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Post by ryanj on Sept 14, 2015 5:30:19 GMT
So last night at some point Prea gave birth!
Our nest box is half way up the cage - we noticed one pup walking around on the ground level and we think we can see one more in the nest box. So she has had atleast 2!
Me and my partner have never delt with anything like this before so lots of advice welcome! I'm guessing from advice in my other post the first thing we should do is move the nest box to ground floor of the cage?
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Post by ryanj on Sept 14, 2015 6:12:40 GMT
Ok I think there are 3 little ones by the looks of things!
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Post by uglibug on Sept 14, 2015 6:42:11 GMT
Be patient, she could be giving birth for a while, there may be more to come.
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Post by Bexi87 on Sept 14, 2015 7:28:30 GMT
Eek! I've no experience with babies but my first thought would be to put the baby on the ground floor back in the nest with the others. It will need the warmth from mum and siblings. I'd also ring the store you got them from and ask for their support. I think they have provided cages etc. to people in similar situations as she was obviously pregnant when you got her. Good luck and congratulations
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Post by yasmin on Sept 14, 2015 8:04:54 GMT
Be patient, she could be giving birth for a while, there may be more to come. Wow. Congratulations! Yes, there may be more to come. Is Prea still in the nest box; or is she up and about? Not sure how your cage is set up but is there some way to block access to the ground floor? I don't think you should move the box yet. How are the aunties behaving? Does it look like the little one can make it back to Mum on his own?
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Post by ryanj on Sept 14, 2015 8:22:29 GMT
Prea seems to be up and moving about but not neglecting the little ones. I managed to carefully place the lone baby into the nest box and move the nest box to the ground level. I have restocked their hay, food and water and left them to it. All seems fine.
The aunties are completely fine...Bertha and Enya seem to be keeping themselves to themselves. One in particular though, Prue, seem to be nest building and spending a lot of time with babies. Could she be a he? The dad? Or just a pro-active auntie?
Might try and get a better look at Prue but she is the least confident with us.
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Post by yasmin on Sept 14, 2015 8:38:27 GMT
That's fantastic that you were able to move the nest box and move the lone baby too. Not sure whether Prue is the dad or an auntie, but seems like it's definitely worth a check.
Sounds like all is under control. Good job! (It's 4:30 am here – going back to sleep – but will check back later.)
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Post by moletteuk on Sept 14, 2015 9:12:44 GMT
As an absolute priority you need to check the sexes of the other three. Once Prea finishes giving birth she will be fertile again immediately and is at great risk of another pregnancy if there is a boy in there, and she is too young for another pregnancy. You need to either get a really good look yourself, post some photos here, take the three back to the shop for help looking or take them to a vet so you can be sure.
Next, do what you can to make the cage safe. Weave cardboard through the bars or cable tie it on in any places the babies might escape (bar spacing needs to be around 10 to 12mm or less). Check for any long drops in the cage and reposition things to prevent falls if you can. Depending on what sort of wheel you have, think about removing or moving it, you don't want babies getting caught up or wedged or squashed.
Get on to PAH, they are obliged to help and do usually help without any fuss. Your cage space is already tight, they should give you a free cage to house the babies, see if you can get two out of them, one for boys, one for girls.
Prea will benefit from some extra oil seeds and forage, make sure she has plenty to eat.
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Post by ryanj on Sept 14, 2015 9:18:48 GMT
That's fantastic that you were able to move the nest box and move the lone baby too. Not sure whether Prue is the dad or an auntie, but seems like it's definitely worth a check. Sounds like all is under control. Good job! (It's 4:30 am here – going back to sleep – but will check back later.) Aw get some sleep thanks yasmin! I called P@H and they said that she may have got pregnant before they even got them as they make every effort to sex them before putting them in a cage together and selling them. I have just tried checking them again in a glass dish and to me they all appear female. Should we keep them all together? P@H have offered free food, bedding and a cage if we want one.
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Post by moletteuk on Sept 14, 2015 9:31:58 GMT
If you are absolutely certain about them all being girls, then leave them together for now. Just keep an eye out that everyone keeps a positive attitude to the babies, if any look like they are getting fed up or annoyed with the babies then you could move them out once you have a spare cage, this doesn't happen often, just something to be aware of.
I don't want to tip you over the edge, but if they are all girls, there is a chance the others could be pregnant too. Since Prea was much bigger than the others this might not be very likely, it depends how long they might have been exposed to a boy.
Does Prea seem OK? Has she settled down in the nest? Any more babies?
