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Post by flibbertigibbety on Aug 21, 2022 21:51:18 GMT
New to owning Degus. I have 2 young females in a cage that's 17"x30" and 54" tall. I have a cardboard box (10"x 17" x 10" tall) at the very bottom filled with low dust bedding paper. great for digging in. While they go in there on rare occasion, they're almost always running around on the many levels and platforms I have all over the cage (which is 5 x 1/3 length levels with about 15 individual wall mounted platforms). The flooring of every level made of wire has cardboard on it. Lots of little plush tubes, hammocks, and hiding spots on many levels. They have their favorite spots, usually at the very top of the cage sunbathing near the window. So my question... is it normal that they seem to not care about the bedding area? I mean, I could use that for a big flying saucer wheel or something else. Do all of yours spend time in their bedding? Should I use different bedding or something? or just in a larger area? Cage I use is... www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07Y41QYBJ
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Post by savvy on Aug 21, 2022 23:38:29 GMT
Welcome to the forum. Degus are weird by nature, they love to confuse their hooman slaves and keep them guessing. You will find that one day, completely out of the blue, they decide they love the box with the bedding. Then the next they will ignore it again. This is what degus do and is completely normal for them. Try putting some toilet tissue in their cage to encourage nest building. Your cage is great in terms of size, but really needs a few modifications. Would it be possible to extend some of the ledges into full or three quarter levels? I'm asking because degus are not really climbers, they need as much flat running area as they can get, as as they grow, they may start to fight due to the lack of such surface space. If you take a look at deguworld.proboards.com/thread/19754/beginners-guide-degu-keeping you will find ideas for improving the layout of their cage and also ideas for keeping your girls happy. If you need any advice we are more than happy to help, and trust me, when it comes to degus, there are no silly questions. Edit: this is the other link I was looking for. deguworld.proboards.com/thread/9396/forums-cage-size-recommendations
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Post by flibbertigibbety on Aug 22, 2022 2:48:23 GMT
I was actually thinking about trying to expand the levels themselves to cover more space. I feel, as nice as this cage is, it's certainly a design flaw. I need to search for some new levels that are the right size for it. Although, the ramps themselves are rather long and they so love traversing the entire cage. I'll keep the bedding around and throw some tissue paper in there to see if they do anything in it.
I DId originally have the entire bottom layer open with room for them to run around, but they didn't use it. they always ran up and down the ramps and jumped around all the platforms. While I agree they're not climbers... they're certainly hoppers when it comes to exploring.
Edit: I put some paper towel strips in there, and they started bringing it into their big plush hammock where they sleep. went right for it. Chirping to each other about their wonderous plans in store for it. what adorable little darlings they are.
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Post by savvy on Aug 22, 2022 8:26:37 GMT
Tissue paper is a good, cheap enrichment toy for them. They love to drag it around the cage, so don't be afraid to put more in if they want it. I'm going to tag bouncy who I know has not only built her own cages, she also designed a built a transporter for me to use at the vets (I have 4 degus so needed an escape proof one.) I'm sure she will be able to suggest improvements to your current cage to keep the little ones happy. Oh and we'd love to see some pictures of them, we do love pictures!
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Post by teemu on Aug 22, 2022 14:59:39 GMT
In many pets stores here, they sell these large, bendable bridges made out of sticks with heavy wires running through them (they are usually advertised as bridges or tunnels, they come in many sizes). I find that those make very nice extra levels for a cage if you fix them to the bars with metal wire and possibly put some supports under them. I've used those extensively in my own cage setups to build handy levels.
Basically, anything flat and degu-safe can be turned into extra level space if you take wooden sticks (or any degu-safe sticks) and put them through the cage bars so that you can lay the level on top of them. In your cage, for example, there's a lot of extra airspace under each of those upper levels, so you could easily make levels there in this manner. You could then make small bridges over to the existing small ledges (though this is likely not critical right away, they'll easily hop over to them from the ramps or the other side) and essentially have many times the floor space.
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Post by flibbertigibbety on Aug 22, 2022 20:31:12 GMT
These are my Degus... Coffee and Creamer. you know, because they wake me up in the morning.
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Post by savvy on Aug 22, 2022 20:33:07 GMT
And just like caffeine, degus are addictive, lol.
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Post by flibbertigibbety on Aug 22, 2022 20:46:16 GMT
And just like caffeine, degus are addictive, lol. They've really blown me away with how amazing they are. So sweet and playful. So weird and crazy. Always up to something unless they're taking their mid day nap. I adore how much time they spend together. I was so close to getting a hamster instead. I'm pretty far away from a major city, and was looking for someone who was selling a "pocket pet" of sort. found a mouse/rat breeder. Calling asking if they sold hamsters as well, and she was like "heck no... I sell DEGUS!" Never heard of them. She luckily convinced me to buy 2 of them, and I could not be happier.
