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Post by jbaglady on Nov 28, 2011 4:44:41 GMT
Well, I have another problem. My other 2 females are having serious fighting issues and I think I probably caused it ! I am so upset. What happened is I moved them into another degus cage (wooden) cleaned out all the bedding but didn't clean the wood as I have been trying to get them acustomed to the other 2 female scents. As soon as I put them into the other cage (without the other degus) the timid one started attacking the friendly one. Makes no sense to me but obvoiusly there is a huge problem. The friendly one is so upset why her sister has gone balistic on her. She is making all kinds of friendly degus noises and the timid one just hates her ! So I took them out of the wooden cage. Put them back into the cage they are used to and separated them horizontally with the agressive one on the bottom. She just hides all the time in her box and comes out briefly to make un-happy degu noises and try to bite the other goo thru the mesh. She drew blood on her sister when they were in the other cage. I am so worried about the friendly goo. She is so depressed. These girls have been together since birth and I accquired them about 1 month ago. Is there any thing I should do other than split cage and wait ?  |
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Post by deguconvert on Nov 28, 2011 16:31:58 GMT
Do you have any of their old dirty substrate? Putting them into the wooden cage, with clean bedding that would be devoid of all their informative scents, definitely would have upset their sense of calm and bonding. Don't beat yourself up over this, it is all part of learning about degus and I assure you, we all make this common mistake at some point. If you can access the dirty substrate, sprinkle a good handful of it over the clean substrate in each half of the cage. It will tell them again what they have been to each other and will help to relink those broken memories to active and current happenings. Don't assume that they will be ready to happily return to each other. I think you will need to give them a few days to let the information really sink in again. Then I would do a reintroduction with them, as if this is their first time meeting.
You will need to do this in an area where they can explore and meet each other, somewhere hopefully neutral, and a place where you will be able to stay close enough to intervene if things get nasty. A location we have found through experience, and the advice of others, to be good for this is the bathroom and even in the clean, dry bathtub. If you can have a water spray bottle and a small towel on hand, it is helpful. A spray of water can discourage aggression, and a towel thrown over a persistantly attacking degu can help secure the animal so that it can be returned to the cage.
Please be sure to ask any questions you may have. We want to help you achieve a successful reunion between your girls!!
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Post by jbaglady on Dec 2, 2011 14:37:16 GMT
ok, so I have let them calm down for several days. It first the sweet goo was making friendly noises and the agressive goo was screaching and making aggressive un happy noises. At this point the aggressive one is no longer making mean noises to the sweet one. I am going to introduce them in the bath tub to see what happens. Have the water bottle ready & the towel.
My question is I know I do not want to remove the bedding (again) as this is what started the problem but if they get along do I just open up both halves of the cage and let them explore each side ? mixing up some of the bedding from both sides ? I just dont want to mess up anything ? know if they sort of get along then I need to keep separate still and do again the next day.
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Post by fred on Dec 2, 2011 15:05:36 GMT
It is important to reduce all extra stress as much as possible. I know the bath tub is often suggested but I think that in most cases this is not a good idea. Do you have alternatives, the bathroom itself or a corridor? You should also offer them something to retreat, for example a neutral cardboard box. If their meeting on neutral ground goes well, I would put them back into their cage halves and repeat the meeting on neutral ground for a few days.
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Post by jbaglady on Dec 3, 2011 0:52:19 GMT
My aggressive girl is also the most timid one which doesn't make sense to me. Would it be a bad idea to just let her into the other half of the cage ? maybe less stressful ??
I am going to have to catch her with an oatmeal box to put her into a neutral area ,so I know this would be stressful too.
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Post by jbaglady on Dec 4, 2011 15:03:59 GMT
I am still anxious to put them together so I have continued switching bedding back & forth and yesterday I switched them to each others cages.
So do i introduce them in a neutral area or go with the cage & smells they are used to.
If they get along in the neutral area do I change the cage bedding ? I wouldnt think so since this is what got them fighting to start with ??
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Post by fred on Dec 4, 2011 15:48:38 GMT
I am sorry I am a bit confused and can't figure out which of your four degus you are talking about. It would help if you could clarify what the current situation is with respect to all of them; also if you use their names, it will be easier to keep track.
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Post by deguconvert on Dec 4, 2011 23:37:41 GMT
No . . . it is a good practice to return a sprinkle of used/soiled bedding to a cage after it has been cleaned, so as to restore some of their vital scents/information to their environment. So if they get along, don't mess with the bedding for a little bit.
Also, even if they DO get along in a neutral area, don't assume that they are ready to get along in their caged area. You need to have a few relatively successful meets before you try the cage.
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Post by jbaglady on Dec 5, 2011 1:49:51 GMT
ok I am clear now. Thanks so much. I will let you know how it goes !
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Post by jbaglady on Dec 5, 2011 19:21:08 GMT
Well, I put them together in an enclosed area and they were too scared to react to each other. Then they were huddled next to each other under the sink so I though good!
I next put them together in the bottom half of the cage. So Gidget the friendly one started humping the aggressive/scared/shy one Gabby. Gabby didn't like this but tolerated it with teeth grinding then started slapping her tail then WW3 started. I think they both want to be boss so I dont know if this is going to work out at all.
I wonder if this has been going on all along. I have only had these girls 1 month and Gabby(shy one) has just hidden all the time until she started attacking Gidget when I changed them into the new cage with "other Degus"smells and no familiar bedding.
Boy, am I trying to analyze the dynamics of this relationship or what ? Maybe I can go into degus counseling.....
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Post by deguconvert on Dec 5, 2011 20:50:29 GMT
LOL! I've been there!! So know how you are feeling. Don't give up, it is a time demanding process, and because degus tend to hold grudges with each other, it can take a long time in a good half of the cases at least. So, grab onto your patience and determination, you'll need them both.
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Post by jbaglady on Dec 18, 2011 18:39:28 GMT
Well, I think these 2 girls are just not going to get along. I have put them together several times in neutral areas and at first the dominate one mounts the other one and the timid one allows it for a while then the timid one just goes ballistic and chases the dominate one until the dominate one just stays on the wheel running like crazy. If she comes off the wheel the "timid crazy one" charges the dominate one and a fur ball happens. Do I take a chance and just leave them to fight it out, or just give up. The dominate one is the one that ends up getting bullied. The timid one is the crazy one  ? They are living separated one up stairs/ one down stairs in a cage that is really too small for each one individually. Each has a wheel . Do you think the timid one just wants to live alone ? |
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Post by deguconvert on Dec 18, 2011 20:11:22 GMT
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