem to be shivering and they can walk to the other side of the aquarium where it is a little cooler if it is too hot.

We have a male Degu that was neutered yesterday and is still in a separate (large) cage. The vet said to keep him away from the mother and babies for a couple of days until he heals a little bit. It is the weekend and we have been unable to contact the vet who did the operation to tell her of the situation. I'm not sure they are very experienced with Degu's anyway.

I read somewhere that we need to stimulate them to urinate but I'm not sure I am using the right technique and they do not seem to be peeing after I rub them with a cotton ball.


???Questions:

How much should the pups be eating at their current age?

Should I put the father in the cage with them?

What are the odds they will live?

Is 85-90 degrees warm enough for them?

How do I clean them and how frequently?

When can they eat solid food and what should I feed them?

I've seen a variety of suggestions regarding feeding pups on the internet but I'm not sure which method is best. I'm wondering if I should put a dish of the puppy formula in their cage but I'm worried they will just walk all over it and create a hygiene problem. Should I put an oatmeal type dish in the cage now?

They seem very distressed and are constantly squeaking so any quick response would be greatly appreciated.

[deguconvert]

I have no idea if you will be on to check on this . . . it is midnight in Alberta, Canada . . . so whatever that translates to your place on the face of the earth. I would definitely put the father in with the pups. They need to have his comfort and his guidence as growing degus. He will help them to stay warm as well as helping them to urinate and deficate. He will teach them what they need to know as degus. Daddy degu is especially important to them now, and male degus are exceptional parents. I think if you can keep the tank at a temp between 70-75 degrees, that will be warm enough. Hotter than that will be too hot for Daddy goo.

They do need the additional nutrition of milk, although we often recommend kitten milk. I don't know what the difference is between puppy milk forumula vs kitten milk, so can't say if one is better than the other. They need to have the milk every two hours, they will be nibbling a tiny bit on the solid foods already, but very much need the milk yet at this age. Often they begin to be weaned around age four weeks, but sometimes as late as six weeks.
Regular degu food, whatever you have been feeding the adults, is fine for the pups to begin to eat. Make sure you have timothy hay on hand for them as well.

Since Daddy goo will help them to clean themselves, I think that if you have the sand bath available to them as you would for the adults, that will be sufficient.

Their odds . . . I don't know. Naturally they are going to do better with their mother on hand, so this is a great blow to them. However, at least they are 8 days along and not new borns. That gives me hope. The main thing will be whether or not you can keep up with the nursing schedule. I think you have to use droppers to feed them, and I have no idea how difficult that could be. I kind wonder if they would be able to suck milk from a saturated sponge . . . one that is soft, but not full of holes . . . you know, not one that looks like swiss cheese? Maybe a makeup sponge? It might be something to try, and that way the pups, if they got the hang of it, could drink at their own rate and comfort (hopefully!). Maybe even more than one at a time . . . . I'm grasping a bit here, but I really think it is worth a try! If you try sponges . . . buy a big economy bag of them, they are pretty cheap, and never repeat useage of any, I think the milk will spoil them very quickly.

Don't worry about handling the pups, Daddy goo will not reject them like you would see with other rodent species. Degus are quite open to their pups smelling of others. In fact, in the wild they kind do group parenting with their litters. So don't be afraid to pick them up for feedings and to comfort them. I wouldn't let your daughter walk around with them . . . but if they are gently held in cupped hands (you are probably able to hold all 8 at once yourself) they might even sleep for you for a short time. Be a part of their community, it will help them feel comfort from you.

I am so sorry for the loss of their mother, and the trauma is has caused you and your little girl. She must be heartbroken. Poor little love! I hope all the best for you, and truly hope this advice will be helpful to you. Please let us know how you, your daughter, Daddy and the pups are doing.

[Jaiye]

Sorry to hear of your loss =( I second everything DC has said as it all makes sense.

Hope the little family survives!

[nickymills30]

oh hun, i;m so sorry this has happened. I tried to had rear a rabbits once,and found he was better at licking the milk from a spoon rather than from a syringe as you can sometimes drown the pups. I;m sorry i can't offer any other advice, but DC has covered everything. good luck, and keep us updatedx

[Cherpi]

That is terrible! I'm so sorry for your loss and I hope all the little pups survive!!! RIP x

[moletteuk]

Oat bran and wheatgerm might help with early weaning, they are very nutritious for babies.

[degudaddy]

After a long night of feeding the babies every two hours the babies seem to be doing ok. I put some papaya treats that the adults like in the cage and all of the babies tried eating them and seem to like them. After that, I put some of the regular Degu food in the cage and the babies are eating it. We are still giving them milk but they don't seem to want it as much since they are apparently eating the adult food. Some of the pups are reluctant to eat the puppy formula. It is hard to keep track of which ones are eating properly or not. They haven't tried the water yet. I was thinking about putting the puppy formula in the water bottle. I'm wondering if I can go to every three hours during the day and once at night since they appear to be eating solid foods???

We put the father in the cage a couple of times and the babies all started trying to nurse off him. Not sure if we should leave him in there for a long time. The cage is about 1/5 the size of the cage he is used to and babies are all over him.

[deguconvert]

Just want to applaude your hard work, you're doing and amazing job!! Well done!! That is hard work, and it is relentless. One means to determining if your pups are doing OK is to try to weigh them at the end of each day, or every other day. Kitchen scales work the best for this. If you see them increasing a bit all the time, you will know they are doing good. Plateau's or losses are not good at this point. A pup that needs more will obviously be one of the later.

[moletteuk]

Could you put the babies in with dad in the bigger cage? They really need him for comfort and to learn how to be a degu.

I can only suggest doing whatever you can to get the milk into them. The main thing is it's full of fat, which is difficult to give them any other way, maybe crushing up some nuts really small or unsalted and unsweetened peanut butter. You could maybe try the kitten milk instead if they aren't keen on the puppy milk.

I can't see any harm trying some in a water bottle, as long as you have another with water in.

Good luck!