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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 9:37:40 GMT
Post by joannedl5 on Oct 23, 2012 9:37:40 GMT
Hi, have had my four Degu's since July and now officially have Degutitis! They are the most fascinating characters and I could watch them for hours. I'm always looking for tips so will be visiting regularly. They seem happy and healthy but there seems to be no pattern involved i.e make a bed they will empty it, give them a litter tray and they will store food and toys in it! They will poo and wee where ever they feel like and there's nothing I can do about it. I see that most people say theirs don't smell but these guys honk! I do a full clean twice a week and clean down the shelves etc as and when they need it. Any advice for getting rid of the stink would be appreciated.
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 9:50:40 GMT
Post by ntg on Oct 23, 2012 9:50:40 GMT
Hi, welcome to the forum. They certainly wriggle into your heart quickly!
As for the smell, what sort of substrate do you use as some retain odours better than others and how deep is the bed?
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 9:53:24 GMT
Post by jenowuk on Oct 23, 2012 9:53:24 GMT
Hi, welcome to the forum! And don't worry, we all have Degutitis here!
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 10:05:04 GMT
Post by Lrak on Oct 23, 2012 10:05:04 GMT
Welcome to the forum i'm sure you will get addicted to this forum aswell as your Degus, as Newtogoos says, what sort of substrate are you using? If you have any other questions then please ask away we dont bite And as always with new members ;D We love photos here ;D
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 10:15:55 GMT
Post by joannedl5 on Oct 23, 2012 10:15:55 GMT
Wow thanks for the quick replies, I use a mixture of sawdust and hay at the moment open to suggestions. I've got a variety of bed options, a couple of wooden huts about 4inches deep the bedding never stays in more than 10 minutes, two straw tub beds, they have just about chewed through the first small one so I bought the biggest size I could fit in the cage about 10 inches deep I half filled it with a mixture of old and new bedding and all they seem to do is bury food in it. Not that bothered as long as they are happy, however got two boys two girls so I want to make sure there is adequate nesting and that I don't disturb it should the time come.
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 10:24:39 GMT
Post by ntg on Oct 23, 2012 10:24:39 GMT
Is it sawdust or woodshavings? As sawdust doesn't soak up urine as well (and it's also not good for their lungs). I think Aspen is more odour retaining than pine as well. The other thing is hay doesn't offer much odour control either but if it's a digging pit for food I wouldn't think they would wee in it that much... Then again mine were tasting a wee puddle yesterday so nothing much surprises me with them anymore!
Are you wanting them to breed? As it might be safer splitting them so there aren't two males in the same cage as the females they could easily kill each other for mating rights.
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 10:54:02 GMT
Post by joannedl5 on Oct 23, 2012 10:54:02 GMT
Sorry it's wood shavings. I would like them to breed no rush, they are not quite 6 months old yet. I'll keep an eye on them, if I think they are going to fight I'll separate them would rather they were healthy! They squabble a bit over food but that's all at the moment. Thanks
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 11:00:30 GMT
Post by Lrak on Oct 23, 2012 11:00:30 GMT
Yea they will fight over food ;D minedo it all the time, nothing bad just a bit of boxing. I use wood shavings and don't find too much of a smell, the we smells sometimes but not bad, when i clean out i rub the shelfs with a weak vinegar water mix, makes it smell abit better
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 12:17:10 GMT
Post by ntg on Oct 23, 2012 12:17:10 GMT
Have you got seperate bowls for all of them? I'd think the most likely time for them to fight would be when the females are in heat, it's just something to think about and be prepared for!
Yeah.I've had no problems with wood shavings either, strange. I guess every animal is different though!
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 13:35:53 GMT
Post by joannedl5 on Oct 23, 2012 13:35:53 GMT
Oh yes I've got four bowls and when I'm really quick I put one on each level to keep them separate but of course this doesn't always work. I always start the morning off by hand feeding them. It's funny on a morning I sit down with my coffee and there are four of them sitting in a row looking at me. I will try the shavings without the hay, I did hid in the first place but there was always so much mess on the floor around the cage, using the hay seemed to stop them throwing out so much.
