We go together...?

[Eamon]

Weren't sure if this is the right place for this, but I'd like it if everyone could share their experience about which animals goes together in a cage.
I know some have had good luck putting Degus in with Chins, and I know that you shouldn't put a degu in with a Sugar glider.
But what about gerbils and Rats?
Does anyone have advise about any of these?
Or any other combinations?

[Sunshinemeg]

I would very much like to add a chin to my degu brood at a later date, so anyone with experience with that, please post!

I have also had experience of degus and Jerds being happy together. I had female Jerds when I had my first degu. They were watched like hawks when out together, (didnt live together) but they loved running around together. So they work!

[Eamon]

Jerds?

By the way, Meg, you have the same cage as I'm getting... how many degus can you safely have in a cage that size? Coz I might be forced to get two new males, because the guy who is selling them only has two males and he doesn't want to sell them of alone...

[flibble]

I don't think rats and gerbils would be good together as rats grow a lot bigger and they have different temperaments.

[Eamon]

I was thinking more in the lines of
Degu and rat
Degu and Gerbil

...

[flibble]

i guess gerbils and degus are kinda similar so maybe. not sure on rats think they would prefer their own kind!

[Eamon]

guess you're right, but Hanlou has rats and degus, right?

but it'll probably be too difficult with them having to have different food and such...

[annelise]

I've got a chinchilla happily living with three degus, they go on fine and even sleep together, all in a heap... It doesn't seem a problem to them that degus are mostly dayly animals while chinchillas are more of the nocturnal sort. That had me worried at first but everything seems to go quite right. I would never try mixing degus with rats, though: a degu will soon have heath problems if he eats rat food, and rats can be quite agressive with other animals. Chins and degus eat the same thing so that's not a problem.

[Sunshinemeg]

cornelia said:

Jirds?

By the way, Meg, you have the same cage as I'm getting... how many degus can you safely have in a cage that size? Coz I might be forced to get two new males, because the guy who is selling them only has two males and he doesn't want to sell them of alone...

a jird is a large gerbil. They live to about 5 years old and look quite similar to degus. This site has a good pic and lots of info - www.erodent.co.uk/PersianJirdInfo.htm

As for the cage, I have 4 living in there quite happily, everyone has space and they love it!

[branfion]

I wouldn't recommend keeping a rat with a degu- a couple years ago my room mate had a rat who would make a determined effort to chew through the bars of her cage if she even smelled my degu in the room. The one time we tried to introduce them (as babies) she leapt from my room mate's arms and lunged at Loki, so that was the end of that.

[Hanlou]

Rats are very aggressive towards other animals. They should most definitely not be kept with anything other than other rats!! Rats have been known to kill hamsters and gerbils, sometimes even opening up cages to do so.

My rats stay away from my degus, (they know I won't let them near them!) but if the rats do go too near, the degus squeak an alarm at them. Degus are passive critters, they will end up much the worse off if the rat attacks. Best to keep them well apart.

I know that chins and degus have been kept together, but remember that dietary requirements have to match too. Chin pellets often have molasses in, so this is something to be aware of.

A degus diet is totally different to that of a gerbil or jird, so no matter how well they get on, I would not recommend housing them together. I used to have a pair of Shaw's jirds, they got on well with the guinea pigs, but they didn't live together, and any time spent together was well supervised.

Rats are a real 'no-no' though.