What way can you pick up a degu?

Once your degu is happy being held and is settled in your company it is possible to carefully pick them up by putting your thumb behind their front legs and your fingers over their back. Lift gently and support the hind legs with your other hand.

1. Can degus be handled?
2. Are degus cuddly?
3. Are degus smart?
4. Can degus get wet?
5. How do you transport a degu?
6. Do degu tails grow back?
7. Do degu bites hurt?
8. How do you take care of a pet degu?
9. How do you house a degu?
10. How often should you clean a degu cage?
11. How often I should give my Degu a dust bath?
12. What kind of animal is a degus?
13. Why is my degu drinking so much water?
14. How do I know if my degu has diabetes?
15. What causes diabetes in degu?

Can degus be handled?

Degu care starts with ensuring they are healthy and happy. ... Start handling your degu when they are still young if at all possible. Choose your moment: degus are most active during the day and won't appreciate being handled when sleepy. Wait until they are eating or playing before handling.

Are degus cuddly?

Degus can get very affectionate and cuddly when they're used to you handling them. The degu is a very intelligent animal that will want to cuddle with you but will also like cuddling with other degus.

Are degus smart?

Degu Appearance and Behavior

The tip of their tail has a tuft of black fur, while their bellies are covered in tan fur, and they have bristly hair on their hindfeet. These small rodents are extremely smart and can adapt to both nocturnal (night) and diurnal (day) sleeping patterns.

Can degus get wet?

Degus have a limited ability to swim to safety in small bodies of water. However, degus should never be placed in water. Degus don't like taking a swim or a water bath and giving one can lead to health issues or drowning. So degus don't really like water and can even drown when you let them swim.

How do you transport a degu?

Always provide a small shelter in the carrier for your degus to hide if they feel the need. This could be a cardboard box, tunnel or a pile of hay- anything your degus can escape into if they get scared. 3. Always, always make sure your degus have access to fresh drinking water on their journey, no matter how short.

Do degu tails grow back?

Once the tail end has dried out your degu will usually chew the end of the tail off. It is your job to monitor the tail for any discharge, smell, or swelling that would indicate an infection. If you are unsure if the tail is healing, have your exotics vet look at it to determine whether or not antibiotics are needed.

Do degu bites hurt?

Degus are friendly animals that generally won't resort to biting unless they feel threatened and have no way out. A degu might give you a little “grooming” nip but this doesn't really hurt or break the skin. It's only in rare cases that a degu will bite hard and such a bite might hurt and cause an injury.

How do you take care of a pet degu?

Like chinchillas, degus need regular dust baths. Provide a shallow bowl of chinchilla dust a couple times a week. They will typically only need it for 20-30 minutes and then you can remove it. Keep the cage away from direct sunlight, drafts, and other pets such as dogs and cats.

How do you house a degu?

Degus like natural light as they are active in the day and tend to sleep during night time hours. Make sure to keep them somewhere they get plenty of natural light, but keep their cage out of direct sunlight as they are so sensitive to warm temperatures. Keep their home away from any radiators, too.

How often should you clean a degu cage?

Cleaning the entire cage is usually needed once a month. A lot will depend on the size of the degu cage and the number of degus you keep. For a pair of degus, you can usually only spot clean daily and clean a part of the substrate (1/4) each week. Once a month the entire cage should be thoroughly cleaned.

How often I should give my Degu a dust bath?

Degus need a dust bath at least two times a week and should stay in the dust bath long enough that they've covered their whole body in the dust and shaken it off a few times. Pet degus should always have access to dust baths so they can clean themselves and their cage mates.

What kind of animal is a degus?

degu, (genus Octodon), one of four species of ratlike South American rodents found primarily on the lower western slopes of the Andes Mountains. It is one of the most common mammals of central Chile at elevations up to 1,200 metres (3,900 feet), where it prefers open grassy areas near shrubs, rocks, and stone walls.

Why is my degu drinking so much water?

Monitor drinking habits- It's a great idea to keep track of how much water your degus are drinking, as over-consumption can be a sign of diabetes, and under-consumption can cause problems such as constipation. ... Remember that degus drink more in hot weather, so this might go up slightly during the summer.

How do I know if my degu has diabetes?

Your degu may have diabetes:

Loss of appetite can be as a result of diabetes. Other symptoms of diabetes can be increased drinking, urinating and cataracts. Degus are genetically predisposed to diabetes, and sadly insulin injections may not work.

What causes diabetes in degu?

Degus develop spontaneous diabetes mellitus caused by amyloidosis of Langerhans islets.