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Post by diet otaku on Dec 9, 2005 2:18:15 GMT
i stopped by petland on a whim, the place i got my first 2 degus, and lo and behold they had another pair! they were pretty pitiful-looking - in a tiny cage with nothing but a wire bottom, a water bottle and a food dish, their fur oily and dull, huddled in a corner not moving. i must've stared at them for a full 5 minutes and they only stared back.
i finally found someone to ask how much they were, and she said they were free to anyone who wanted them!! i had to check them out first, because when they yawned i swore i saw white teeth. i also wanted to sex them. so i got them to take one out (the guy nearly gave me a heart attack because it looked like he was trying to catch them by the tail), the teeth were yellow and it was clearly a boy. so i asked to see the other one, and he said i could just come back and take him out myself because he has bad luck with degus. so i took the other out, again yellow teeth, and another male! i decided right then and there i had to take them both home. unlike last time there were degus available there, i just got my old cage back from my friend so i actually have somewhere to put the newbies while they get used to their new home and future roomies.
they are both fairly small, probably frenzy's size, but i'm sure they'll grow as they get proper food and exercise. i have them in my old metal cage right now with a dustbowl, wheel, house, food dish and water bottle and a pile of hay. the bare necessities basically.
i haven't decided on names... i kind of want to go with the transformers theme... my first 2 are rumble and frenzy, named after the identical cassette tapes on the decepticon team. there's also laserbeak and buzzsaw, which are nearly identical cassettes that turn into birds (as opposed to robots like rumble and frenzy). so far that's what i'm leaning towards, but those names aren't very degu-ish, and don't seem to fit the personalities i've observed so far. both boys were very docile on the trip home, and let me pet them and didn't bite or scratch or anything. now that they're in their temporary home, next to the big cage for the introductory phase, they've been scrambling all over, squealing, whistling, chirping and humping each other. o.O;; they got rumble and frenzy started humping too. XD the older boys have been scrambling all over curiously watching the new kids scurry about the smaller cage.
i'm so excited to have a bigger degu family!!!! does anyone have suggestions for names?
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Post by Sunshinemeg on Dec 9, 2005 12:08:16 GMT
i dont have any suggestions for names im afraid, but one thing you should be aware of, is that if these two new boys are young, they may not smell very male yet. I had this issue when introducing new babies, the adult males dont realise the new boys are male, and may fight for the right to the "females" lol. It shouldnt be too serious, as they soon work it out, but its something you should be aware of to keep you prepared!
I think you did the right thing bringing them home, I certainly would have! So now I just hope you can get them all into one cage together and happy! Well done!
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 9, 2005 13:55:33 GMT
that's good to know, i wasn't aware young males smelled like females. is there any way to determine a degu's age? i'm rather curious about rumble and frenzy's age as well.
my roommate is suggesting ravage and ratbat as names, and although i like the name ravage, ratbat is just goofy. i may look up the names of the autobot cassettes to look for similar pairs, or find some other twin transformer set to name them after.
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Post by ra on Dec 9, 2005 19:23:27 GMT
Wild names!
Your account of finding the two boys in less than desirable conditions makes me wonder again about petshops. If they took them in they are obligated to find out what the Degu requires as basic living conditions and care. Why have them there? I would think at least one of the employees would be animal lover enough to go on line and find out about Degu needs. It's just so disheartening.
Enough of that. I'm sorry, I don't know any transformer names what so ever. Romulus and Remus the two Roman brothers of legend raised by wolves. Of course I'm not too sure that's a good idea; Romulus killed Remus becoming the King of Rome!
Have to think on names.
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 9, 2005 19:40:11 GMT
i believe that these degus came from the same group of rescues as my first degus. the employee who is trying to rehome them has had a considerable battle just getting the store to allow her to display them in order to attract potential new owners. so more than likely, as the store wouldn't be getting any money from them, they wouldn't allow her to provide the maximum amount of comfort for them.
i'm just so glad they turned out to be boys so i could take them home, as it would have been heartbreaking to leave them there if they'd been girls.
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 11, 2005 2:00:35 GMT
so i'm wondering, what can i expect during the introduction period? it seems the degus have been squealing at each other between the bars... i can't tell if it's conversational squealing or hostile/frightened squealing. should i go ahead and let them into the bathroom together or keep them separated for a few more days?
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Post by Sunshinemeg on Dec 11, 2005 11:31:00 GMT
I would keep them seperated a few more days, give both groups sand baths and bedding that you swap daily, so they smell more like each other, so the bedding goes in one cage one night, then into the other the next and so on.
The sounds they are making dont suprise me, but sadly you just have to put up with it. Into the bath to meet is good, but not for a few more days. When you do do it, make sure you have a clean tea towel handy. this is incase they fight, you can throw that over them rather than get your hand bitten! trust me, its a good technique!
give it time and they should get used to each other!
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 11, 2005 16:24:45 GMT
oh, forgot about swapping materials... pulling out all of the actual bedding on the bottom level and swapping it would be an impossibly daunting task, but i'll swap out the stuff they sleep on and see how that goes.
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Post by ra on Dec 12, 2005 19:06:40 GMT
If you don't mind "re-using" Mocha's former name, the new boys could be Virgil and Wyatt - the Earp brothers. Sheriffs of the wild west!
I agree with Meg - I'd wait a little longer until they settle down and aren't squealing as much. I'd feel more confident if they were chirping to one another too.
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 12, 2005 20:41:00 GMT
i've heard a mixture of chirping and squealing... they tend to hide when i come near, but on one occasion i sat and watched them sit on either side of the bars and just chirp and whistle back and forth. they also didn't seem at all bothered by the change in bedding... they just sniffed it cautiously, and then crawled inside or sat on top.
