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Post by carissa on Dec 8, 2005 3:56:45 GMT
One of my two degus just died today. I found out about 5 mins ago. Hubby IMd me to tell me at work. It was the younger of the two and the one that would always climb into my hand and take food from my hand. I could even hold her upside down a bit in my hands.
Hubby said when he pulled out her body, one of the paws had been gnawed down to the bone. Could this have been my second degu's doing? Is it usually done after a degu dies? Could the degu have done it to herself? Will the living degu be aggressive now if she did it? Should I get another one to keep the one live company?
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Post by worthym on Dec 8, 2005 4:50:26 GMT
This sort of behaviour is fairly common in gerbils, so I wouldn't be surprised to see it in degus. The reason for this is that in the wild, the smell of the dead animal would invite predators, and thus they "clean up" the carcass. I would be relatively certain that this is just instinct kicking in. Degus do appreciate company, they are very social creatures, so it is obviously worth getting a new friend for the remaining degu. This might not be simple, any new degu would require a slow introduction, and there is no 100% guarantee that they will bond - but if they do, they will both be happier than being lone degus. I'm sure others will have much more advice to give you too, but I hope that helps a little.
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Post by carissa on Dec 8, 2005 6:25:45 GMT
Well the local SPCA has 4 degus for adoption (3 girls, and a boy) - they've been on the SPCA page for a while, so they might be willing to split one of the girls. SPCA Degu Page HereInterestingly, when I got Idril and introduced her to Nerys I just plopped them in together and they got along. Maybe in 20/20 hindsight not smart. But it worked. Oh yea, can I give Nerys (remaining degu) a small bath and gently towel dry her as she might have walked through Idril's remains and blood? Is there a better option - I've tried giving dust bath - she doesn't seem to know what to do with it other than try to eat it. Heh
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roz
Newborn Degu
Posts: 0
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Post by roz on Dec 8, 2005 11:56:19 GMT
I'm so sorry for you that your degu has died Do you know why she died? If it could have been through illness, maybe it would be better to wait a short while before getting another degu, just in case it's catching. I wouldn't bathe Nerys in water, as she could easily catch cold. Degus are very good at grooming themselves and keeping themselves clean, so she would soon clean up any blood that might have got on her.
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 8, 2005 13:21:32 GMT
degus don't need baths in water to keep clean, just make sure she has a dustbowl available and she'll take care of herself. my degus tend not to roll around in their dustbowl a lot, they just jump in and out and bury food in it. but they still manage to keep themselves clean.
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Post by carissa on Dec 8, 2005 13:24:16 GMT
Well my water bottles weren't working well... every time i used one they seemed to fail. So I was trying a dish of water. I think she might not have got enough water. Except that there was water in there today when I got home. So I don't think it was that. And she was active yesterday. One of my cats was on the top of the cage and both girls being the fearless degus that they are, decided to investigate the cats.
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roz
Newborn Degu
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Post by roz on Dec 8, 2005 13:40:49 GMT
I've tried a bowl of water before and none of my degus drank from it. In theory they should, as in the wild they would take water from wherever they could get it, but it maybe pet degus have lost that instinct over the years of breeding in cages.
If your degu died of dehydration then you would have seen a difference in looks and behaviour. She would have been lethargic beforehand and her stools would have been small and dry. Her skin would have been less supple (if you pull it up, it doesn't spring back quickly).
My degus are also not afraid of the cats, and come to the front of the cage to touch noses. The older cats then just walk away, but the kitten has caught (or bitten) the end of one of the boys' tails. Just half a centimeter. If your Idris had a paw missing, maybe the cat bit it? She could then have died of shock and/or blood loss.
