sioa
Warbling Degu
Posts: 47
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Post by sioa on Apr 17, 2021 22:40:06 GMT
Hello, I am from Germany, so sorry my bad englisch. For nearly a week, i have to degu girls, both aroujd 9 weeks old. No i have some "problems" 1. I build them a cage, with 3 layers. Now the girls are always in the lowest layer, which is around my shin, their house is also in this layer,first they were very scared when I'm walking around the cage. Gut i think they get used to it now. Should i leave it as it is right now? 2. One of the girls is very self confident meanwhile. She take treats from my Hand an run away. Today she sat for a few seconds in my Hand and ran away.. I think that is a good sign. Gut the other girl is very timid. When i put my hand in my cage, to interact with the first girl, she ist frozen in place or run away. Is this a normal behaviour? I standing in Front of the cage serveral Times a day and talk to them or try to give them treats. Is there more that i can Do to to make them more self condfident? Thanks for your help and sorry for my bad englisch
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Post by savvy on Apr 17, 2021 22:58:52 GMT
Welcome to the forum, please don't worry about your English, it's good.
A week is not a long time for a degu and it can take several weeks for them to get used to you, especially as they are very young. Freezing is a fear response, and it's normal to have on degu more confident than the other.
Keep talking softly to them, keep offering treats and they will come to realise that you are not a threat to them. You do need to remember that degus hate change so I'd leave the cage set up as you have it so it's familiar to them.
Please feel free to ask any questions you need to, there are no silly questions when it comes to degus.
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sioa
Warbling Degu
Posts: 47
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Post by sioa on Apr 18, 2021 10:56:25 GMT
Welcome to the forum, please don't worry about your English, it's good. Thank you Will the shy girl learn from the other girl? Ok then i will leave it as it is Thanks a lot
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Post by savvy on Apr 18, 2021 11:05:17 GMT
She should get more confident as she gets older and bigger.
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sioa
Warbling Degu
Posts: 47
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Post by sioa on Apr 18, 2021 13:18:58 GMT
OK thanks. Then i will handle it like now I will post the progress
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Post by winic1 on Apr 18, 2021 13:42:57 GMT
Think about it as if you were the degus. You are just old enough to be on your own without your mother, when some giant creatures grab you and take you away. Maybe in a dark box, maybe in a cage. Maybe it was a long trip, with scary motor noises and movements and lights and sounds you have never heard before. Maybe this happens more than once.
Now one of these giants has put you in a new place. It is different than anyplace you ever were before. Maybe it's bigger, so much bigger. It smells different. The sounds are different. The things are different.
And then this giant comes by all the time. The giant makes noises, when it moves, when it does things, when it uses its voice. Sometimes the giant opens the cage and sticks its giant hands inside. You wonder, is it going to grab me and take me somewhere again? Is it going to grab me and eat me?
The whole world has changed for your little degus. It will take some time for them to become comfortable in their new home, and with you. So be patient. Visit with them a lot. Keep your voice soft, and your movements gentle. Move your hands slowly and calmly when putting them inside the cage. Don't reach for the degus, wait for them to be comfortable enough to come to your hand. Offer treats with patience, let them learn to come to your hand, and if they grab the treat and run away, that's okay. As much as you want to, don't try to grab or pet them when they come for treats, that will teach them that hands are scary and grab you. If they won't take the treat from your hand, after a while of holding it there, put it down and take your hand out, so they learn that hands DO bring good things, and aren't scary.
It will take a while, but they will learn to trust you, and like you, and appreciate you.
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Post by deguconvert on Apr 18, 2021 21:54:53 GMT
Hello, Sioa! Welcome to the forum! We don't often think of small animals has having strong personalities but they do, and degus most certainly do. There are both extroverted and introverted degus. You can win both over, build trust with both, and they may be very affectionate with you, but this is not frequently the case. It is not unusual for there to be one that is more forward and the companion more timid . . . and you can sometimes have whole groups of timid degus. The key, is time, patience and a lot of gentle persuasion. IE Favorite treats! You're doing great!
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Post by teemu on Apr 18, 2021 22:35:14 GMT
Welcome! I'll second what deguconvert said, degus have VERY notable personalities. One of my degus was very curious right away when they came to me as pups, but the other was very scared and it took a very long time for him to start trusting me. Treats (safe treats, of course, be sure to read up on what you can give degus since they are so very vulnerable to incorrect feeding. Nothing sugary for example, so no fruits or many veggies) are a good way to get a degu to trust you. Use something like a small bit of rolled oats (porridge oats). First you should just leave her some, but slowly (over the span of days or even weeks) start to hold them out for her, and then after she's fine with that see if she's willing to take a few steps to get them, and so on. This is essentially how I trained Munkki. I taught him that touching the human hand was a good thing and earned him a treat. But even then, you can't force her or rush the process. If you rush it and try to grab her when she gets a bit of courage, she'll quickly learn that the treats are actually a trap and you're trying to bait her so you can grab her! So take it slowly and always remember that degus are very smart, but also can be very timid. They will learn to trust you if you prove you're trustworthy to them
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sioa
Warbling Degu
Posts: 47
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Post by sioa on Apr 19, 2021 8:18:56 GMT
Ok thanks for all your tips I usually give them Pea flakes and sunflower seeds. They like both of them very much^^ But today i noticed something...When i give the confident one a flake, the shy one try to steal it and then they fight a little bit. Not much but the shy one is scared away by the other.. I put then a pea flake in the near of her :/
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Post by teemu on Apr 19, 2021 8:30:26 GMT
Degus are like that. They're really serious about food. Treats seem to be the biggest reason for casual scuffles in my experience. Since one of them is a lot braver, try to lure her into another corner of the cage for a bit so you can interact with the other.