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Post by bouncy on Aug 22, 2022 23:51:08 GMT
Your goos are adorable! They certainly are addictive. I started with three, then went to four, six, back to give, then seven.......... The link you posted takes me to a selection of small animal cage accessories, but I imagine it's a metal cage with two levels and a couple of shelves? Savvy's right, I have done extensive modifications to a metal cage, built another using metal shelving units, then designed and built an enclosure that it floor to ceiling, almost two metres wide, with six levels. Some things that I've done in the past: I've removed the half levels in my cage and replaced them with full trays. The first one was made from timber (and soon got smelly from their wee, then another that was perspex with metal L profile to make edges and protect against chewing. I've snatched some branches from a friend who felled their apple tree and built a stack with them so they could hop too and from. My cage was on a stand, so I used perspex and metal to create a tray, then enclosed the stand to create another level that became a burrow. Their purpose built enclosure has completely enclosed burrow sections. Some make their nest in them, whilst a couple like to have a good dig, but can't dump the giant woodshavings onto my floor I've built a flying saucer for two of mine. I've made quilted cubes for mine to sleep in, and put in terracotta pots and tubes for obstacles. Oh, and because mine free-range across the floor each evening, I made them a low level obstacle course/climbing frame. When it comes to bedding, I just chuck in a complete loo roll. If you're feeling mean, you can leave the start stuck, but the entertainment comes when you unstick it. I've watched one of my adults with two five week old pups work together to take the end across the kitchen floor, up their ramp, four sets of stairs, and across to the diagonal opposite corner of the cage to bring the entire unravelled roll into the cage in one piece! If there was a snag, one of the pups was told to go and find the snag. Once they'd freed it, they squeaked and the tugging would commence once more. Degus are very fickle. You can make as many well-intentioned changes as you like. They'll love them, hate them, only use them when you're not looking, or start to use them only when you're on the verge of removing them!
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Post by flibbertigibbety on Aug 23, 2022 0:11:36 GMT
Odd it's not sending you to the same place. I'll just post the pic from the amazon page. They're a bit small to trust letting free roam, even when I gooproof the area. But I might put more work into it. I'm waiting for a response from the seller to see if they sell extra shelves. if not, I'll buy another cage and disassemble it, using the top and bottom for entire extra floors, and then the sides for a play pen area. I can salvage all of it to make different things, and the cage is only about $110... so not the end of the world there.
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Post by flibbertigibbety on Aug 23, 2022 0:16:13 GMT
I also put carboard on all of the shelves. they're good to walk on it, and enjoy tearing it up. I purchase cardboard boxes with no print or tape on them to ensure it's cardboard and nothing else. While they have lots of sycamore and cottonwood branches to chew on (and applewood when I can find it cheap), they always got the cardboard to destroy.
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Post by teemu on Aug 23, 2022 1:02:45 GMT
Sounds like you're really being diligent about your new family members. That's a great thing! Putting cardboard or the like on the levels is a good idea, since it will protect their paws from slipping between the bars or something like that Oh, and the girls are adorable as well!
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Post by bouncy on Aug 23, 2022 2:10:33 GMT
You could probably have four full levels, or three if you put a wheel in!
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Post by deguconvert on Aug 23, 2022 2:24:09 GMT
You could also tip it on it's side and create two very long levels for them, with room enough to have smaller ledges if you wanted.
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Post by flibbertigibbety on Aug 23, 2022 17:00:59 GMT
The seller of the cage says they can sell more platforms, so will get a bunch of those and expand 4 levels. lots of room for them to run around. I was even thinking of getting another cage and removing some bars between them to make for a larger area. this cage is like... $110 after shipping. not a lot to spend on so much extra room. they're good goos, and they deserve it.
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Post by winic1 on Aug 23, 2022 20:27:16 GMT
You can also find attachable (by screws/bolts through cage bars) wooden platforms and things, look for them under Bird Supplies. Pretty much anything bird-safe is also degu-safe, as parrot-type birds chew their things also, and birds are very sensitive to contaminants.
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Post by flibbertigibbety on Oct 6, 2022 5:56:45 GMT
You could also tip it on it's side and create two very long levels for them, with room enough to have smaller ledges if you wanted. I'm actually going with this idea, but gonna double it up. I bought a second of the same cage, and going to setup one on top of the other, both on their sides. Cut a small hole between them for access. Will have 2 full XL levels as well as multiple platforms. Working on it now. will post pics once I get it all finished. Lots of room to zoom around and climb. I'm excited for them!
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Post by savvy on Oct 6, 2022 9:19:54 GMT
They will love it! Film their reactions when you put them in the new cage, they'll be so excited with all that room.
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Post by deguconvert on Oct 7, 2022 4:28:07 GMT
You could also tip it on it's side and create two very long levels for them, with room enough to have smaller ledges if you wanted. I'm actually going with this idea, but gonna double it up. I bought a second of the same cage, and going to setup one on top of the other, both on their sides. Cut a small hole between them for access. Will have 2 full XL levels as well as multiple platforms. Working on it now. will post pics once I get it all finished. Lots of room to zoom around and climb. I'm excited for them! OHHHHH!! THAT IS SO EXCITING!!! I can't wait to see it!! Well done!!
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Post by teemu on Oct 7, 2022 13:45:22 GMT
Oh, very exciting! The main thing to keep in mind is that some cages are not very sturdy in any other position than standing upright. So you'll want to check out that the cages can support their weights on their side before you start stacking them. The cage in your picture, for example, does not have a sturdy frame around the edges, so I would expect there to be a large amount of give and bending when you put them on their sides.
If it looks like they're not holding up well, you can probably reinforce them sufficiently by twisting metal wire around the edges/corners so that they hold together.
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