Tomeo half shrieking half squeaking at me

[kioshiandtomeo]

What's wrong? He wasn't doing this before we moved the cage. I went upstairs and was fixing my hair and make up, came downstairs, and he was doing this. not at Kioshi either. he looked at me in the end and was doing it. I've left the room, andd he's still sounds like he's screeching/shrieking/barking.

Update:

I just removed him from the cage, and he's stopped shrieking. I guess it was directed at Kioshi. **Sigh**

Any suggestions on how i can fix this problem. I'm new, and i've never had degus before. I read up on them, and found two introduced males. their less than ia year, so i have been expecting a fight. But they never fought. Kioshi was just sitting there with an exasperated look, looking at me for help, while Tomeo was barking.

so PLEASE help!!!

UPDATE: Tomeo is doing this anymore. I reintroduced them just now, three hours later, and they seemed to be getting on fine.
Their last owner said they've been together for a year and a half, so i suspect their fine. just a little dominance issue thank god!


Rachel & The Zoo.

[diet otaku]

it depends on what kind of screeching he was making... if it's the short, repeated "EEP EEP EEP"s, he could have been startled by something. if it's long, drawn-out squeals, that's more of a territorial noise (mine do it a lot when they're staking their claims on a fresh bowl of food).

[kioshiandtomeo]

yea, I think it was the EEP! EEP! noises. It was ear shattering, really. I read some other post, and i was like, that sounds exactly like what Tomeo was doing. Thanks for the help though. I just got my two 3 days ago, and some of the noises i haven't read or heard about, especially the EEPing one. It's so nice to know there is a forum on degus online

-Rachel & The Zoo.

[kioshiandtomeo]

haha, Tomeo started up after we moved the temporary cage into my room. I think he smelt the rabbit or something (My rabbit is littertrained so she runs free in my room, even has a hole in the wall for her litter box ^^''') and Kioshi, the more passive one, was just staring at him from the wheel with an exasperated "just shut up, idiot!" look on his face. I Took Tameo out, just to be safe. They missed each other so i stuck them back together 2 and a half hours later. seemed to have forgotten what the fuss was about, too.

-Rachel & The Zoo.

[diet otaku]

yeah, it happens a lot where one degu will get startled for some reason, and start eeping, and the others just look at him totally confused, because they don't know what his problem is. be careful when picking up a scared degu, though, as they may bite.

[kioshiandtomeo]

yea, i can't pik them up yet by hand. i use a hamster ball and gently prod them till they go in. then i just take them to where they need to go. it's a bit awkward, though, as i have to take all the drift wood out and. . . oh man. two days back they had another eeping fit, but instead of taking the eeper away, i let him do it for 2 hours. hasn't done it again, so maybe they were a little upset at each other? or just feeling like complaining, perhaps? I do have a house rabbit, so i wouldn't be surprised if they were worried about her. she has been gaurding that cage day and night! they are her little babies. it's very amusing. she definitely wanted some company. the degus seem to be curious too. if she stands up and looks into the cage, one of them will run up and say hi, before going back to his wheel! No regrets about taking these two in.

-Rachel & The Zoo.

[thegrouchybeast]

When I first got my degus, they would alarm call for no apparent reason. FatOne in particular, would sit on the top level and 'eep' for ages. I think they were just disturbed by the change of surroundings and all the new noises and smells. I just left them to it, once I was sure they weren't fighting or hurt, and it tailed off over time.

[diet otaku]

mine also sometimes start eeping and squealing when they want my attention. >.>

[kioshiandtomeo]

yea, they've pretty much stopped after i let them do their eeping for 2 hours. i think they remeber it hurts their throats, so they don't wish to go do it now.

Tomeo will now come up to me if i have my hand out and start grooming me, licking as well as nibbling. if he starts nibbling to hard, i just go "nononono. . " and becomes gentler. i heard that you could do a slight squeak, but i haven't mastered it yet

Kioshi loves to be petted, as long as tomeo is near him to guard him from the"beast". If kioshi is scared, he runs over to Tomeo and shoves his head into tomeo's belly and tries to hide himself. Tomeo only sits there calmly, and will give the person (Usually my dad) a glare at scaring his bro. i find it sooo amusing. they really are very social animals. I was surprised today at how similar, though, the EPPing noises were to a squirrel. We saw one today as we were walking, and he started eeping at us, just a bit softer. Are they in the same family as squirrels? I know they are in the same family of rodents as Rabbits and chins. not sure if squirrels are though.

-Rachel & The Zoo.

[Aimeelou]

Yes, squirrels are related to degus. I read that the actual meaning of the word Degu is a "Chillian Squirrel"

[diet otaku]

degu is the scientific name of the species, but in their home country they are referred to as "chilean ground squirrels." i think their similarity to squirrels is part of why i love them so much. ^__^

[kioshiandtomeo]

lol, that is so neat! I'll have to remember their called that in chile!

Yea, the similarity to squirrels has had us in stitches!

Right now, we're in the process of building their huge, permanent cage. it'll be about 6' tall, and around 30 inches or so wide. they'll be so spoilt!

-Rachel & the Zoo.