abirose
Burrowing Degu
Forum Helper
Posts: 276
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Post by abirose on Aug 18, 2011 20:44:37 GMT
Hi everyone  Basically my girls have really been keeping me up all night and I'm hoping that tiring them out before bed time will help them ( and me!) sleep. I have a night routine where I take their wheel out and replace it with the dust bath for a bit and then lower the lights, but some nights they are just to hyper! The cage is pretty big with lots of toys and comfy places but one particular goo insists on chewing the bars and unearthly hours! Unfortunately I don't have the space for a huge run at the moment, but I am planning to make a small one. In the meantime I was wondering if anyone had any experience with exercise balls? I've never been keen on the idea of them personally because I keep rats and I worry about straining their backs or hurting the tails. I don't think they are the most social of toys because you just leave them to it, plus I worry that they will feel frightened. But saying that I've never used them! The good thing is though, I'm sure it will tire them out! My room is nearly impossible to degu proof! I was just wondering if anyone had used balls and would you recommend them? On another quick note I have a wire cage but my room doesn't get a lot of natural light  Could I put a lamp ontop of the cage to shine in (keeping the wires away) or do you think this would be a bad idea considering the cage is metal? Thanks everyone ;D |
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Post by amie on Aug 19, 2011 1:00:51 GMT
Ok, my opinion on exercise balls? Just my opinion and I may be disagreed with by other members (which is fine!  ) and it's not fact. I think they must stress animals out. They're being taken from a large confined space (their cage) and being put in something much smaller! Granted this smaller confining box rolls around on the floor, but it doesn't allow them real movement, exploration and a feeling of freedom. |
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Post by NightwishRaven999 on Aug 19, 2011 1:28:12 GMT
Hi everyone Basically my girls have really been keeping me up all night and I'm hoping that tiring them out before bed time will help them ( and me!) sleep. I have a night routine where I take their wheel out and replace it with the dust bath for a bit and then lower the lights, but some nights they are just to hyper! The cage is pretty big with lots of toys and comfy places but one particular goo insists on chewing the bars and unearthly hours! Unfortunately I don't have the space for a huge run at the moment, but I am planning to make a small one. In the meantime I was wondering if anyone had any experience with exercise balls? I've never been keen on the idea of them personally because I keep rats and I worry about straining their backs or hurting the tails. I don't think they are the most social of toys because you just leave them to it, plus I worry that they will feel frightened. But saying that I've never used them! The good thing is though, I'm sure it will tire them out! My room is nearly impossible to degu proof! I was just wondering if anyone had used balls and would you recommend them? On another quick note I have a wire cage but my room doesn't get a lot of natural light Could I put a lamp ontop of the cage to shine in (keeping the wires away) or do you think this would be a bad idea considering the cage is metal? Thanks everyone ;D Unfortunatly, this is a problem some of us have to deal with. Although degus are not nocturnal, they are not completely diurnal either. Once degus pick up the habit of going to bed at a certain time, it becomes hard to make them sleep earlier or later. The key is to condition your degus...train them to go to bed at a certain time. Both your ideas (using artifical light over the cage and trying to get your degus to excercise during the day) are very good. However, an exercise ball is not the solution here. I agree completely with Amie's views on this. Lighting the cage will be a great help as light simulates day vs night. Open and shut the lights over the cage at the same time everyday. Feeding your degus high energy foods (like Oats) at supper time is also an idea. It can be compared to coffee for humans. Those of us who drink coffee know the effect it has on the system, the caffeine wakes you up and makes you more active, but your energy runs out quickly and a few hours later you feel tired. This is sometimes recommended to people who suffer from insomnia. Similarly, if you let your degus run around in a play pen or degu proof room with a small bowl of oats to snack on...they will become very active but will tire after a few hours. In short, trying to make your degus stay active during the day is the best way of ensuring they sleep at night. Using artifical lighting will also help with this as it will give your degus a day/night pattern to follow. It will take time though. Degus are like humans. They pick up habits that are not easy to break free of. The best would really be to create a playpen around the cage. Exercise balls should not be used in my opinion. |
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Post by amie on Aug 19, 2011 1:46:37 GMT
I forgot to add that my degus are practically nocturnal now. That's mostly because I am though! I'm happy with them this way and I get to see them more. Just like me, they tend to nap for a few hours at different times of the day and night. They have no set sleeping pattern. Removing all toys at night and tiring them out during the day as NWR said is best. Making a play area that surrounds their cages would be great. You could make little tunnels and mazes for them out of cardboard and that'll keep them happy and active for a while (mostly because they'll EAT their way around the maze! lol ) Coconut shells keep them active for hours! Mine seperated a little peice of it for the rest of the shell and wouldn't let go of it. Ran in the wheel with it, took it to bed with him and dragged it around the cage! |
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Post by Kat on Aug 19, 2011 8:02:18 GMT
Hi,
I have 2 degus. When I first got them I had a ball. Gerrard hated it, whenever he was in it he would just stand without moving. I only put him in twice for about 2 minutes. I felt to mean. Scrat on the other hand seemed to really like it. He would jump right in whenever it was close enough and scoot all over the place. I have since stopped using balls for the degus and hamsters. They are much happier having an area to run about in.
