degus fighting

[jimndennis]

Hello everyone. I have recently rehomed some more degus, they have been fine up until a few days ago, the two females have started fighting and the one who is being dominated has started fur pulling. She also has half closed eyes and they have been fighting quite violently but no sign of actual rolling and fighting(furball of death?). I've separated them and she is eating now but I am worried about her eyes. I don't want to take her to the vets immediately as she seems very stressed and came straight to my hand. Do i need to take her to the vets? Could I just ask for some eye drops?(i have read some other threads stating eye drops would help, even maybe a saline eye wash)she does seem to be perking up, her eyes are definitely slightly more open now she's been separated. I've given her lots of hay, some sunflower seeds and some fennel seeds which she happily takes. Having read some threads here it seems their cage is too small for two, about 1mx40cmx60cm with a few platforms. I would like to get them back together again and am looking at building them a much bigger enclosure when everything is sorted out.
P.S. you may remember a thread I made about my degu Dennis who broke his leg, he has healed up wonderfully and actually uses his paw like nothing has happened.
thankyou for all your help. Xx

[jimndennis]

Btw, aside from the slightly closed eyes and fur pulling, she has no serious injuries. I think she is just feeling a little sorry for herself. I am giving her plenty of attention and affection, making sure she gets plenty of good food and feels comfortable in her new cage, it is on the small side but enough to keep her comfortable. Just need some advice so I can do what is best, many thanks xx

[bouncy]

Hey! So glad Dennis is back to his old self!

It sounds as if the cage is something that needs sorting out ASAP. In the meantime, is there any chance you could expand the existing one by joining another? Quite often, the P@H Thickets cages are on Gumtree and other sites for free or a small, token amount. Waiting until everything is sorted out is a bit of a catch-22 situation. It's unlikely they'll sort themselves out until they have more space. If it goes on for too long, there's also the chance of a grudge developing. If you thought ex-girlfriends were bad, goos are the ultimate!! Try asserting your authority more, showing that you are the Alpha, and that they should know their place. It can be something as simple as a firm "NO!"

The eye drops mentioned on other threads are prescription only, and human ones aren't appropriate for goos, so it's likely your vet would want to have a look before prescribing anything. As they hide pain, it's possible that the eye squint is a mask of pain, so give her a thorough check over. The fur loss could even be your bossy lady being over-vigorous with the grooming and taking the fur out with her teeth. Either way, once the stress is removed and things are calmer, it should grow back.

How old are the girls? You won't know their birthday, but ball park? Are there any other wounds?

[jimndennis]

I do not know their age but I will contact the previous owner and let you know but I think they were rehomed so it may be hard to tell. I can't fix cages together but I will be able rebuild them something much bigger by next wednesday, is that too long to wait? I may be able to get my father to build something bigger if need be. She definitely needs space right now. I am aware eye drops are degu specific and prescription only. Unfortunately I am going away on wednesday evening until monday evening. I have instructed my father on how to look after her for the time being. I am worried they are fighting due to lack of attention, I have had to start a new job and have little time to see them as much as I would like. I think she will be ok to wait til tomorrow, she is definitely perking up and I've given her plenty of love although she seems more interested in her food, the dominant female is really fat and must have been stealing all her food! I don't want them to be separated, I want them back together.

[jimndennis]

No wounds whatsoever, just a bald back and squinting eyes. She seems ok, just a little depressed I think with enough love and affection she should start feeling better.

[jimndennis]

When I say wait until everything is sorted I mean until she heals, Dennis was bullied in the same way but much more violently and he had to be separated by my friend, that's why I look after him now. I figure they need to be back together in a much bigger cage but surely she just needs some space, food and affection for a few days or so?

[bouncy]

OK, the lack of attention isn't really going to be a thing. Degus are pretty independent so, provided they have enough to entertain them. And I appreciate your effort to get them something larger soon. It's always a tough thing when the unexpected happens, but at least your dad is helping to keep things on track

Try a different feeding tactic - Your little bully is hogging the food bowl, chasing the other away. Perhaps consider two bowls as far apart as possible, and introduce little bullied to the new bowl so she knows where she can get some food in peace. Alternatively, try scatter feeding. Try as she might, bully can't keep her away from the whole floor!

[savvy]

Just throwing this in as an aside. You said one is much fatter than the other, are you sure they are both girls?

[deguconvert]

I was going to ask the same thing, Savvy. I am wondering if the one much fatter is not long from delivering a litter of pups. Like humans, pregnant degus can be very grumpy the closer they get to delivery, and they can be very hungry too. Jimndennis, do you know how to identify male and female degus? Just in case you don't know, here is some help with that. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/13070/degus

Do you think you could post some photos of the fatter girl, looking down from above if possible, and from the front view? If your cages don't really accommodate top/above view, you could get a deep pail and put in some of her favorite treats to keep her busy while you take a snap. Also, if you are uncertain about determining sex yourself, you can get a deep sided glass dish and use the treats again to keep them still. Then you can carefully look from underneath them. Works great if you have a glass topped table or something like that you can rest the dish on. Or someone that can help by holding the dish high and still enough for you. You can also snap some photos from there and post them here if you want further assistance with identifying.

[savvy]

Also see if you can spot any nipples along one side of her stomach.

Edit: don't be afraid to put extra food in, it may help ease the fighting if they know there's more than enough food to go around.