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Hello
Oct 23, 2012 13:42:18 GMT
Post by ntg on Oct 23, 2012 13:42:18 GMT
There's also things like finacard you could use, I think I remember reading it doesn't get chucked out as easily... Yeah I know what you mean about the treats, you just don't have enough hands for all of them
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Hello
Oct 24, 2012 3:51:53 GMT
Post by deguconvert on Oct 24, 2012 3:51:53 GMT
Hello Joannedl5, and welcome to the forum. As you've already been told, we all have pretty serious cases degu"itis," and none of us have worried about having it treated. It is quite an enjoyable state, really. ;D I hope you will find yourself very much enjoying the forum! Finacard is very good at controlling odors, and is also low in dust and you can get a large bale of it for a good price I am told. I've also heard that it doesn't fly out the cage quite as easily. May I ask the size of your cage? Four degus in a cage, especially if it is somewhat smaller, can put out quite a lot of wee, which is the primary offender when it comes to odor. Also, if every surface is not beneath a good depth of substrate, the wee is going to smell strong very quickly. One treatment that I have heard of is just covering the surfaces with a couple layers of news print, and then some kitchen paper on top of that, and changed daily. The only difficulty is that most degus will want to pull at the paper and tear it into small bits, which they will then cart off into where ever they are currently sleeping . . . so . . . in my mind it isn't something that seems overly effective.
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Hello
Oct 24, 2012 8:13:17 GMT
Post by Lrak on Oct 24, 2012 8:13:17 GMT
Deguitis i love that word ;D is it now the official term?
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Hello
Oct 24, 2012 9:02:08 GMT
Post by joannedl5 on Oct 24, 2012 9:02:08 GMT
Thanks, I've found the Finacard website, I'm going to give this a try. My cage is quite big about 3ft wide and 5 high over 4 levels. They do like kitchen role I go through sheets of it and watch it disappear. I have newspaper underneath the substrate and this seems to soak up wee I wonder if it's the paper making it smell worse?
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Hello
Oct 24, 2012 9:04:48 GMT
Post by Lrak on Oct 24, 2012 9:04:48 GMT
That could be, it does tend to hold the smell, i use paper with my horses and i know that if i muck out in the morning but leave the paper up the walls, then when i put it down later that day the smell of wee just hits you like half a brick in a sock. Horse wee = not a nice smell ;D
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Hello
Oct 24, 2012 9:33:54 GMT
Post by Kins on Oct 24, 2012 9:33:54 GMT
I use finacard, it's fab! The bale is massive and lasts quite some time, even when covering a large cage. It doesn't get kicked about too much either which is a bonus Welcome from me and mine too
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Hello
Oct 24, 2012 12:25:13 GMT
Post by moletteuk on Oct 24, 2012 12:25:13 GMT
It can also help if you tile the shelves or put down some sort of wipeable surface, so that wee isn't permanently soaking into the wood. Or if you can identify their favourite places to wee so you can spot clean those more frequently, that helps too.
Do you have a plan for keeping any babies or rehoming them? we get a lot of people on here looking to rehome their degus and frankly it's not always easy to find good homes for degus. And also as Newtogoos says, a breeding group would normally only have one male.
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Hello
Oct 24, 2012 15:47:32 GMT
Post by joannedl5 on Oct 24, 2012 15:47:32 GMT
I think to start with I would keep the babies and then separate male and female altogether before they take over the house! Thanks for the tips everyone. There is one small shelf about 3" square it's right next to my place on the sofa and they like to come and sit next to me and wee just so that I get the full effect. All four are currently squashed into a hammock together, butter wouldn't melt!
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Hello
Oct 24, 2012 19:25:52 GMT
Post by Lrak on Oct 24, 2012 19:25:52 GMT
;D Welcome to the world of degus ;D
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Hello
Oct 24, 2012 19:30:06 GMT
Post by ntg on Oct 24, 2012 19:30:06 GMT
Everytime I read this thread title I hear Lionel Ritchie singing in my head
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