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Post by ryanj on Sept 14, 2015 9:51:13 GMT
If you are absolutely certain about them all being girls, then leave them together for now. Just keep an eye out that everyone keeps a positive attitude to the babies, if any look like they are getting fed up or annoyed with the babies then you could move them out once you have a spare cage, this doesn't happen often, just something to be aware of. I don't want to tip you over the edge, but if they are all girls, there is a chance the others could be pregnant too. Since Prea was much bigger than the others this might not be very likely, it depends how long they might have been exposed to a boy. Does Prea seem OK? Has she settled down in the nest? Any more babies? I am sure they're all female, all 4 'parts' look identical and the all close together, no gaps. We'll keep an eye on them for sure. When is best to sex the little ones? Prea is looking and acting fine. She is spending time in and out of the nest box and currently asleep with them. No more babies...looks like its just the 3.
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Post by moletteuk on Sept 14, 2015 10:02:03 GMT
The babies can be sexed at any time. I wouldn't actually lift them out of the nest to look for a couple of days, they'll be wandering about soon so you will get an opportunity then. Glad all seems well
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Post by yasmin on Sept 14, 2015 15:07:54 GMT
Because I was such a coward about picking up the baby goos, and because I was so afraid of making a mistake, I took the babies to the vet when they were around 6-8 weeks old. I brought a couple of carriers, and he separated the males from the females. Then, when I got home I returned the girls to their mom, and introduced the boys to their father. He took to them immediately and they went directly into the cage with him. Glad that Mum is doing fine and that there are just 3 babies. Hopefully they are either all female or that there are at least two boys. Also great to hear that all the girls are girls. Seems like Prudence is Prea's right-hand girl. (Hopefully she is not pregnant too.) Hmmmm. Just realized that it was 4 years ago yesterday (Sept. 13) when my Lilac gave birth to her babies. (My degu Peridot gave birth a month later on October 11.)
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Post by deguconvert on Sept 14, 2015 15:39:49 GMT
Congratulations, Ryan!! I've nothing more to add to what has already been said by others. It does sound like all is well. I'm sure you will enjoy them, they are such characters!
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Post by bouncy on Sept 14, 2015 19:56:33 GMT
That's brilliant, Ryan, congratulations to you and Prea! Sounds like all is going well!
Re P@H, you can keep pushing. If they are that careful at sexing, then they should also only use responsible breeders.
Good luck!
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Post by ryanj on Sept 15, 2015 7:42:36 GMT
Because I was such a coward about picking up the baby goos, and because I was so afraid of making a mistake, I took the babies to the vet when they were around 6-8 weeks old. I brought a couple of carriers, and he separated the males from the females. Then, when I got home I returned the girls to their mom, and introduced the boys to their father. He took to them immediately and they went directly into the cage with him. Glad that Mum is doing fine and that there are just 3 babies. Hopefully they are either all female or that there are at least two boys. Also great to hear that all the girls are girls. Seems like Prudence is Prea's right-hand girl. (Hopefully she is not pregnant too.) Hmmmm. Just realized that it was 4 years ago yesterday (Sept. 13) when my Lilac gave birth to her babies. (My degu Peridot gave birth a month later on October 11.) Yeah our ideal situation would be 2 boys that we can re-home and a baby girl to keep. But we'll see...I'll give it a week before sexing them. Thanks for everyone's help, advice and congratulations :-) The babies are beginning to venture around the cage now which is incredibly sweet to watch. One observation though: The girls seem a bit more playful. Enya in particular keeps trying to mount everyone (not the babies) and there is a lot more play fighting going on than usual. Lots of quick movements and more noise. A little bit worried that the babies may get hurt. We don't have a huge cage but this is definitely something we're going to sort out asap!
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Post by Maravilla on Sept 15, 2015 8:30:39 GMT
A little bit worried that the babies may get hurt. Don't worry too much about the wee ones. They are tougher than you think. Also degu moms can handle them quite roughly. Just make sure there isn't any real danger for the babies as soon they will be very active. And degu babies are pretty fearless! Have you considered weighing them on a regular basis (twice a week) to make sure all is going fine and that they get enough milk?
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Post by ryanj on Sept 15, 2015 9:41:18 GMT
A little bit worried that the babies may get hurt. Don't worry too much about the wee ones. They are tougher than you think. Also degu moms can handle them quite roughly. Just make sure there isn't any real danger for the babies as soon they will be very active. And degu babies are pretty fearless! Have you considered weighing them on a regular basis (twice a week) to make sure all is going fine and that they get enough milk? Ah good! Yeah certainly active. Its only day 2 and they're wondering about the cage after Mum! Haven't weighed them yet but we will, probably tomorrow. Thanks for advice.
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Post by Bexi87 on Sept 15, 2015 10:59:00 GMT
Glad it's going well for you all and Prea sounds like she is going a great job! Pictures please!!
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Post by ryanj on Sept 15, 2015 11:13:11 GMT
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