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Post by carissa on Dec 8, 2005 13:51:33 GMT
I've tried a bowl of water before and none of my degus drank from it. Mine actually would drink from it. If your degu died of dehydration then you would have seen a difference in looks and behaviour. She would have been lethargic beforehand and her stools would have been small and dry. Her skin would have been less supple (if you pull it up, it doesn't spring back quickly). She didn't seem to act any more lethargic than normal. And when I handled her the other day, she also felt normal. My degus are also not afraid of the cats, and come to the front of the cage to touch noses. The older cats then just walk away, but the kitten has caught (or bitten) the end of one of the boys' tails. Just half a centimeter. If your Idris had a paw missing, maybe the cat bit it? She could then have died of shock and/or blood loss. LOL my cats are more afraid of the degus than the other way around. The cats also cannot get onto the top of the cage unless I put them there, and I for some reason cannot see Idril sticking a foot that far out to get it "chomped." BTW, I'm not trying to shoot down your theories. Just thinking through logically if those could have happened and explaining more.
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Post by ra on Dec 8, 2005 20:26:33 GMT
I'm so sorry you've lost one of your Degus. It's very difficult to say why. Especially since she appeared to be fine the day before.
I agree with what worthym said about the second Degus possibly attempting to dispose of the deceased. My Mocha "buried" her baby that died under their nest box deep in the bedding.
Nerys will probably be happier with another female Degu to converse with and co-groom etc. Unless you have lots of time to spend with Nerys she will get lonely. I was going to try to keep Mocha as a single Degu until she had 9 babies of which 8 lived. I worried that Mocha would go into a depression if I removed all the babies so I kept one female Tanzania Peaberry to keep her company. I am very glad I did. I love to sit with them and listen to them talk back and forth. There's nothing more precious than two or more Degus in a Degu pile up for a nap!
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Post by carissa on Dec 8, 2005 21:42:22 GMT
I love the sounds of degus talking together. I love to just sit quietly and listen to the chirps. Nerys is coming over to me more now to say hi.
I completely cleaned the cage this morning and put new bedding, food, and water in. If i do get a degu can you guys recommend the best way to introduce new degus?
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 9, 2005 2:24:38 GMT
the best way to introduce one or more new degus is to keep the newbie(s) in a separate cage, and place the new cage right next to the old cage. this way, the degus can get used to each others' scents and behaviors, and converse with one another, but will not be able to fight should they not get along. at first they will be very excited and curious about the new degus. once everyone has had time to settle down and get back into their old routines, you can take the degus out together and let them interact face to face, in a safe area like an enclosed bathroom. let them run around supervised for a little while, until they get bored or anxious. once that goes well, you can try introducing the new degu(s) into the same cage as the old degu, during the day when you can watch them. separate them if they get overly aggressive, but by that time they should be well on their way to bonding.
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Post by carissa on Dec 9, 2005 8:53:34 GMT
Just a quick lil something I whipped up in the GIMP for my girl.
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Hanlou
Burrowing Degu
Basil
Posts: 284
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Post by Hanlou on Dec 9, 2005 10:49:43 GMT
She was beautiful. Sorry for your loss. {{{hugs}}} to you.
It is a natural animal instinct to 'dispose' of the body. I've heard of quite a few cases recently where owners have found the body of one rodent eaten by the other cagemates. It's a defense mechanism, to prevent other animals from smelling the dead animal and being attracted to the area.
Not nice for you though. If you do get Nerys a friend, I hope it all works out for you.
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northernstar40
Foraging Degu
May you always have an angel by your side
Posts: 102
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Post by northernstar40 on Dec 9, 2005 12:56:55 GMT
Im so sorry to hear of your loss. I t is so hard to losse a family pet no matter how big or small. I have had boo-boo living alone now for quite some time. About 6 months or say and he seems to be fine. i do though feel so guilty now when I cant spend time with him more than once a day. We have just been so busy with Christmas, My parents 50th wedding anniversary and my daughters wedding that is is almost impossible to spend the time he needs. So I am off to look for a friend. My worry is that he will soon choose his friend ove me. When I reach in to his cage he stars cooing and chirping and even lifts his leg for scratches. He realy gets excited when I open the door. I just love the fact that he is cooing at me!
