Questions Regarding my Two Degus

[merkman]

Hi There First post on a forum in a long time but i see people are active here and i had some concerning questions 

I have had my degus, two females for about a month Sweet and Sour. I just found one of them has some weird white substance near her rectum not quite sure what it is, also noticed when there pee dries it looks to be a white color. 

Is there anything i need to be concerned about? 
I can post a picture 

[moletteuk]

Hi there, welcome to the forum.

First of all the pee drying white is usually normal, it is an indication of excess calcium being peed out naturally. The pee should not all be solid white, but some to be moderately white is normal. You might want to check out our diet section because diet options vary and can obviously be a factor in this.

A weird white substance in the anal area is not normal and is a concern. On a female degu the pee comes out of the urethral cone that you can see sticking out, and the the rectum is the other obvious hole that you are probably seeing, there is also a third hole between the other two that is the vagina. This is usually closed up and difficult to see. It would be a particular concern if the discharge is coming from the vagina as this would indicate a vaginal or womb infection.

You can certainly post a picture that we will look at for you, you can do this via a third party photo host that you then post the link to here. I think you probably need to be considering a vet visit for the discharge.

[merkman]

So it seems what ever it was disappeared after there dust bath what ever it was?

Heres the Picture - Began White then turned yellow, ibb.co/M1wh1CK

But ya My profile picture that's sweet and sour me and my wife both hope there female but one constantly shouting while bearing its teeth at me I cant tell if its saying hi or boasting. The gentalia is close together but we are still on the fence about one of them.

I am hoping the food I got for them is OK, it seems to be difficult to find degu food Im using VERSELE LAGA NATURE DEGU FOOD If anyone has opinions on it?

And I'm using a dust bath (kaytee Brand Dust) I was told not to use sand doesn't penetrate the fur does anyone have any tips to keep the dust down and opinions on the Kaytee Brand dust.

Using Bottled water for the water cause unfortunately i cant trust the tap water in my area

I am Also Getting Mixed messages on a few things. What they can and cant eat Fruits and vegetables wise, Along with plastic toys. I'm told I shouldn't have plastic toys Running wheels etc Cause they Like to chew them, but its very difficult to find solid metal wheels Is it really all that bad to have plastic Exercise toys.

Sorry about All the questions - But you guys seem to know your degus Wanna make sure there happy and healthy as possible.

[moletteuk]

I don't like the look of that, it looks like it could be pus and it does look like it could be coming from the vagina, so I would recommend a vet visit for that.

You could show us pics of the genitals you are uncertain about for a second opinion on sex.

Are you in America? The Versele Laga Nature isn't terrible but their other products (Complete or Crispy) are better if you can find them and get the degus to eat it. Sunseed Vita Exotics Degu isn't too bad and available in America. We also recommend you try to get hold of extra forage and in a variety and feed as much as you can as this is what degus are designed to eat. Also make sure they get a variety of hay that they like and will eat. See our food chart for more info deguworld.proboards.com/thread/17365/commercial-food-chart

You can use dust or sand, degus don't tend to have difficulty with their fur, I always used a mix of dust and sand finding that helped keep the dust from forming clouds.

We do not recommend plastic but at the same time understand that it can be difficult to find and afford things like metal wheels. Eliminate all plastic that you can and anything else remove as soon as you see any chewing at all and bear in mind that they can suddenly overnight decide to catastrophically chew something. We do have guides for making metal wheels using a cake tin and bearing or skateboard wheel deguworld.proboards.com/thread/18716/accessories-make-buy

They can not have fruit, it is too high in sugar. They can have some vegetables but most degus do not really like fresh vegetables, although you might find they enjoy small amounts dried. We have another chart about diet extras deguworld.proboards.com/thread/15602/vegetable-seed-nut-nutrition-charts

[merkman]

Thanks I will Keep You posted - I live in Canada Finding food for degus seems to be a challenge
Was also looking for a treat for them since fruits and vegetables are kinda out.

Im just hoping for the best- there very young degus, teeth still yellow-orange.

But thank you for your help

Also I noticed i shouldn't be using wire wheels i did find one that has more of a square pattern so they cant get there feet stuck in it, but I worry about bumble foot ?

[savvy]

Welcome to the forum.

If you are good at DIY it is possible to make your own wheel. I think this is the link deguworld.proboards.com/thread/18484/molettes-35cm-home-metal-wheel

[deguconvert]

Hello, Merkman, and welcome to the forum!!

Depending on where in Canada you are located, you will find that different things are harder/easier to find than elsewhere. But, then again, the pet stores seem to take a lot of pleasure in mixing things up, throwing a curve ball to their expectant or desperate clientele, and having products available in rather spotty reliability. I never knew if I would find what I wanted, each and every shopping trip.

[moletteuk]

With mesh wheels they are usually suspended in a way that can trap a leg if it slips to the side where the support arm is, I would say that is more of a risk than the bumble foot.

I presume Nature's Pantry are still stocking Hansemann's products, forage and seeds, both ideal things to be adding to the diet. natures-degu-pantry.trisc.net/

You might want to offer some alfalfa as an easily available way of increasing their calcium intake, which is great while they are growing and good for dental health. You need to try different things for treats, things like tiny pieces of nuts, oil seeds, dried veg like carrot, parsnip, green peppers, dandelion roots, burdock roots, flowers are a good place to start. Bear in mind that all treats will be increasing phosphorus and decreasing calcium in the diet which is a bad thing.

[yasmin]

Welcome to the forum.

I order my pelleted food – Science Selective – from the UK via Amazon.ca. I buy the 1.5 kg bag for around $12 CDN (it varies) and shipping is about $7.50. It takes a few weeks but always gets here reliably.
(I used to use Versele Laga Degu Nature food - it is okay for them but the Science Selective has a much better Calcium:Phosporus ratio.)

I order dried plant matter, the seed mix and various treats online from Nature's Degu Pantry in BC. (They also sell cool looking fleece items.)

Sunflower seeds I get from the local organic health food store along with dandelion leaves in the winter months (summer months there's plenty of it on our property - LOL).

My degus run on metal flying saucer wheels that I ordered online from Flowertown Chinchillas (I think they're in Brampton, ON.)

Most other things like hay, bedding, sticks, etc. I can find in local pet stores.

I also use a mix of sand and dust for their sand baths - whatever brand I can find. Kaytee is one of the ones brands I use as well as Versele-Laga and Sunseed.

I agree that it would be a good idea to have a vet check your degu - that white stuff looks very odd. Do you have a vet that has degu experience?