Two baby degus

[villette]

Hi
So, one of our two male degus has just given birth...

We are very new degu owners and we're not really sure what to do, we had no idea that Branwell (I guess we'll have to change her name now) was pregnant.

She has only had two pups and we're quite worried about this - is it possible there are more to come (she gave birth this morning)? How can we tell??? She is also not acting like a very concerned mother, she keeps ignoring them and refusing to let them suckle, even though they are squeaking and following her around the cage. Is there anything we can do?

We took the other degu out of the cage as soon as we realised, but he did manage to get on top of her before we could remove him so I hope she's not pregnant again! There seems to be conflicting advice about when to put the male degu back. On the other hand, he may be a girl as well, she must have been pregnant when we got them as it was only two months ago! So they are probably inbred as well.

We're just panicking at the moment - although this was unexpected we really want to do the best for these babies now that they're here and we will definitely keep them if they survive.

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated - we have read the Baby basics thread and will try and do everything it says on there but if there's anything extra anyone can think of...

Thank you so much!!!

[deguconvert]

Has there been any change since you posted? Well . . . one of the things you need to know is the sex of the degu that didn't give birth. This is a link to a video that should help with sexing the remaining one. www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX-NF6xrPI8 If they turn out to both be female, there is no fear in putting her back with momma and babies. It wouldn't hurt to check the both of them, just to be sure that you have the right one in the cage with the babies. It can be very difficult to know who gave birth sometimes.

Recently with one of the members, one of her degus gave birth and ignored the babies. She was just running around with the others in the cage, babies following and squeaking. I advised her to put momma and babies into a separate cage, and before long, she was nursing the babies and caring for them. Then her owner noticed she looked miserable, so the others were brought back. Then everyone suddenly pitched in and they all took care of the babies. Maybe, in your case the other degu needs to be put back in? I don't know what to suggest beyond determining their sex for certain, and trying out what happens when the other goo is put back in.

Let us know how things are going, please?

[listracian]

Make sure you check the mother over. Goo's can have small litters and she may be perfectly fine but it's not a bad thing to check her over, make sure she is okay and to see if she has given birth to all the pups.

Once my babies were a couple of weeks old I took them and mum to the vet, just to get them checked over and make sure mum and babies were all fine. If you did they may be able to help you with sexing them

[villette]

Hi
Thanks for your replies.
Branwell is being a bit more motherly now! She has been sitting on the babies all night we think and has built a giant nest of hay so we can only just see her head! We hope the babies are still alright, we can't see them but we have heard squeaking and we don't really want to move Branwell to check in case she starts ignoring them again.

I have looked at the youtube video (and paused it a lot!) and I am about 98% sure that Bronte (the other degu) is a boy...although the gap between the two bits seems to be about halfway between the boy and girl pictures...? I am giving him lots of attention because I am sure he must be lonely in the big cage all by himself

I had already moved Branwell and the babies (I didn't touch them, just scooped up their nest of hay) into a smaller cage for now, it is a hamster one so they can't fit between the bars. Branwell seems healthy and she is certainly not distressed or squeaking so I guess I just have to assume that it was a small litter...? I will certainly take the whole family to the vets in a couple of weeks. Although I might not use the same vet who did Branwell's health check just after I bought HIM and told me he was a healthy boy degu!

Thanks again. Any advice as to whether I should move Branwell and check, or just leave her be and hope for the best? When can I put Bronte back in with them safely, and will he help and not hurt the babies if he is not the daddy?? Oh, and when can I pick up the babies myself? I want to hold them so much!!! They're so tiny and cute!

Thank you!

[deguconvert]

You will begin to see them venturing out of the nest some where around 4-7 days of age. At that time, you can begin to hold them, just make sure to not let them get chilled as they are unable to regulate their own body temperature for a few weeks yet. I wouldn't keep them away from mum too long either, just yet. Papa back in . . .? Well, as one member can tell you, their male and female were separated early, before birth I think. BUT even after being separated from his mate for two weeks, he promptly impregnated her again. I have to say, the risk is there at any time, an yet a bonded male and female can go a year or more without producing a litter. Shrug!! It's difficult to say. Male degus make excellent fathers, however, and are well known to be an excellent help with the babies.

Do you know the age of your degus? A male degu will not begin to be sexually viable until he is past six months of age. That is when they enter degu puberty and the next few months (if you have all male degus) can be chaotic and stressful as they struggle to settle who is boss etc. Females on the other hand can become sexually viable as early as 6 weeks of age if they have been in a safe and healthy environment, with abundant access to nutricious food. So, I ask you this because if your degus are under the age of 5 months, Branwell may have been impregnated by her father, or another adult male. Knowing the real age of your degus will help answer . . . hopefully . . . the question of paternity.