lorr1
Newborn Degu
Posts: 6
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Post by lorr1 on Jun 21, 2017 11:32:15 GMT
Hi All, I've just joined. My name is Lou and I have 5 brothers called Talon; Teemo; Kennen; Jinx and Jax! Names chosen by my son! I want to ask if unusually hot weather can make the gu's more prone to being spooked for no obvious reason, or if this is just something that happens sometimes anyway? We have had our boys for 8wks now and have had 3 of these episodes. It can take up to 24hrs for them to settle back to normal. They are generally very friendly, especially when oats are on offer!!
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Post by savvy on Jun 21, 2017 11:44:10 GMT
Welcome to the forum! Love the names of your boys.
Yes! The hot weather can cause all sorts of unusual behaviour in degus. They will be grumpier, less active, easily spooked, although this can happen anyway.
As you have only had tbem for a few weeks, they will still be settling in and will have times when their behaviour is erractic.
I would suggest that you speak to them softly to reassure them, don't make any sudden or jerky movements as this can really freak out an already super alert degu.
If you have questions, please do not hesitate to ask, there really are no silly questions when it comes to degus, they truly are a law unto themselves.
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lorr1
Newborn Degu
Posts: 6
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Post by lorr1 on Jun 21, 2017 12:13:09 GMT
Thank you. We have already figured out that these adorable creatures are totally bonkers!! Any tips on how to hand train them will be very welcome. They will crawl all over our hands when we give them oats and let us stroke them and even kiss the tops of their heads, but if we try to hold them they're off!
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Post by savvy on Jun 21, 2017 12:20:24 GMT
Wow! I've had one of mine since November and I can't even get him to take food through the bars yet. You've done really well.
They do hate being picked up. Try not to pick them up, more lift them on the palm of your hand, anything else will feel like a preditor has them. Some degus never get used to being picked up and prefer to run all over their hooman rather than being held.
Try sitting by the cage with your arm inside, palm upwards, with treats and allow them to eat from your hand. When they are comfortable with this, try lifting your hand a couple of inches from the floor of the cage, it may take several attempts for them to allow you to lift them out of the cage like this.
They will get more confident as they settle down, but its early days yet.
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Post by deguconvert on Jun 21, 2017 15:14:24 GMT
Hello, Lorr1, and welcome to the forum!! Five boys, huh?? You certainly have your hands full!! That is a good group and will be a lot of fun. May I ask some questions? What are the ages of your degus? Do you know if they are all from the same litter, or mixed litters? Where did you get them from? We frequently find that pet stores do not correctly sex the degus they sell. Do you know how to sex degus? Are you certain they are all male? Just in case, here is a link deguworld.proboards.com/thread/13070/degus that shows how to sex your degus. If you have mixed sexes in there, you could find yourself with pups as young degus can procreate as young as six weeks in females and 8-10 weeks in males. Here is a link that is quite helpful for new owners, and for those who have owned but find themselves in the adventure of young degus again. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/19754/beginners-guide-degu-keeping And this one deguworld.proboards.com/thread/13040/nightwishravens-beginners-guide-degu-keepingCage sizing is truly crucial with degus. While there is no way we can provide them with the ground space/area they inhabit in the wild, we can do our best to make good choices for their habitat when they are in captivity. We have a cage size recommendation on our forum that is based on surface area per degu multiplied by the number of degus in the cage. Here is the link for this. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/9396/forums-cage-size-recommendationsAs well, degu nutrition is not a straight forward thing. Degus are strict herbivores, but as a rodent, their teeth are continually growing so must be continually worn down by their gnawing and chewing. This means that the kinds of things they eat are important for their fiber as well as their nutrition. We have excellent guidance for this in our Diet and Nutrition board. Have a nose through all the stickies, and here is a guide to help get you started, deguworld.proboards.com/thread/16425/degu-feeding-guideWell that is a lot to get through, and you are bound to have a multitude of questions. Please ask them all and do not held back. We are glad to help and do not hold it against anyone when they have a lot of questions. We know that the learning curve with degus it HUGE, having had to learn it ourselves, and are here to assist as well as we can.
