What can degus be allergic to?

[yasmin]

Just wondered if anyone has any experience with or knows of things that a degu could be allergic to.

(I ask this because some of my degu Peridot's offspring seem to be suffering from vasculitis causing the edges of their ears to die off. One possible cause of vasculitis is an overresponsive immune reaction to an allergen. I would like to identify any potential allergens and remove this from their environment to see if it stops the vasculitis.)

[deguconvert]

Dust is a huge issue for degus, although it is more known for causing RI's. However, I don't see why it couldn't also be associated with allergies and heightened immune response, particularly dust from specific items such as different hey types, different wood species, or even treatments that are used in the production of paper based bedding. The problem will be tracking down what is the actual cause though. Animals that have been bred from such limited genetic pools, such as those available in North America and Europe, are likely to develop sensitivities and tendencies toward disease, degenerative issues, etc. as a result. It wouldn't surprise me that allergies are among them. Certainly they are exposed to chemical agents that are not a part of their wild environment, just by being in our homes. My son has a penchant for going a little nuts with a room freshening spray that I keep in the loo for those especially . . . aromatic times. When he does, our big dog will sneeze for minutes on end because of the chemicals suspended in the air. It wouldn't surprise me that such small animals as our degus would also be distressed in some manner by "normal household chemicals" as well. How to figure out what is causing the reaction would certainly involve a very intensive and rigorous process of elimination one item at a time . . . I just don't know how you would go about it.

[yasmin]

Thanks deguconvert. I appreciate all the help I can get. Your reply gives me somewhere to start from.

[moletteuk]

I guess the main 'foreign' chemical they might come into contact with is cleaning fluid? You could swap any bought cleaner for dilute vinegar.

I'm sorry, I know nothing about vasculitis except for what I just googled in the last 5 minutes, I see it can also be brought on by illness or infection. Are you seeing the inflammation in the ears, do they also feel warm?

[yasmin]

Thanks moletteuk for checking out vasculitis on google . As far as the ears go, there is no inflammation and they do not feel warm. The vet also saw no thickening at the frayed sites and there are no signs of infection. Other than looking raw, there is no true bleeding. He says the edges look dull so he also doesn't think it's from the others biting or chewing on the ears or extreme grooming.

I use dilute vinegar for the most part. I only use the aviary cleaner on stubborn stains – but rarely – but will, as you advise, stop using it completely for that cage of degus. The only thing new that has been introduced to them in the past couple of months is the Versele-Laga Degu Nature food, which they love. (They get this mixed with the Sunseed Sunscription pellets that they were brought up on.)

[moletteuk]

So, is it fair to say there's still some doubt over the cause of the ear trouble? I guess sometimes it takes time and observation and even luck to find the essential piece of the jigsaw to be sure what is going on. How are the little goos with the sore ears doing now?

[yasmin]

Yes, there is a great deal of doubt over the cause. Vasculitis is most often secondary to another issue including fungi, myobacterial conditions like leprosy, autoimmune disorders like lupus, cardiac issues, cancer, allergies, etc. In dogs and cats, 50% of the time the cause is not determined. The vet checked Rei (the goo I brought in to the vet) for mites, fungi, infection, and injury and saw no sign of any of this. He also listened to her heart, and that seemed in good shape.

Over the past four days, one of Jin's ears has deteriorated significantly. It is folded back and it looks like 30% of it is missing. Last night, I noticed redness and blood on it so I tried to dab some polysporin on it (the vet said that polysporin is safe); this morning it looked a bit better. There's a bit of increased deterioration on Gi's ears; Rei's and Chuugi's ears seem to have stabilized. Other than that, they all seem to be acting normally.

Thanks for asking. This is all so disturbing and I'm not confident that all four of them are suffering from vasculitis, or some are being overgroomed, or some are injured, or perhaps scratching their ears too much or any combination of these things. Ideally, I would like to take all four in to the vet at the same time (but that would cost 4 x $78). The vet said he would go onto vet forums to see if he can find out anymore, and that he'll contact me if he does, and to give him any information I might find out by posting on this forum.

[deguconvert]

Perhaps all of your degus with tattered ears need a daily polysporin rub on their ears?

[yasmin]

Yes, deguconvert, I think I will do that – it can't hurt and at least it might prevent any secondary infection and/or deter anyone from chewing on them.

[moletteuk]

The polysporin sounds like a good idea to me too.

I think it's good that the vet seems have checked Rei over quite thoroughly and seems helpful, and all the goos seem OK in themselves apart from the ears, so that's good too. If the vet is interested and keen to help, perhaps he would look at photos of the other goo's ears, if necessary.

Are their other extremeties OK? Did someone mention ear mites already, I think you would see them scratching at themselves with this, but could be a reason for over grooming on ears?

Keep us posted, we are all here to help each other muddle through!

[yasmin]

Their other extremities look fine. The vet checked for mites and there was no evidence of there being any.

I will keep you posted.