Degu eye issues

[kerryandclyde]

Hello,
I’m a new Degu Mom to 2 females named Raven and Amber. Soon after they were given to me Raven began to have something going on with one of her eyes. It appears to have a gooey substance around the eye but soon after I first noticed it her eye cleared up suddenly. Now it’s come back and the fur around her eye has fallen out. I’ve made an appointment with my vet but it’s not until February. Raven is eating but not everything she’s eaten in the past ( she won’t eat seeds or pellets but will take a whole nut from me) From what I’ve read it sounds like it’s maybe a tooth problem but I can’t be sure because I haven’t been able to handle either one of them yet to preform a health check. My vet has emergency appointments available each day, first come first serve, so I’ll continue to try getting Raven seen by the vet sooner that way but I’m the meantime is there anything I can do to help Raven feel better? I’ve been hand feeding them both to gain their trust and have gotten as far as Raven sitting in my hand but only if I stay still and only for a moment at a time. Neither one of the goo’s eat any fresh veg I give them either. I’m worried I’m doing something wrong. I’ve never had a degu before and to be honest I had never heard of them until I was given these two little girls. They’re sweet as can be but understandably cautious of me.

[bouncy]

Hi, there's two things that spring to mind here.

The first is an infection.

The second is dental-related. My domestic degus have issues with their teeth, with either spurs growing from their molars, or excessive growth of the roots.

Both can only be diagnosed and treated by a vet. An eye infection is usually treated with a topical cream. The dental issues can recur, which can get costly over the life of your good. It shouldn't affect their lifespan, though. Spidey will be eight this year!

Have a good read of the dental guide near the top of this section.

[bouncy]

Oh, and don't forget that degus are the most weird, complicated animals that defy logic, are extremely fickle, and offer the steepest learning curve that can possibly exist! They like to do things, but on their own terms.

[moletteuk]

Hi and welcome.

How old are they and how long have you had them?

The back teeth need to be checked by a vet with an otoscope, you may be able to see if the front ones look even and you can try to check if she is favouring softer foods, a hard piece of dandelion root is quite a good tooth test.

Forage is the healthy stuff that degus need to eat (rather than vegetables) things like grasses, tree leaves, herbs, hedgerow and meadow plants. It's not sustainable for her to not eat any pellets unless you want to feed a full natural diet based on forage and seeds and supllementing vitamin d. They can get fussy about pellets so it might be worth trying a different brand.

I would recommend you weigh them regularly to monitor health, perhaps twice a week if you have suspicions of a problem, an electric kitchen scale is ideal.

Our beginner's guide is a good place to start for general info deguworld.proboards.com/thread/19754/beginners-guide-degu-keeping but do ask any questions.

[deguconvert]

Hello, Kerryandclyde, and welcome to the forum!!

I would suggest that you read as many of the sticky threads in each board as you can manage . . . not all in one day, because you brain will fry . . . and ask any and all questions. Degus are not like your average rat or gerbil or hamster, which are so common that most people feel quite confident in handling other rodents in the same manner. After all I have learned about degus, I find I question the accepted treatments of the above animals as well. Well, all animals that we humans like to keep as companions. And stock. LOL! Feel free to roll eyes.

Anyway! Most degus do not like fresh veg, and are picky about what fresh forage they will take, and often in small quantities. Their true preference is for dry forage.

Like Moletteuk, I am curious to know the age of your girls, who sound lovely btw! Do you know what they were fed before you received them . . . and is that what you are currently feeding? Can you tell us what it is that you feed them?

I'm glad you have come to ask us for help! This forum gave me so much support when I joined years ago, and I am still here. It's a great community!

[kerryandclyde]

Thank you everyone for taking the time to help me out with Raven and Amber. They've been to the vet and are both healthy so that's a huge relief! I moved the girls (along with 2 guinea pigs gals I inherited with the goo’s) to the loft area outside my bedroom on the 2nd floor. It's much quieter and a lot less foot traffic upstairs which seems to have been what they all needed the most. Ravens hair began growing back very shortly after she was moved. I also threw out the plastic shelves and ramps that we're in their cage when they were given to me and made new shelves with kiln-dried pine, some wood logs for reptiles, hammocks and hidey huts which seemed to please them immensely. Amber's demeanor changed completely with the addition of a digging box and both Raven and Amber will sit in my hand and let me give them pets now. I haven't been able to pick them up yet. I'm trying to respect their boundaries and don't want to frighten them. The vet said Ambers tail was probably broken from being held by it. Poor gal was in rough shape and would hide everytime I came near the cage. I don't know much about them or their care before they came to me. My daughter happened upon them at a party and (as she always does) told the owners they weren't caring for them properly (they were housed inside a closet and Amber’s tail bone was exposed and infected) so she took the goo’s from the owners. Amber had surgery to remove the piece of tail bone that was exposed and its healed up nicely now. That's also how I came to own the guinea pigs as well. Sadly, there were 3 pigs in the beginning but one had a massive bladder stone and passed after surgery. I'm feeding them Oxbow chin pellets mixed with Oxbow guinea pig pellets but they rarely touch them. They mostly eat a mixture of timothy hay, meadow and orchard grass and Rosewood Naturals natures said and summer salad, whole peanuts occasionally and sometimes they'll eat pumpkin seeds but not very often. They were being fed a mixture of unknown pellets, oats, bay leaves and pasta before I got them. They still like pieces of uncooked pasta occasionally but I'm unsure of the nutritional value so I try not to give them too much. I've tried oat sprays, millet, oat sprays, and dandelion delight also by rosewood naturals but they don't touch any of them. I'm willing to try any other brands and products if anyone has suggestions. I'm in the US and no one, not even most vets, even know what a degu is nevermind what to feed them. I'm not against doing a diet of dried forage and hay/grasses and not include pellets if I know they're getting everything they need. I've read a lot of the posts on here regarding housing, nutrition and care and found them to be very helpful. I do need some more info about toys and enrichment for the girls. It seems to me that the US is wildly unprepared when it comes to caring for degu’s which doesn't sit well with me because degu’s are sold here. At least that's the way it is where I'm located in Maryland so maybe not the entire US LOL