Peg
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Post by ra on Dec 9, 2005 19:34:22 GMT
Northernstar - boo-boo probably will choose his new cage mate over you. I was a bit sad when Mocha stopped coming to me for scratches and won't sit in my hand to eat anymore. But when you see the lone Degu interact with a cage mate you know you've done the right thing for your pet.
The decision to get a cage mate for Mocha was taken care of by her litter of babies. I knew then for certain she wouldn't be happy all by herself. The worry of introducing a new Degu was eliminated for me since Tanzania Peaberry was her daughter. I was very, very lucky though at the time I was in shock since I though Mocha was a male( Virgil)!
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Post by deguqueen on Dec 9, 2005 23:52:15 GMT
Hey Carissa, why don't you get all three girls from the shelter? I'm not sure what size of cage you have but I would think the more the better and I'm sure those three girls don't want to be seperated and it would be lots of new frinds for your lone degu!
Just a thought. I can understand why you just have one more if the habitat isn't large enough.
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Post by carissa on Dec 28, 2005 9:56:55 GMT
Hey Carissa, why don't you get all three girls from the shelter? I'm not sure what size of cage you have but I would think the more the better and I'm sure those three girls don't want to be seperated and it would be lots of new frinds for your lone degu! Just a thought. I can understand why you just have one more if the habitat isn't large enough. Well, those three were already adopted anyhow and all that was left was the boy. However I was searching on buysell.com for a new car and decided to check out the small animal section to see if there were any degus there. Lo and behold there was an offer there for degus + cage for $120. I called up the number listed in the ad and talked to the mom. It appears they bought a pair of females in the summertime and the boy is developing asthma to them. So even though both mom and boy like the degus they have to sell them. So here's the information I do have on them. 2 females Less than a year old. One really tame in the hands The other is possibly a runt, she had little scabs above her eye when they first got her. She's a little skittish now, but still friendly. The cage they're selling is described as a chinchilla cage which is a degu's dream. Lots of platforms to jump to. Metal base. When they were babies they had to move them to a different cage because they could've slipped out. She doesn't want to sell the degus and the cage separately because she doesn't want to have to sell the cage on it's own. According to her the whole setup cost her $250 new including the degus. Cage dimensions: 30"x18"x33" (76.2 x 45.72 x 83.82 cm) My current setup is 22" (long) x 29" (high) x 12" (deep) (55.88 x 73.66 x 30.48 cm) Thoughts and opinions here?
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Post by diet otaku on Dec 28, 2005 11:51:47 GMT
those cage dimensions sound a lot like the one i have, which is a good size for 3 degus. it cost me $120 new from petsmart, so you'd basically be getting the degus free.
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Post by carissa on Dec 28, 2005 15:00:07 GMT
Yea but thing I don't get is that she paid $250 for the whole thing plus degus. Now if she got a $120 cage + accssories, then that's $130 for degus at $65 a piece. That's a lot for degus, unless as hubby says they're "pooping diamonds." Degus here run around $20 each ... so $40 for degus leaves with $210 for the cage and with dimensions at 33/18/30 the cage also better be made of titatnium. Any ideas if my current setup would work for 3 degus? I gave dimensions above & here's a link to a pic of my cage link
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Post by ra on Dec 28, 2005 18:09:46 GMT
I think I'd go for the cage and Degus for $120. Then wire your cage to the new one and have a wonderful condo for your girls. I know I spent over $300 on cages. A baby cage they quickly out-grew then a carry cage for when I'm cleaning and two chinchilla cages stacked vertically as a condo for my Degu Girls.
You have to remember the seller's cage may be similar yet different from diet's accounting for some of the difference in cost and what about the money exchange difference between the USA and Canada? I can believe the seller spent $250 on a cage as describe with a metal base. I paid $25 for my Degu Mocha.
I'm afraid your current setup might be a bit small for 3 Degus unless you are able to let them out each day for exercise and play. I could be wrong about that - I tend to go overboard.!
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