fat or skinny?

[mikidiot]

hello again! So I have two female degus who are about 7 months old now. One of them is thicker than the other. I am a bit worried because when they are sleeping, Historia looks really thin. (her shape can be seen in the first picture) (sorry for the bad drawing tho XD)


and the other degu Holly is visually thicker than Historia (seen in second picture)

Should I be worried? Is this normal? is Historia too thin or is Holly to fat?

[Deleted]

I’m not really following the drawings! Could you weigh your degus? Weight will give us the best idea.

[misscatafer]

What do they weigh? Degus will puff themselves up to make themselves look bigger, so visually they can be misleading. The best thing to do if you are concerned is to weigh them. Degus vary in weight and size. Weigh them and let us know

[mikidiot]

It's hard for me to weight them because I cannot pick them up The are not used to being handled.

[mikidiot]

ok, I out them on the scales, Historia weighs 181g and Holly is 231g

[savvy]

Just a quick thought.... have you established that they are both girls?

[mikidiot]

yes I have

[moletteuk]

It's normal for one degu to be bigger than the other, but that is quite a big difference. Are they getting plenty to eat? Younsters require more food than adults. Are you providing separate bowls or scatter feeding so that one degu can't control the access to food of the other? What are you feeding? Pellets, forage, oil seeds, roots?

If you think Historia may have lost weight then you should take her to the vet to get checked out, also the shape you draw doesn't look like a particularly healthy shape with the bone outline visible, so unless you have an explanation in the form of Holly preventing her eating enough, then a visit to the vet could be a good idea. You could also watch her eating and check she isn't showing any signs of dental issues.

It's generally a good idea to weigh your degus regularly, you can use a tube or a box of some kind and some treats for bribery to make it a simpler task.

[mikidiot]

I give them Vitapol premium feed for degu. I put the feed in 2 bowls one for Historia and the other For Holly ( in each corner of the cage so they don't fight ) I feed them once in the morning and once in the evening as told by the lady who sold them to me. Historia seems to be eating just fine, she takes everything I've offered to her (treats, food) But she is more hyper than Holly, she quite often runs in the wheel and around the cage.

The only problem is that I don't have a vet around where I live that takes in little animals ( only cats, dogs and bigger )

[misscatafer]

Continue to weigh them weekly to pick up any changes / weight loss and keep on monitoring her intake.

Its really important to find a vet near you if you should ever need one. You need a plan if one of your degus has an accident or becomes unwell. Have you looked through this thread deguworld.proboards.com/thread/15521/vet guide to see if there are any suitable vets near you?

[mikidiot]

I will, thank you.

[bouncy]

Seriously, don't worry. Goos are like humans, and come in all different shapes and sizes.

I have two brothers. One weighs 240g, and the other 320g. Both are happy and healthy.

[moletteuk]

Extra activity can affect weight a lot. Are they both drinking similar amounts?

[degulover21]

All mine weight different only worry if they stop eating or drinking.just keep an eye on there weights.Mine are:257g 323,300 and 275 yes fudge gained a lot lol