Adoption and cage help

[redhuman]

Hi. Need some advice please. New to degus, but plenty of other pets!
We are hoping to adopt a lone male degu from our local P@H. Usual story, fought with mates, lost half his tail etc. He has been there for ages.
Want to get large cage or make one in the next month or 2, but need a short term cage that could be used as a holiday cage when we go away. A friend will look after him, but an Xtrail or Liberta explorer would be too big to move.
Would the P@H Thickets cage be ok, or is there a better alternative? Dont want to spend too much, as have to buy or make the main cage.
What are the chances of bonding him?

[ntg]

An odd suggestion here, but is there a way that you could get a friend to either pop into your house or live in while you're away instead? As it will be a lot less unsettling for them!

Also, as far as bonding goes, we seem to see this all the time with P@H, in fact my local store has a loner with part of it's tail missing as well at the moment, and always seems to have them every few months. It should be possible to bond them, lone degus who are truly happier in that state are a rare thing!

[redhuman]

Hi. Thanks for the reply.

Our friend does not drive, and lives too far away to walk. She is already going to look after hamsters etc. for us, which we take to her. There are pet boarding places, but that would be the same problem if the cage was large. How do other members manage when they go away?

Will the tail missing be a problem for this degu? The sign on the adoption cage says it should only go to an experienced degu owner, would that be because of the problems that can happen with bonding? Would we be better off leaving him there in the hope that an experienced owner gets him, and getting a trio instead? He seems to have been there for a long time. All the other 'adoption' animals come and go, but he does seem to be unwanted .

[ntg]

Well, I have plenty of family close by and a few friends I know I could trust to look after them properly, so my lot just stay here they are.

How big is your car for transport as it's an important consideration, could you take a collapsed cage and the degus in a carry cage?

As far as the lone degu goes, you just need to be prepared to undergo intros which can take a lot of time and effort and provide him with a lot of attention while he's alone. Another consideration is how old he is as they go through an adolescent stage between 6-18 months which can make intros harder with males as they're a lot more likely to fight for dominance.

Also, he should do fine with half a tail, one of my boys has an inch and a half long stump and gets around fine with it! They mostly use the last inch or so more for balance than the tip.

[redhuman]

Unfortunately, the family are going with us. Long story. We dont have friends close by that are knowledgeable with animals. If the cage is a wooden self build, then it wouldnt fit in the car, but if it was a liberta explorer/xtrail type, it would fit collapsed. Trouble is, if it is fitted out properly, it will take quite a while to collapse and rebuild (twice), so that would be stressful too. I just thought that if it was just for a week, then a smaller cage would suffice. He would just go in a carry cage, then straight into the holiday cage, then back in carry cage into main one. Will have to think about it.
Good news about the tail though.
Do you know what happens if P@H are unable to rehome animals? Is there a time limit or do they move them around stores? As I said, rabbits and guinea pigs seem to go reasonably fast.

[ntg]

I was debating if putting two critter 3 cages together might work, you'd just need to cover the mesh with cardboard, and it would still be big enough for two or three that way. The cage might also be useful for intros if you get the little lone fellow.

I'm not sure how long they keep them, you'd hope until they found a home but you'd have to ask in store for a definite answer!

[redhuman]

Do you mean to make 1 long cage? Have looked at those, but was put off by small doors (that open inwards). Makes it hard to clean and customise levels. Have seen this on Amazon www.amazon.co.uk/Large-ferret-chinchilla-Degu-slide/dp/B00735L8KQ/ref=cm_cr_pr_sims_t
 This looks like a bargain version of the Liberta Explorer or Xtrail type cages. No good for moving about in the car, but looks ok as a base for the house...
I will ask P@H how long they keep their adoptable animals.

[moletteuk]

Unfortunately, holiday care can really be a problem, I don't have family or friends close enough to pop in at holiday time either, my parents have to come up and house/ pet sit for me.

Some people manage to persuade their degus into a smaller holiday cage and make it work, but I think you need a very stable group for them not to riot and fall our with each other at the change in circumstances.

The link you posted is what we call a Ferret Nation, and is similar to the Explorer/ Xtrail, but has bigger bar spacing is narrower at only 80cm wide, which makes it far less suitable, which is a shame when it is quite a lot cheaper.

This is the Critter 3 that NTG mentions www.thepetexpress.co.uk/living-spaces/cages/critter-3-cage (you can get it cheaper elsewhere). I think they are fairly easy to collapse and rebuild, if you have placid degus (if they exist lol!) there is a chance you might get away with one of these for a holiday house. Two of these should certainly be big enough for a holiday home, if you can rig up a connection easily enough.

From what I've heard, the Xtrails do take a good hour or so to put together, which could rule it out for dismantling and rebuilding for a holiday home.

You could have a look for a second hand thickets cage or two, they go fairly cheaply on ebay or preloved, two together would make a decent interim home and holiday home.

Bonding chances are impossible to predict really, you could consider neutering and introducing girls if you want the best chance of it working out first time.