[deguconvert]

SO very good to hear the update and all the progress!! You've really helped to turn things around. WELL DONE!!

There was a new recommendation for food in the US not long ago, but it's late and my brain went to bed about 20 minutes ago, LOL!! I just can't seem to dig out the information I want to give you. Does anyone else remember seeing a post about a site with dried forage? I remember thinking it looked good, but perhaps the pieces were on the small side.

If no one else recalls it . . . I'll look to see if I can find it after a nights sleep.

[winic1]

I used this pellet, Sunseed Vita Degu, for my degus: www.amazon.com/Sunseed-Sunscription-Vita-Degu-Formula/dp/B0049H1U7M/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3ILHV8SDJ41OU&keywords=sunseed+vita+degu&qid=1645539335&sprefix=sunseed+vita+degu%2Caps%2C88&sr=8-1

Seems like they've "improved" it, and since they don't give a full ingredient list on the first one (notice the "etc." at the end of the ingredients on the listing!) it's hard to compare the two, so maybe someone can give the ingredients on the new listing a look and see if they've done anything wrong to it? www.amazon.com/Sun-Seed-Company-Sunscription-28-Ounce/dp/B0014DPCPU/ref=sr_1_2?crid=3ILHV8SDJ41OU&keywords=sunseed+vita+degu&qid=1645539544&sprefix=sunseed+vita+degu%2Caps%2C88&sr=8-2

There is not good info for Degus in the USA. And if you find your way to the facebook groups, much (in some, most) of what they tell you is bad info. And they get VERY upset if you try to tell them anything different from what they're sure they know. But most vets will not know anything about degus, and what they do know will be wrong (had to take one of my second group of degus to the vet, their small animal specialist was a brand new graduate, who handed me their care sheets telling me to feed carrots and fruit!)

For forage, look for places that are selling herbs and flowers that are basically whole. Ordered a bunch of stuff from a company that listed the herbs I chose as "cut, 3/8-1/2" pieces" but what arrives was cut and crumbled to the size you get in a spice jar at the grocery store. And when I called them about it, the manager told me tough luck (only not in such nice words.) I think that place had Monterrey in its name? If you look on Amazon.com, there are now many places selling whole dried flowers and things, it costs a bit more to have to buy a whole bag of each thing you feed them instead of a pre-made mix, but then you have supplies for a long time.

I also used North Bay Trading Co. for dried veggies to make a mix for my guys. www.northbaytrading.com
Very nice quality stuff. Buy lots of it for the humans in the house, too.

Almost anything can be a degu toy. Just put something in and see if they explore it. As long as it's nontoxic and chew-safe (won't break into little pieces and is safe to eat if they chew on it) it has potential. I would get bark tunnels and hides and branches and things from the reptile department at the pet store, also bird-safe items from the bird department (avoiding plastic, of course, but if wood is bird-safe, it's generally degu-safe). Little cardboard boxes like granola bars and pop-tarts come in, unwaxed paper products like plates folded into huts, branches, rocks to climb on, terra cotta pots to hide in and climb over (a strawberry pot with large holes, so they can go in and out them, is awesome!), coconut shell huts, hanging wicker baskets....

[deguconvert]

OK . . . I don't know if you've done any looking around in the Diet and Nutrition board, but there is a post in there called USA links for herb supplies & links to American food threads . . . here is a "link" for you.
deguworld.proboards.com/thread/16569/links-herb-supplies-american-threads
There are lots of things listed in there and should give you some resources to investigate.

The very last thing listed in there was the one I was trying to remember and mentioned above. It is worth a look. It's called Food4Buns.com and there are lots of forage type items in there that look very good. I will say, if you look at the picture of an item they sell and it looks like the dried herbs you buy in the store for your kitchen (as in chopped tiny and almost dusty), don't order that item. Your degus will completely ignore it. It will be a waste of money. Anything that is nice and chunky will be better received.

Also . . . introduce new foods in small amounts, just enough for a few nibbles by each degu. Then don't give it again for a few days. Allow their bodies to assess and adjust to the new food. This isn't quite at crucial as it is when you are introducing fresh foods, which can cause bloat because their bodies do not yet have the necessary bacteria to break down the new to them fresh food. Dried foods will be easier on their gut, but degus are famously picky and can take a LOOONG time to decide that something is good and tasty to eat. Don't get discouraged if they refuse it, even for a few months. One day, someone will try it can have a "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE???" reaction, may even glare at you through the bars of the cage as if to accuse you of withholding, and suddenly everyone will be curious and interested. ROFL