Dame Maggie update

[randomname]

Breakthrough yesterday!

I was cleaning her out & she was really friendly. She nibbled my hand a few times, took treats & climbed a little bit on my arm. She seemed very playful & cheeky to me, just something in her facial expressions & body language suggested she was being silly. Bouncing around, then looking straight at me (with a playful look) then bouncing around again, then climbing on me & bouncing off. She let me scratch behind her ear for the first time (i did use a treat to bribe her) so I hope soon she'll let me properly stroke her. I melted just a little....

She chewed her bed straps, so made some chains to hold it instead. Gave it a wash while I was there. 

She continues to adore forage, she gets excited when I put the big bowl in. Her appetite is great, lots of nibbling all the time. She really likes her wheel, looks much more comfortable running on it than the smaller one. 

Her fur is looking fab - have been using cornstarch in her bath. Her sides have improved a lot & a good 80-90% of the urine staining is gone YIPPEE! Her sides & underneath are still lumpy from chewing, but I haven't seen her do it at all. I don't know if she's stopped or if she's hiding it. 
Has anyone else had a fur chewer of any species? Did they do it on the sly or were they blatant? 

Overall I'm very very pleased with her progress, she's doing much better than I anticipated

Edit : I have also had zero trouble from the boys since I removed the divider. She & they are fine near each other, but they're not close enough to touch.

[moletteuk]

Fabulous

What's the idea with the cornstarch, can it help remove staining?

[deguconvert]

That is a whole lot of great happening!!

I am curious about the cornstarch as well. Is that all by itself, or is it blended in with the bathing sand?

[randomname]

I kept reading about using cornstarch for staining on paler chins, but no where told me how much or how often. I ended up just putting 3 big tablespoons in with her sand.
It made her fur lighter, fluffier & less stained. I also used it on the boys, made them more fluffy but had no effect on the colour as they're already super white. I decided to try a tablespoon full in the degus bath too, their fur got a bit lighter, but was noticeably more fluffy, less sleek. I don't think I'd bother using it for the degus or Sir Ian & Sir Patrick again unless they need it, but Dame Maggie has definitely benefited.

I don't know whether to continue using it daily with her or not? I might give it a week, just use sand, so I can see if it's removed the staining or just masked it. Either way she looks a ton better

[randomname]

Just thought I should add that the cornstarch is acting as an strong absorbent. It absorbs all oils & any liquids from the coat. I'm not sure, but assume as it's particles are smaller than sand, that the majority is shaken out after bathing. It might be still in the coat though, which is why I might give her a plain sand bath for a week to see what happens.

I've been desperately trying to source blue cloud dust, but it seems it's only available via US import & only in tiny amounts for stupid prices. I think the main source has gone for some reason, so it's hard to source. A lot of the blue cloud brands have switched to some sort of alternative like 'blue cloud beauty' which apparently is silica, which is not what I'm looking for.

Good news is that I don't think I'll have to pay for a vet visit to sort Dame Maggie's fur out at any rate

[moletteuk]

That makes sense that the cornstarch is working as an absorbant, it's such fine powder. I think it sounds like a great idea to go back to sand/ normal dust to remove any remaining dirty cornstarch from her coat.

You know more about the blue cloud than me, I've never even seen it, but I wouldn't think it ought to be necessary, the UK alternatives are very similar.