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 13, 2005 1:51:52 GMT
okay, WHOA. @___@ i started hearing some fussing after i put fresh food in both cages, so i went to watch. frenzy was going NUTS. he would chew the bars on the bottom level and screech at the new degus, and the one that was on the other side would screech back and zoom all over the cage, up to the top level. then frenzy would CLIMB THE WALL and screech at him, drop into the hammock and screech, drop to the ground, screech, climb the wall, the other degu would screech and zoom down to the bottom, repeat. then frenzy started growling at RUMBLE when rumble tried to share the food dish.
thing is, rumble doesn't seem to care either way about the new degus. it's just frenzy being all psycho. could i possibly introduce the new degus just to rumble tomorrow? or should i hold off on both until all 4 are safe together? is this a sign they won't get along at all? ;__;
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Post by Aimeelou on Dec 13, 2005 14:04:17 GMT
Congrats on your new boys! I think time is the main issue here, i dont think degus like change!
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 13, 2005 14:06:55 GMT
ok, how's this for names? spaz and ruckus.
i've been observing their personalities as they get more comfortable, and like rumble and frenzy, there is a nervous one, and a brave one. the brave one seems to be the one most often arguing with frenzy, while the other one runs and hides. so i'm thinking the brave one can be ruckus and the nervous one can be spaz. for some reason i really really like the name spaz. o.O;;
it doesn't go with the transformers theme, but in addition to being transformers, rumble and frenzy are also descriptive words, so they would still match in that regard. what do you guys think?
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 18, 2005 4:13:23 GMT
okay, so i put them all together in the bathroom for the first time tonight... for the first few minutes they seemed to be getting along fine. they all just wandered around sniffing things and being degus, you know? then rumble started trying to hump the newbies, and they would yell at him, and then they started wrestling - you know, like bracing their arms against each other and shoving? only they would wrestle for a few seconds and then the newbie (whichever one rumble was wrestling) would kind of flip around. then they'd face each other and do it again. i let them go at it for awhile because they didn't seem to be hurting each other, but decided to split them up when it got REALLY noisy and sounded like it was getting more serious, but it was hard to see because they were behind the toilet.
so now i have a few questions. 1, is this how it normally goes? is this the issue that meg described with the young males not smelling male yet? 2, how long do i need to hold these "mingling sessions" before i can put the newbies in the big cage? 3, how do i tell the difference between acceptable fighting and fighting that needs to be stopped? should i try putting both newbies in the bathroom with only one of the oldbies? or maybe one newbie with both oldbies? or should i continue putting all 4 together?
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roz
Newborn Degu
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Post by roz on Dec 18, 2005 19:34:57 GMT
Sorry to have to tell you, but they ARE hurting each other when they flip over like that. They are both biting each other and the "flipping" is a combination of 'attack quick and jump back out the way before you can get hurt back' and also jumping back in response to a painful bite. Although degus are normally peaceful creatures, they WILL have proper fights (as you've seen) and the result can be DEATH (I have seen this happen). Degus teeth are very long in comparison to their little bodies and so what appears to be a small bite can actually cause severe internal damage. When you put them together again, put cotton gloves on (gardening type ones are good) and if you see them "flipping" you must separate them immediately. Be prepared though, to get bitten. The gloves will give you some protection, but it may still be possible for the teeth to go through it. Unfortunatley, if you try and wear thicker gloves, you won't be able to feel what you're doing properly and you risk hurting your degus. Good luck!  |
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 18, 2005 20:05:38 GMT
wow, i figured they were okay because no one was bleeding. frenzy did bite my friend (who was helping me wrangle the degus) and actually bit her through the nail... i picked up the degus by wrapping them in a hand towel.
is there any possibility that this severe fighting will calm down and they will get along? or does them fighting like this mean they are going to fight no matter what?
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roz
Newborn Degu
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Post by roz on Dec 18, 2005 20:38:02 GMT
Oooh...tough question! To be honest, it's a bit like kids fighting. Sometimes they eventually sort it out, and other times they remain enemies for life. There's no hard and fast rule with this, but as they've already started to fight I would take it really slowly. Leave it a week, just in case there are bite wounds you've not noticed, and then next time you introduce them make sure they have nothing to fight over - no toy or food etc. Don't leave them together for long, maybe only a few minutes at first. If all goes well, repeat it the following day and add a few more minutes, repeat again the next day (adding minutes) and so on, until you're able to keep them together under supervision for about an hour. The next day keep them togther for an hour again, but try adding food after about half an hour (a bowl each, spaced well apart) and carry on extending the time they spend together until they can be together for several hours (keep adding in toys, hay etc and make sure they always have 2 sources of water). Although there doesn't seem to be any signs of bleeding, if you're able to you should check each degu over thoroughly. Gently stroke their fur in the wrong direction and examine closely for puncture wounds. If there are any, dab it twice each day with a weak dettol solution. Wounds to the belly or neck could be fatal. Wounds on the back or ears are usually ok. Watch them closely over the next few days, as small animals detriorate quickly when they are sick or injured. It all sounds a lot of work, but believe me it's worth it in the end  |
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 18, 2005 22:15:51 GMT
getting to see a real degu-pile™ is reward enough. ^__^
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 19, 2005 0:40:19 GMT
okay, i checked them over and no one's hurt. spaz and ruckus are their usual selves, rumble is being a little more reserved than usually, but not in a way that worries me. he's sitting on the fleece cozy, so he's probably just snuggling up to keep warm.
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Post by ra on Dec 19, 2005 19:01:09 GMT
The names for your new Degus seem to fit their personalities. Good luck with the integration. It would make me very very apprehensive. Obviously others have done it successfully so hang in there.
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