Post by goofan on Oct 30, 2005 15:15:24 GMT
Well, it's been a difficult couple of months. I received 3 female degus in August for classroom pets. Within the first 2 weeks of having them, one was attacked and had to make a vet visit. (Tragedy Strikes thread)
After tending to her wounds, I tried to reintroduce her to her sisters. Kept her in a cage next to the other two and found that the other two would fight each other while she was in the same room with them (Update on Fighting Goos thread)
After clearing up her infection and taking another degu to the vet for an injury sustained by the same aggressor, I attempted another reintroduction - this is after having kept the degus in the same proximity in 3 separate compartments and rotating their homes for about a week or so.
Merriweather (the original injured one) and Flora (the second one injured) seemd to be getting along okay. Just regular dominance dancing. When Merri was introduced to Fauna (Formerly known as Maleficent), they seemed to be working it out. However, Merri is definitely the aggressor now. I imagine it's because of all the trauma sustained. So, they were getting it sorted out and it seemed to be going okay and then all of the sudden, Merri gets part of her face ripped off. Fauna took a chunk out of her nose and cheek and left a large gaping wound.
It was on a Sunday, so no Vets were open (of course). So, we decided to take Merri home permanently and tend to her there. I treated her wound (very carefully since I've sustained several severe bites over the course of this saga) with saline soak and oral antibiotics which were still available from her recent infection. After about a week and a half, her and nose is scarred, but functional. Thankfully, it never caused difficulty with eating or drinking.
Now she's at home. And I think she likes being by herself. I know they're social animals, but since removing her from the sisters, the other two (flora and fauna) have been getting along famously and Merri enjoys time with me every evening - cuddling in a towel. She runs on her wheel and entertains our cat. She seems none the worse for the wear.
Looking back, when I first got the girls, I always noticed that 2 got along better and 1 was always the odd-ball. I couldn't tell them apart at the time, but I'm convinced that this is just their little personalities. Just like human females. I think 3 may be a crowd.
Does anyone have any experience keeping a single degu? I know this isn't the ideal situation, however, given the circumstances, it's the solution that makes the most sense.
-Amy
After tending to her wounds, I tried to reintroduce her to her sisters. Kept her in a cage next to the other two and found that the other two would fight each other while she was in the same room with them (Update on Fighting Goos thread)
After clearing up her infection and taking another degu to the vet for an injury sustained by the same aggressor, I attempted another reintroduction - this is after having kept the degus in the same proximity in 3 separate compartments and rotating their homes for about a week or so.
Merriweather (the original injured one) and Flora (the second one injured) seemd to be getting along okay. Just regular dominance dancing. When Merri was introduced to Fauna (Formerly known as Maleficent), they seemed to be working it out. However, Merri is definitely the aggressor now. I imagine it's because of all the trauma sustained. So, they were getting it sorted out and it seemed to be going okay and then all of the sudden, Merri gets part of her face ripped off. Fauna took a chunk out of her nose and cheek and left a large gaping wound.
It was on a Sunday, so no Vets were open (of course). So, we decided to take Merri home permanently and tend to her there. I treated her wound (very carefully since I've sustained several severe bites over the course of this saga) with saline soak and oral antibiotics which were still available from her recent infection. After about a week and a half, her and nose is scarred, but functional. Thankfully, it never caused difficulty with eating or drinking.
Now she's at home. And I think she likes being by herself. I know they're social animals, but since removing her from the sisters, the other two (flora and fauna) have been getting along famously and Merri enjoys time with me every evening - cuddling in a towel. She runs on her wheel and entertains our cat. She seems none the worse for the wear.
Looking back, when I first got the girls, I always noticed that 2 got along better and 1 was always the odd-ball. I couldn't tell them apart at the time, but I'm convinced that this is just their little personalities. Just like human females. I think 3 may be a crowd.
Does anyone have any experience keeping a single degu? I know this isn't the ideal situation, however, given the circumstances, it's the solution that makes the most sense.
-Amy