|
Post by mrflibble on Jul 11, 2006 9:00:38 GMT
Hi people im new i have 4 degus (1 male and 3 females) have had them over a year now, is it true that they can not have sugar as my group seems to enjoy a weekly treat of sugar cubes and fruit they cant get enough of this they also love frosties there dosent seem to be any ill effects with this so i think the sugar thing that people go on about is just an old wives tale ill post pics later today
|
|
|
Post by diet otaku on Jul 11, 2006 12:22:04 GMT
IT IS MOST CERTAINLY NOT AN OLD WIVES TALE. of course your degus LIKE the sugar. that doesn't mean it's GOOD for them. it's nothing short of a miracle that your degus haven't keeled over by now. the owner of this site, meg, had a degu that was fed sweet potato regularly, and he died after a year. degus were brought to this country by SCIENTISTS researching DIABETES, because degus are naturally diabetic. a diet rich in sugar will cause degus to develop cataracts, gain weight, drink water excessively, and eventually die.
|
|
|
Post by mrflibble on Jul 11, 2006 16:18:23 GMT
well today my male and 2 of my females had licked off tables.p.o.o.n each of mollasses there favorite treat they really enjoy it , so i cant really belive this about sugar being bad for them for some reason this forum wont accept the word table s.p.o.o.n ??
|
|
|
Post by juliet on Jul 11, 2006 17:29:56 GMT
Just because they like food with sugar in [don't we all] dose'nt mean its good for them, after all people with diabeties don,t go off sugary food do they! Please please stop giving them sugary treats as it is DEFINATELY NOT good for them and will lead to them suffering and a early death.
|
|
|
Post by diet otaku on Jul 11, 2006 17:59:15 GMT
again, JUST BECAUSE THEY LIKE IT DOESN'T MEAN IT'S GOOD FOR THEM. children like ice cream and candy, does that mean parents should feed their kids ice cream and candy all the time? NO! i seriously cannot believe your degus are still alive at this point. if you're going to refuse the advice and knowledge of the many experienced degu owners on this forum, i suggest you find another forum to post on. (also, the reason the board blocks spo.on is because the last 4 letters happen to be a dirty word, which the board replaces with "thingy." so when you type spo.on you end up with "sthingy".) EDIT: maybe this illustration will make things more clear:
|
|
|
Post by Sunshinemeg on Jul 11, 2006 19:17:32 GMT
I am seriously in shock. Mr Flibble, I was going to come to this thread and welcome you to my forum, I try and say hello to every new member, however, you certainly make your point known quickly! Thankfully my mods have instantly picked up on your comments, so I dont really need to add my view about feeding degus sugar, however I will, in very basic terms to help you understand.
This very forum and website was created due to lack of knowledge about degus. It was created after my first degu died. I was told when I bought this degu that it was best kept on its own, and fed daily treats of sweet potato, a veg as its name suggests containing sugar. This degu died at just one year of age. It was at this point I went researching.
I will put this as clearly as diet has, a degu CANNOT EAT SUGAR. you should assume that a degu is diabetic. This is not the case, but for the types of food they are fed it is easiest. In actual fact, int he wild degus do not encounter sugar, as such, their bodies have not grown to adapt to digesting it. If a degu eats sugar over a prolonged period, they develop cataracts, they are prone to heart failure, and will die at a very young age.
I back what Diet says, if you refuse to acknowledge the advice of the MANY experienced degu owners on this forum, and you continue to post argumentative posts, I will not hesitate in removing you. I would however, like to see you learn from this forum, so removing you would be in the least of interests for your degus, and they are the primary concern of both myself, all the mods and the many members of this site.
|
|
mum
Newborn Degu
Posts: 15
|
Post by mum on Jul 11, 2006 21:25:15 GMT
I too am a new member of this forum, but I have been a keen reader of it since its earliest development, and like all the other members I think Degus are the most loving delightful creatures. With care and understanding they enrich our lives as owners, just by the way they trust and interact with us. As owners we OWE the best possible care we can give them, and for you Mr Flibble to deliberately feed them stuff laden with sugar, if not actual sugar, beggers belief!!!! From your profile I see you have reached the grand age of 40, and as such can you honestly say that all the other people on this forum are wrong and you are right? Please please don't let you little clan pay with their lives!!!
|
|
|
Post by Sunshinemeg on Jul 11, 2006 21:38:13 GMT
Totally agree with the last post, sums up my own feelings perfectly!!!
|
|
|
Post by mrflibble on Jul 12, 2006 20:08:15 GMT
ok i have taken on board the advice given so far and have decided to reduce there treats abit. ill stop given them frosties and just give them alittle molasses weekly but ill think they would be upset if i stop with the sugar cubes. They have been good for a year so far also im thinking of introducing the male to the females this week ;D cant wait to hear the patter of tiny feet how long does the gestation period take?
|
|
|
Post by diet otaku on Jul 13, 2006 0:59:13 GMT
D: D: D: *headdesk* ok, for starters, degus aren't exactly like people. if you stopped the sugar cold turkey, they might be kind of confused and annoyed for awhile, but they'll get over it pretty quickly. when i change my degus' brand of feed, they turn their nose up at it for about 2 hours before they decide new food is better than no food and eat it, and then they don't even remember the old food.
