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Post by Deleted on May 3, 2006 14:05:29 GMT
*waves* Hello there, I'm just a curious soul who stumbled upon this site after seeing the strangest if cutest things ever in the pet store yesterday. after a long night of research I figured I'd ask a few question before saving up and taking the leap with a pair ( non breeding) of these guys.
Now aside from needing a specific diet ( which is probably going to be a pain in the bum but worth it to make.I doubt there's food just for Degu in Canada) are degu at least semi hardy creatures and are they prone to self destructive behavior. I ask this because my last loved pet treize was hamster who climbed the ceiling of his cage no matter what we did then one day fell and broke his back. I don't want to go through that again with another hamster ( and my fiancees appears to be just the same so I'm probably going to have to anyways)
essentially, I'm asking not in a callous way but just an inquisitive one. is it worth it to emotionally involve myself with these guys and will they stand a chance of surviving?
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Hanlou
Burrowing Degu
Basil
Posts: 284
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Post by Hanlou on May 3, 2006 15:24:40 GMT
Hi and welcome to the forum. Degus are intelligent animals, I wouldn't say they are self-destructive or anything like that. With any animal, there is an element of risk in that something could happen and it could die prematurely, but generally, degus do seem to be pretty hardy critters. They live longer than rats / hamsters etc and don't seem to be as prone to healthy problems. Rats, for example, are very prone to respiratory disorders and tumours, which degus aren't. If they are given the correct diet, plenty of things to gnaw on, good quality housing and good general care, they are generally healthy animals, though, as said, you have to be prepared with any animal that something could happen. Please feel free to ask as many questions as you feel you need to! Degus are certainly very endearing animals. I think they're wonderful. ;D
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Post by ra on May 3, 2006 16:10:38 GMT
I second Hanlou! Love my Degu Girls. I've had them for just over a year. They are relatively easy to care for. Almost no odor except for the corner where they pee and that's only slightly noticeable when it's time to clean their cage. I have a large cage and strip it down every other week.
They are bright and cheerful creatures. I just posted in the Degu Behaviour Forum. I actually carried on a conversation with my Mocha last night. There was a communication going on.
Can't say I've seen any self-destructive behavior. Mocha chews the hair off her feet but that's about it. She was terribly stressed by an early pregnancy (bought her as a male!! HA!! She was probably about 6mo old when I bought her at the end of last Feb. The pet shop knew almost nothing about the Degus they were selling. She should have never been bred at that point.) and the birth of 9 Degu puppies. However, 8 puppies survived and appeared to be very healthy. Mocha other than having bald front paws is doing great.
I did some research and found there is a high percentage of captive Degus that chew the hair off their front feet. Doesn't seem to hurt them.
I would recommend them as a companion pet.
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Post by Deleted on May 3, 2006 16:24:53 GMT
hmm sounds good so far, now will the noises they make disturb our remaining hamster? she's not overly skittish and she can sleep through metal music and techno but will another animals sounds upset her. Also in about two weeks we're getting a kitten, part of why f i was planning to get a pair ( females since everythign else in the house is now) i'd want to get them soon so that the kitten learns young that they're not for playing with.
hmm I think I'm going to price cages for them at the pet store today.
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Hanlou
Burrowing Degu
Basil
Posts: 284
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Post by Hanlou on May 3, 2006 16:35:10 GMT
I wouldn't think their noises would upset the hamster. My three live underneath (but in totally separate cages!) my rats, and the rats don't seem to mind them being there.
Besides, degus are active throughout the day, whereas hamsters tend to sleep through the day, so I don't think they'd particularly notice each other really.
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annelise
Newborn Degu
Resident Veterinarian
Posts: 16
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Post by annelise on May 3, 2006 18:14:45 GMT
I find degus are quite hardy little creatures, mine are never ill (thats easier when you're a vet!), and they live quite long: I have two that are five and six and you wouldn't tell them apart from the one year olds! However, they can get self-destructing habits when bored; that mostly happens with degus which are kept alone. Since you are considering getting a pair that should not be a problem. As for food, ( I know some people on the forum will object to this), as no degu-food exists in France I've been giving them chinchilla pellets for six years and they are, as I have said, really healthy little beasts. The only problem I find with degus are that they are noisy (chewing, squeaking, running around in their wheel...) and that (mine at least) hardly ever sleep. So if you have a tiny one room appartment, you might consider getting a calmer pet. As long as you do not have to sleep in the same room as them, they are great pets! (I think that some members here on the forum have much calmer degus than mine, lucky them!)
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Post by Deleted on May 3, 2006 19:56:48 GMT
ok so the pet store rarely sells degu cages but they do sell degu. they do however have rather nice solid bottom wire rabbit cages that i think should do.
however there's a problem. the 4 babies there are too small for the cage and the two adults i think are their parents.( need to ask next time I'm in) if the adults are the pair then how do i keep them from breeding( I don't think it's safe to keep breeding them without fresh gene's) without risking the male's life in surgery?
also odd question. since the cage actually will be going in the bedroom ( it'sa 1 bedroom aprt but we're both heavy sleepers) does anyone know if the cage would need to be removed during special occasions I'd want to celebrate with my fiancee?
sorry for all the questions
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Post by thegrouchybeast on May 4, 2006 9:46:06 GMT
I really wouldn't recommend degus for a bedroom, however heavy a sleeper you are. They are *vastly* more noisy than hamsters. Our degus can make a hell of a racket: squeaking, running on their wheel, and throwing things around the cage (banging the hayrack on the bars is a particular favourite game at the moment). I suppose you could take the wheel and other noisy objects out at night, but personally I'd feel unkind doing that to mine. They also dig like mad and throw the cage substrate around and outside the cage.
As for survival, I gave up keeping rats a few years ago because the have such short lives. Degus seem to live for a good four, five or six years, depending. So far, I've had mine for over a year and they've been 100% healthy. The only suicidal thing they've tried was when FatOne fell out of the cage when I forgot to close the door one night. But after that she became completely paranoid about the cage door and is still very wary of it. They learn very fast.
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Post by diet otaku on May 4, 2006 16:14:44 GMT
degus are natural climbers, so while they may climb the walls of the cage and even the ceiling, they're smart enough not to get too high up and their feet are strong enough to keep a good grip. but i've only seen my degus do this in times of high stress or when exploring a new environment. most of the time they're content to run on the wheel or chase each other around.
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