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Post by NightwishRaven999 on Jul 20, 2011 5:29:45 GMT
One product that I really like is the rodent tunnels made out of hay. You put those on the bedding and cover them with big piles of hay or you can half bury them in the substrate. They blend in the setup much better than plastic or pvc tubes.  @ deguconvert That would be fun, hope to see photos of your next cage setup ! When I first did this, I practically had a heart attack as I woke up one morning and found the cage empty and the degus gone. I eventually found my degus...sleeping under a three kilometer deep pile of hay ;D |
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Post by fred on Jul 20, 2011 7:32:04 GMT
This looks fantastic  . I am off to the shops now to get me the tunnels and some longer hay... |
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Post by NightwishRaven999 on Jul 20, 2011 22:33:39 GMT
Glad to hear this Fred ! Hope to see photos of your future setup !
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Post by alicatz on Aug 23, 2011 11:46:15 GMT
re the burrowing pits and mounds of hay - how often do you clean these out? And when you do, do you replace it all? thanks xxx
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Post by NightwishRaven999 on Aug 24, 2011 5:26:11 GMT
re the burrowing pits and mounds of hay - how often do you clean these out? And when you do, do you replace it all? thanks xxx Mounds, or thick piles of hay will dissapear very quickly in the degu cage. Many are surprised to see just how much hay a degu can consume in a day. So you may add a generous amount of hay to the cage and create a thick pile, but after a week you will find the pile has shrunk considerably. As for burrowing pits, they should be cleaned out and the substrate replaced after a period of time. The frequency of the cleanings will mostly depend on how often the degus have access to the burrowing pit. Some owners have created a permanent burrowing extension to the degu cage, while others have created a burrowing pit, to which the degus have access a few hours a day. How often you clean the pit will also depend on the number of degus that have access to it. Those of us who have built wooden cages, only need to clean them out every 3 weeks or so. If the pit is a permanent addition to the cage, it will most likely need cleaning as often as the cage itself. If the digging pit is a seperate unit, you will need to use your own judgement to decide whether or not it should be cleaned out. An accumulation of detritus and a faint smell of urine are usual signs that a cleaning is required. The materials used in a digging pit do not have to be expensive. A mixture of garden earth, sand, coconut shell substrate, peat moss and finely cut hay makes for excellent digging substrate. Hope this helps. |
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Post by alicatz on Aug 25, 2011 16:22:47 GMT
thanks, that's great xxx
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molly
Newborn Degu
Posts: 22
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Post by molly on Aug 25, 2011 22:39:45 GMT
I know that this is slightly off topic but I couldn't find a more appropriate thread anywhere but...are degus particularly prolific diggers then? Its just that this forum is the only place i've seen any discussion about it. Do they actually dig proper tunnels or just holes for burying things in?
Ooh..and how long do your hay tubes normally last, are they worth buying as a structural material or are they pulled apart and consumed within a day or two?
I'm trying to find new ways of entertaining you see because my degus have recently broken their wheel and are slowly going round the bend chewing their cage!
thanks.
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Post by davx on Aug 25, 2011 23:56:13 GMT
Very interesting, this topic!
But I have something to add: Foraging is an important task for freeliving degus, thus we should bear it in mind, when we arrange the cage.
Seeking for food is one idea (e. g. we can put the seeds in the substrate), another one is the use of natural food items. They are much more diverse than processed food in shape, texture, smell, taste etc. In addition seeds often are "packaged" in pods, husks, shells, etc.
In labs and zoos they created the term "environmental enrichment" or "behavioural enrichment" and there exists also several studies about the impact of different improvements. Some are powerfull, others are nice for the eye but rather useless for the animals.
It depends on the substrate. Straw for example is a good choice and the degus like it. In wild degus dig during the rainy seasons because the soil is less hard and energy costs for digging are lower. According to my experience they don't dig in very hard soils, but sandy soils are a good choice... at least in theory. In fact soils aren't convenient in indoor cages. "Artificial" solutions like straw or hay etc. are more suitable and I can strongly recommend them.
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Post by NightwishRaven999 on Sept 13, 2011 6:33:56 GMT
Thanks for your input David !
Being experienced with outdoor degu housing and knowledgable about degu wildlife habitat, I appreciate all that you can bring into this thread.
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Post by testsubject on Feb 22, 2014 17:29:43 GMT
I'm hoping to build a wooden cage for my degus soon, and want to make the bottom of it a large container filled with substrate for them to burrow in. This is the first place I have found suggestions other than just straw/hay/artificial bedding. I do have a question, though: Where can I buy these more natural substrates and do I need to do anything with them before they are safe to put in the cage? I'm just curious because I know people sterilise woods first.
Also on that note, I see you mentioned putting branches in with the leaves still attached. How do you sterilise the branches without damaging the leaves?
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Post by Maravilla on Feb 22, 2014 17:51:18 GMT
Also on that note, I see you mentioned putting branches in with the leaves still attached. How do you sterilise the branches without damaging the leaves? I don't sterilise anything. I just pick things and either dry them or feed them fresh (flowers, leaves, herbs, grass). Bigger branches, I may clean with hot water (to remove dirt) and then let them dry. But twigs with leaves I just put in the cage as they are. If a branch or twig does not look healthy, I do not use it. |
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Post by moletteuk on Feb 25, 2014 11:46:27 GMT
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. I am off to the shops now to get me the tunnels and some longer hay...