breeding should NOT be done intentionally unless you're a PROFESSIONAL BREEDER. breeding greatly reduces a degu's lifespan (for the females, anyway) and can put a lot of stress on the adults who have to help raise the babies. i know degu babies are cute, but in the long run it's in the best interest of your degus' health not to breed.
|
|
mum
Newborn Degu
Posts: 15
|
Post by mum on Jul 13, 2006 11:02:36 GMT
Having already posted on this topic, as well as read the other attempts to educate the clearly misguided MrFlibble by the highly caring and experienced Degu devotees on this forum, I am beginning to wonder if we have all fallen for a scam perpetrated by a very sad individual? As someone of mature years myself, I have come across rather sad people who love a 'wind up', and what better way is there but to exploit the obvious love of, and devotion to, the welfare of Degus? The two most volutile topics that cause 'ruffled feathers' amid honest caring owners are....sugar in the food, and the breeding of degus for the hell of it! Are we being taken for a ride........ ? The hint that I think I see that this might be the case, is that if this degu group does exist, MrFlibble stated in the first post it is a mixed group over a year old, and by my calculations would they mot have bred before now?
|
|
|
Post by diet otaku on Jul 13, 2006 14:00:34 GMT
there is definitely the possibility that mrflibble could be one of many internet "trolls" who love to post just to rile people up. and you're right, odds are if the mixed-gender group has been sharing a living space for this long, they probably would have bred already. however, because of the lack of information about degus it's often difficult to tell the trolls from the simply misguided owners. the insistence on continuing to feed sugar against the advice of everyone here, though, does lean more towards the theory that we've been had. rest assured, we're keeping a close eye on him.
|
|
|
Post by mrflibble on Jul 13, 2006 20:17:15 GMT
[quote author=dietotaku board=talk thread=1152608438 breeding should NOT be done intentionally unless you're a PROFESSIONAL BREEDER..[/quote] Firstly how am i supposed to become a professional breeder with out breeding them in the first place? even the pros have to start somewhere dont they?? secondly i take offense at your posts i am not a troll, i just came here for some advice and i get this! jesus! a little sugar never hurt anyone.... you people are over sensitive thirdly i never got an answer about the gestation period , how long does it take on average ?
|
|
|
Post by Sunshinemeg on Jul 13, 2006 21:14:55 GMT
jesus! a little sugar never hurt anyone.... you people are over sensitive Your comment is deliberately provocative, hence the responses you have had so far. We are not overly sensitive, we are educated, caring degu owners. secondly i take offense at your posts i am not a troll, i just came here for some advice and i get this fair enough, if you want advice, this is the best place to come, if you are going to continue to cause controversy, you will get the replies you have already had. Firstly how am i supposed to become a professional breeder with out breeding them in the first place? even the pros have to start somewhere dont they?? fair enough, but nobody is willing to see degus bred by someone who clearly does not have their best interests at heart. You have me slightly confused. You say you have a group of 4, one male the rest female, why is it that they havent yet bred already? Personally I hold a very dim view on the people that breed degus for the fun of having babies. Also, the people that breed degus just because they think they can make some money. In my own opinion, degus should always be kept in single sex groups to avoid the issues that always arise with breeding, but thats just me. I for one am not about to advise you on how to breed degus when you currently dont know how to look after the ones you have got. To end, I hate having to do this in my forum, but consider this an official warning. If you continue to post provocative posts, you will be removed from the forum. If you want to gain more knowledge to be able to better look after your degus, think carefully about what you say.
|
|
|
Post by diet otaku on Jul 13, 2006 23:52:48 GMT
jesus! a little sugar never hurt anyone try telling that to a diabetic.
|
|
|
Post by Aimeelou on Jul 14, 2006 7:41:26 GMT
FOR GODS SAKE MAN DO NOT BREED THEM! IF YOU DONT KNOW THAT DEGUS CAN NOT HAVE SUGAR HOW ON EARTH CAN YOU LET THE POOR INOCCENT CREATUERS BREED?!?! YOUR IRISONSIBILITY WILL CONTRIBUTE TO MORE UNNECESERY DEGUS WITH FATAL PROBLEMS!!!!!! THIS IS WHY WE HAVE THIS FORUM TO STOP THIS KIND OF UNEDUCATED NONSENCE!!!! SO STOP IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
*Breath* Sorry to all who had to hear that.
|
|
|
Post by diet otaku on Jul 14, 2006 11:23:05 GMT
i'm getting the feeling you may be upset about something, aimeelou...
|
|
|
Post by Sunshinemeg on Jul 14, 2006 11:34:08 GMT
Where on EARTH did you get that idea diet???
|
|
Hanlou
Burrowing Degu
Basil
Posts: 284
|
Post by Hanlou on Jul 14, 2006 18:44:05 GMT
Sorry Aimee - but I had to smile at your reply as well!! I must admit, my first response was 'Troll!' too, but I guess you just never know *sigh*. It seems so much worse that this person might be genuine. :-(
|
|
|
Post by mrflibble on Jul 14, 2006 19:19:50 GMT
You have me slightly confused. You say you have a group of 4, one male the rest female, why is it that they havent yet bred already? The 3 females are together and the male is in a seperate cage , or was in a seperate cage i decided to introduce the male last night , he seems over the moon ;D. I see its takes around 90 days roughly before there born (quite a long time) i thought id better read up abit on it instead of bothering people with questions . Anyways in about 3 months i should have some babies! i cant wait to see them
|
|