My degus never seem to eat.

[skullblits]

They always run and hide there biscuits.

They never seem to touch there dried herbs.

They eat treats fine. But never really hear or see them eat.

What could I do.

[moletteuk]

My first thought would be to try different nuggets, different forage and different hay. Degus can be really fussy, you might have to accept a limited success rate with food that you offer.

What foods are you offering?

Once you get some new stuff for them to try you might need to reduce the treats for a while.


The other thing is that they may be eating more than you think, nibbling on things during quiet times when nobody is about.

[skullblits]

I have the science selection stuff. They take them. And run away with them to hide them.

Then I get herb mixes from pets at home.

[deguconvert]

Hey Skullblits! I remember the frustration well. I experience that daily with our cat as well. LOL! Have you read through any of the threads in the diet and nutrition board where members share what they are feeding their degus?

Here is one that might give you some ideas for your own lot. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/21261/feed-degus

This is an old thread that deals with the changes in approach to nutrition that we as a forum went through several years back. It might also be of inspiration for you. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/8933/50-natural-nutrition-project

And this contains links to several threads that are very informative and helpful. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/15795/links-interesting-food-threads

It is expected that something you read may raise questions, so please ask them. We are always glad to answer and to discuss!

How are your little loves doing? How are you feeling this far in to having them? Learning about degus can be seriously overwhelming.

[moletteuk]

It's fairly likely that they do retrieve some of the hidden nuggets and eat them, even if it seems like you find half a bag wasted on cleanout day. The nuggets that you are offering are some of the best accepted, so you don't have a whole lot of room for manoeuvre there, although there is no harm in trying some others. I think it's certainly worth trying some different hay and different forage, you can find some different forage from Zooplus or Ratrations, different hay on Zooplus, and @ntg found some nice special order hay, hopefully she or someone else can point you in that direction. You could also try some high calcium seeds from Ratrations, they do two degu seed mixes. Out of interest you could pick some fresh grass and forage if you have access, dandelions, sow thistle, sorrel, plantain are well liked, likewise fruit tree twigs with leaves or buds are good right now.

I would also recommend that you weigh them regularly, that will tell you if there is a problem or not.

[skullblits]

Apr 11, 2019 17:00:34 GMT deguconvert said:

Hey Skullblits! I remember the frustration well. I experience that daily with our cat as well. LOL! Have you read through any of the threads in the diet and nutrition board where members share what they are feeding their degus?

Here is one that might give you some ideas for your own lot. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/21261/feed-degus

This is an old thread that deals with the changes in approach to nutrition that we as a forum went through several years back. It might also be of inspiration for you. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/8933/50-natural-nutrition-project

And this contains links to several threads that are very informative and helpful. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/15795/links-interesting-food-threads

It is expected that something you read may raise questions, so please ask them. We are always glad to answer and to discuss!

How are your little loves doing? How are you feeling this far in to having them? Learning about degus can be seriously overwhelming.

There is definitely alot to study into lol.

Things are going good. Abit slow they come onto my hands for a treat and have started coming on them if I don't have one. But they are still skittish.

I've give them a dig box in there cage they seem to enjoy. And still getting on well togather.