My boys are fighting! HELP!!

[dreamcatcher]

Hi there everyone,
I just adopted two boys from a lady and when I went to get them she said that they had just recently started to not get along.
She separated them( top and bottom, which I know is wrong. Suppose to be up the middle), and told me that they might be able to be re-introduced.
When I got them home I set up their cage and tried to re-introduce.
Did not go well at all.
So I separated the cage again but all they do is try to get under the partition like they want to be with each other.
I tried adding more stuff in the cage to occupy them but that didn't work either.

Anyone have any ideas???
Anything would be a huge help.
I would like to put them back together as the cage is a little small to have a partition up the middle.

Thanks

[Erica]

I know you have a large cage of female degus as well as other critters. You might want to make sure that your new boys aren't near the females (some say try another room or across the room). Your boys are likely trying to assert their dominance over each other and the females.

They may take awhile to get used to the new sounds and smells of your house and family.

I've found my male degus are much more sensitive to change... change in bedding, getting rid of their sticks (very important for marking their territory), moving their cage, etc... Have you got some things in their cage from their old house or is everything new?

If their cage is small when divided you could put a wheel in one side for an hour or so then move it to the other side to let them each have a run and release some steam.

With the partition is there any way you can anchor the bottom of it? Maybe with a staple gun or use wire to pull the bottom tight. Alternatively, if they both want to get underneath or if they're sleeping beside each other at the partition they may be ready to get together again.

Anyone else have some ideas for Dreamcatcher?

[dreamcatcher]

Thanks Ricky,
The boys that I got came with the cage they were housed in. It's their cage and everything in it is theirs. The only thing different is the food bowls.
The boys were fighting before I even brought them to my house. The previous owner said that they just started fighting and she's not sure why.

As for the wheel, they each have one but instead os sitting them on the floor, I have used cable ties to hang them up in the cage so that I still have room on the floor for bathtime and such.
I thought maybe the new surroundings and noises might put a spook into them which is why I had no issue with putting the partition back up, but they just look so lonely even though they're still in the same cage and still beside each other, they can't snuggle up or nibble at each other.

Anyway, maybe next time I clean out the cage I will try again.

Thanks anyway for trying.