My living room isnt suitable for degus so I take them to my bedroom to run about. Do you have another room you can use? Hall ways and bathrooms are popular. Just make sure the loo seat is closed.
On the subject of a routine I would echo what the others has said about playtime and oats. I would also sugest that you have set mealtimes for them as I have found this helpful with my boys.
They used to be in my bedroom and I am a light sleeper.
I found that having a set routine everyday helps incouraging them to sleep at night or at least be less active.
I only moved them downstairs as I wanted to add on to the cage and wouldnt of fitted downstairs after.
Kat
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Post by malteser60 on Aug 19, 2011 9:37:39 GMT
I also don't agree with exercise balls either. Not that they're bad or anything, or that it would damage them as such, just that I don't see the point in them. Degu's love being able to sniff and chew things (unfortunately!) so all you're doing is substituting the wheel for the exercise ball, except they can't get out of it. and it's a small, confined space.
Of course you will always get the exceptions like Kat's degu.
I've also got a similar problem like you have. Mine are quiet at night, but the constant chewing of the cage throughout the day drives me mad. They have a big cage, lots of toys to chew, I take them out regularly, yet they still chew the cage! It's like they know there's more to the world outside and just want to get out, irregardless of how many toys there are in the cage. It makes me feel like the worst degu parent ever when they do that.
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des
Newborn Degu
Posts: 11
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Post by des on Aug 19, 2011 14:15:59 GMT
Our boys have lights for their cage. We switch it between nine and eleven am and turn it off between midnight and one. They're so used to the rhythm that they usually settle down around midnight, even if the playground is open to them. Mind you, as soon as we go to bed they make noise for 15-20mins just to let us remember that we shouldn't stay up so long. How many wheels/plates do you have? Maybe that would help them run off some more excess energy. |
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Post by philbailey1806 on Aug 19, 2011 14:28:30 GMT
Hello! I'm going to be controversial I'm afraid, I regularly use exercise balls, my degu parents, Edna and Ernie absolutely love them! In fact when they're out having a run round my room, it's easier to catch them to put them back by offering them their exercise balls, because they just hop straight in.
I agree that they are obviously confined in a small area, but they do like them and are much braver exploring when they're in an exercise ball rather than being set loose, where they run in short bursts and generally look alarmed lol.
Saying that though, the babies aren't too keen on them, but I've only tried them in the balls a few times so maybe the issue is that they just aren't used to them yet.
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abirose
Burrowing Degu
Forum Helper
Posts: 276
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Post by abirose on Aug 19, 2011 14:47:10 GMT
I think all these ideas are brilliant. I always thought that if I feed the oats in the evening, the goos would be all hyperactive but as you've rightly said, there would be a crash time where it would wear off! I've just put an old aquarium lighting unit ontop of the cage and they seem really happy with it. Tosca keeps sitting in the cargo net dozing underneath So I will try out the lighting routine, to be honest I think the cage looks a bit nicer with the light anyway. Yeh it doesn't seem to matter how many toys or chewy things from chinchillas2shop I use, those cage bars must be just to tempting (especially the j clips which make that extra noise!) I know I'll never change their natural behaviour (and I wouldn't want to) but its nice to know all these ideas to make it more manageable. I think what's made it worse at the moment is because I have had to take out their wheel. It was the wooden wonderland one and they've chewed a huge hole on the actual spinning wheel and I thought it was going to be too dangerous to leave in. I'm ordering a flying saucer wheel though. Hmm it seems that the whole exercise ball debate is going to be a tricky one! I guess it will depend on each individual degu, I think a playpen is going to be the best idea at the moment. Thanks for all the replies |
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des
Newborn Degu
Posts: 11
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Post by des on Aug 19, 2011 18:40:43 GMT
I think what's made it worse at the moment is because I have had to take out their wheel. I think you nailed one of the main causes right there. Degus without something to run on sounds like an invitation to trouble to me. Our boys have a wheel, a plate, and another wheel in their playground. I'm pretty sure they'd go battypoo without them. |
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Could I put a lamp ontop of the cage to shine in (keeping the wires away) or do you think this would be a bad idea considering the cage is metal? 
) and it's not fact. I think they must stress animals out. They're being taken from a large confined space (their cage) and being put in something much smaller! Granted this smaller confining box rolls around on the floor, but it doesn't allow them real movement, exploration and a feeling of freedom.