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lorr1
Newborn Degu
Posts: 6
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Post by lorr1 on Jun 22, 2017 10:56:15 GMT
Hi, Thank you for the advice and the links. Our boys are defo all boys thank goodness. All from the same litter, and collected from the poor lady who was sold incorrectly sexed goos from a pet shop when they were 10wks old. They are now 18wks old. Totally gorgeous, totally destructive and unbelievable poo and pee machines!! We did quite a bit of research before embarking on this adventure with our boys, so am aware of their nutritional needs and entertainment needs. BUT despite having many toys, obstacle courses and wheels, the most important thing for them is destrying their house!!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2017 11:21:13 GMT
Hi Lorr1 can I ask how big your cage(s) is? For 5 degus you'd need a custom made cage, or several cages joined together. We'd love to see what you've done to optimise space for 5 degus x
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lorr1
Newborn Degu
Posts: 6
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Post by lorr1 on Jun 25, 2017 15:47:26 GMT
Hi Emily, I have tried to attach a pic of the cage, but it is more than 1mb! Measurements are 125 x 92 x 61 cms. It has 4 levels; 2 wheels; 2 hammocks; 2 houses; burrowing tray; obstacle course; hay rack and ball, and numerous shelves and toys!! Plans are in place to connect 2 cages together with ferret tubes and make a run for them. They seem to be happy at the moment. I change things round in the cage weekly at every 'big clean'! we have a smaller cage which we use when we are cleaning the big cage. P.S. They all have their own feeding bowls, and they have a sand bath. If you can tell me anything I have missed out that they should have I would be very grateful as I am a newbie!!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2017 15:59:35 GMT
You shouldn't be doing a big clean. You should only spot clean every week, then do sections of the cage properly cleaned every so often - never the whole cage all at once. Degus rely heavily on scent and you can really upset the hierarchy by removing those smells. Moving things around isn't a problem though and keeps things interesting. Is it 4 full levels? What size are your wheels? Two cages of the same size together would be much better for a group of 5 x They really enjoy wooden toys, cardboard boxes and so forth due to the amount they chew - very cheap and easy to come by. All having their own feeding bowl and water bottle is great. They should be okay sharing a sand bath.
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Post by Bexi87 on Jun 25, 2017 23:33:23 GMT
If you use a host site such as photobucket you'll be able to link to the picture. We have very limited space on the forum so attaching/uploading pictures directly is difficult!
Would love to see the cage too. Always on the lookout for ideas 😊
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lorr1
Newborn Degu
Posts: 6
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Post by lorr1 on Jun 28, 2017 11:51:58 GMT
Hi Emily, Thanks for the advice. I have been following the regime suggested in the "degu" book by Dr Anne McBride which suggests removing the poo every day and cleaning the whole cage with soap and water and pet disinfectant spray weekly. I do always put back some of the used substrate back so that their smell is in the cage. I also retain most of thei bedding, only removing the soiled bits. Both wheels are 12". The new cage arrived about 2 mins ago....now have to sort out makin it up and joining the two together!
Thanks Bexi87, I will check out photobucket. Might have to get my son onto it, I'm not very good with computer stuff!!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 28, 2017 14:40:16 GMT
lorr1, books and the likes are generally very very outdated, as are some Facebook groups and some other websites. They follow out of date information unfortunately. Degu keeping has come along a lot and this forum and our German counterparts are really at the forefront of it all. So I'd definitely stop cleaning so much and perhaps rely on this website as your no.1 source when I first got degus I didn't have a CLUE and I didn't realise I was following such out of date advice from books and petshops and certain websites!! I was appalled when I joined here and found out I'd been following advice that's years behind actual up to date research and advice! Most of us have made the same mistake. The reason I'm still here and I'm in the position I am is because I love this forum and wouldn't trust anything I read anywhere else. So try doing what I've said above with your cleaning. x I spot clean once a week, give everything a fluff up and shake a bit of poop out. I never do big cleans. I find spot cleaning once a week by the end of a month or two everything's been changed anyway re the bedding. But it's done slowly in small amounts so they don't really notice. I don't clean any of their toys etc, only surfaces so floors and any ledges. That's it. We'd love to see the cage when it's done x
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Post by savvy on Jun 28, 2017 16:38:42 GMT
I just replace about 99% of the woodshavings, hay and bedding. I just use a dustpan to scoop it all out, quick wipe down of any wee spots that need it, and put fresh stuff on top. There is usually bits of stuff left in the corners etc so they have their scent markers.
I never clean their toys, or fully replace the sand in their baths, and any wood pieces are put back in for them because they have usually wee'd on them so again they are marked.
Otherwise its a bit like someone coming into your home, cleaning everything, moving things around and then removing everything personal to you.
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lorr1
Newborn Degu
Posts: 6
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Post by lorr1 on Jul 7, 2017 12:12:34 GMT
Thanks you for the advice. I will adapt accordingly!! Both cages are now set up. We have an Elegance double Flight cage attached to an Aventure huge rat and chinchilla cage. Still having problems uploading photos....will keep trying! Is the Java wood that is used for bird cage accessories safe for goo's?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2017 12:18:27 GMT
Don't use photo bucket.
You can link directly from Facebook, make a private album and copy direct image link and that works.
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