As a sidenote, both pea flakes and sunflower seeds are ok as treats, but in the future after they've gotten more confident, it's best to limit them to a couple of times a week. They can be quite fattening to degus. For now though, they're little and the extra energy shouldn't hurt.
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Post by moletteuk on Apr 19, 2021 10:51:43 GMT
Offer treats to the shy one without moving your hand directly towards her, always approach to one side.
You can encourage them to stay at your hand to eat the treat if you use multiple tiny treats like sesame seeds or linseeds or oats (not too many oats). You could distract the confidant degu with tiny seeds in one hand while you try to tempt the timid goo with a piece of pea flake (or whatever is her favourite) in your other hand.
Other treat options are small pieces of nut, dried veg or dandelion root. It's less unhealthy if you can offer a selection so they don't get too much of any one thing. I'll also mention that young degus need lots of food, more food than adults.
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sioa
Warbling Degu
Posts: 47
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Post by sioa on Apr 19, 2021 19:56:00 GMT
Thanks to all of you Today, the confident degu (Toffi) ate some seeds from my Hand, but as usual she took them and ran a few steps away Creamy fought with herself, run away or take a seed. I think we make progress
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Post by savvy on Apr 19, 2021 20:03:49 GMT
Sounds like great progress to me.
It's quite common for them to run off with treats, after all, you might want to take them back, lol.
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Post by bouncy on Apr 19, 2021 21:00:15 GMT
Welcome! (Oder Willkommen!) It sounds like you're making good progress with them. I don't know what kind of cage you have for your little ones, but us there a way to lift it off the ground? Degus often like to be higher up. It's part of their scheme for world domination! What are you going to call the timid one? Rahmi? Don't worry about language - we have members from all over the world! Wenn es hilft, kann ich auch deutsch sprechen
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sioa
Warbling Degu
Posts: 47
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Post by sioa on Apr 19, 2021 22:08:58 GMT
I think.. I know that its to small...first i bought a cage but it Was Not good at all. It was smaller then told, the distance between the grid was bigger. So i had to build them a cage in 4 days 🙈 1,70m x 90cm x 50cm with 3 layers When they get are used to to US i want to expand the cage. The shy one is called creamy the confident one toffi Now they are in the lowest and the highest layer. They use the second only as bridge
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Post by teemu on Apr 19, 2021 23:18:49 GMT
It's good that you're aware of the limitations of the cage and are planning to expand. Shows that you care about the girls. And you did put in a lot of effort to give them a better home in any case Degus like climbing opportunities a lot, so it's good if a cage includes many levels and many routes between those levels. Your cage has a lot of height, so utilizing that to help them get more space is a good idea.
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Post by degunewbie on Apr 20, 2021 23:42:08 GMT
I am not an expert like the others on here who are sharing great advice, but I am a recent degu owner of a few months so I can relate to you. Being new to degus you get worried, and because they don't immediately feel comfortable, you think "what more can you do". But actually you just have to do the right things consistently, and they get comfortable because they are intelligent - so they are rightfully fearful and curious and find their own route. It's just patience and care that is all you need.
I say that hesitantly because I don't have long experience. But equally I have seen a natural, eternally changing dynamic with my 2 girls that is a constant effort to understand. They will be more comfortable with you as you set up an environment long-term. Because I had to introduce my 2 girls together there has been more intimate periods I have felt with them and times that I have felt like they don't trust me or want me around. One thing I have noticed, during this push and pull, is that my behaviour and the area/stimulation/fun I give dictates how they interact. I had the sad experience where one of my degus has pulled back in our relationship, but that was for what was going on. She now sits with me in the corner and we are slowly going back to what we were. This will continue, but what is important is that she is healthy and happy, and all that it takes is patience. They are smart, they aren't instantly alright with everything. They have personalities. They are loving and trusting, if you are too.
I saw you mentioned they stay at the lower level cage, where they stay in their hideout. Do you have a lot of hideouts in the cage? Could you spread out toys and lots of hides and things so they might explore the full cage more?
Again, I am new to degus, but I feel like I know what you are going through. The people on here are giving better advice, but I hope you find these extra thoughts useful. Sounds like you have great intentions, and they are lucky degus. And sounds like they are settling in their new home! I'm sure they are happy ladies! Best of luck! Look after your babies and keep safe!
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Post by degunewbie on Apr 20, 2021 23:59:31 GMT
I also should mention, like one of your degus, my first degu was frightened all the time. When I got her I was told she might never interact, because she was so fearful. In fact, she interacted very quickly. Then I got my second (because my first made such progress) and like your other degu, my Mary is extremely courageous. I was constantly thinking about their personality balance. In effect though, they are comfortable together and that is what it is all about. Neither really "changed" each other, they just are fully their own characters and on their own journeys. So perhaps don't overthink their effect on each other, and find comfort in that they have a nice and peaceful relationship?
If they have a nice environment, they are happy, you can be comfortable. You are creating the family, and you will be involved, and you are an important part.
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Post by moletteuk on Apr 21, 2021 10:00:39 GMT
Good call from degunewbie to make sure there are hiding places on every level of the cage. If you watch carefully how they use the cage and where they feel safe, you may be able to improve the layout and contents of the cage to make them feel more comfortable. An easy, quick and cheap way to make them more at home is to throw in some kitchen or toilet paper and some cardboard boxes.
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sioa
Warbling Degu
Posts: 47
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New degu
Apr 21, 2021 12:53:11 GMT
via mobile
Post by sioa on Apr 21, 2021 12:53:11 GMT
Yes, i have to be Patient In the lowest layer they have a wooden Pipe and their house. In the layer in the top they have a Pipe, their bath and a Board. In the middle there is the Wheel and a Board. Today i put straw in every layer And again thanks for All the Tipps
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