The Degu Diaries

I suppose I have to be a little thankful that they waited until after Christmas to break their ramp. 9:15am approached, the usual time I prepare their food, and this is the sight I was welcomed with. The crime was committed sometime between 10pm on December 26 and 9:15am on December 27. Suspects were interrogated but nobody squeaked a confession.

The Apocalypse didn't happen (no surprise there) so it's time to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Season's Greetings. May your days be filled with degu happiness!

The end of the Mayan 'long term' calendar has arrived and so far everyone is still here. Not that I personally believe the world will end. It is merely, what would have been, the start of a new Era for the Mayans if they were still with us. So from myself, Claudia, Myka, and Mrs F, we wish you a happy 12.21.12!

When I first got my degus they were tiny little things. All three of them could quite easily dust bathe together in a large plastic sweet jar. Almost 4 months on and they've grown so large that they don't all fit in their makeshift bathhouse any more. Technically they still fit but they can't comfortably roll about and do what degus do.

I had to rescue Claudia degu today. Rescue her from the great depths of the couch! Don't ask me how she did it, I haven't a clue. One minute she was squeezing between the back cushions and the next she disappeared in to the couch. That's right, actually inside the couch!

At long last my 2013 degu calendar is now available to buy. It features 12 adorable photographs, thanks to my 3 girls, and is available from Redbubble.

I thought it was about time I introduced you all to my degus now that they are coming up to 5 months old and I can finally tell them apart. The cheeky little madam above is Myka and was originally called Dora the Explorer in the first few weeks that the 'goos' were welcomed in to my home. She's still a little explorer and the only degu who will quite happily jump on you every time you open the cage door. She loves to sit on your shoulder and preen your ears! She's also the only degu with a full bushy tail.

The calendar is almost complete but I'm having a few lighting issues. The only room I have suitable to set the scenes for the photos gets around 2 hours of direct sun now that the days are getting shorter. I'm having to redo a few of the months too because they don't gel with some of the scene.

"Green Tea & Sunflower" available as cards and prints from Redbubble There's not an awful lot of things out there for the degu owner. I'm talking greeting cards, prints, and other goodies we can treasure. As you know, I'm in the middle of creating a calendar but I've already got some degu greeting cards, postcards and prints available of images that will feature in the calendar.

This afternoon I attempted the photoshoot for October of my degu calendar. They say "Never work with children or animals" and I can honestly say that they are right! Out of 50 photos only around 5 are decent. I had wanted a photo of all 3 degus sitting huddled together between the squashes but I could only get them to sit still with millet. What's the problem with that? Well, they won't sit within a foot of each other when they're eating it!

I'm in the process of making a degu calendar which I'll be selling via Redbubble . I have 5 of the 12 photos ready but still need to take decent photographs for the rest. I had a brainwave this morning with the idea to make the photographs for December, July, and October seasonal.

When I used to keep rats, my last set of 6 boys had a hammock for sleeping in. They loved it but I was forever stitching the hanging straps back on, or replacing the fabric. It quickly went from being a lovely bright shop bought item to a Frankenstein's monster of a hammock made from the leg of a pair of old jeans! Rodents chew, a lot, so I'd dismissed the idea of buying my degus one… until last week.

Today, for some reason, the girls have been rather noisy and domineering. The smallest, who is affectionately called Mini Sh*t because of the way she teases the others, has spent all day trying to mount the other 2 in an attempt to be alpha degu. Large, yes I know I still don't have proper names yet, has spent most of the day shouting about nothing and Medium couldn't really care less.

This degu likes playtime and this degu likes playtime, but who likes it more? There's only one way to find out… FIGHT!

I can't believe I've had my degus for a month tomorrow. I've been a little busy with work this past week but I thought I'd take time out to share a little video my brother took of the girls chillaxing on Saturday afternoon. About 30 seconds in I open the door for a better view. Enjoy!

My degu girls have been part of the family for 3 weeks now and they still don't have names yet. To be honest, I'm still finding it a little difficult to tell them apart so I'm still using nicknames. Although I must admit that Jenny Mac and Dandelion are growing on me for 2 of them. As you can see from the photo my 'goos' are settling in quite nicely and have finally discovered that they can gnaw on practically everything… Just check out those edges! I was starting to think that I had the only degus in the world who didn't chew. You'll also notice that one of them likes to doze in the most impractical places around the cage. Make that two of them, as this photo was taken just after the other one had gotten up for a stretch. There are plenty of places for a quick snooze. How about the chiller shelf? It's big enough for all three of them and it's up top out of the way. No. How about the balcony of the 2 storey chalet? No. The wooden bridge/tunnel...

I've had my degus for 2 weeks and 4 days and I'm quite surprised at how tame they have become in such a short amount of time. They are all starting to come out of their shells and their personalities are really starting to show! Only last week I was able to do spot cleans (removing and replacing handfuls of soiled substrate & bedding) without too much trouble as they'd hide in a corner. Now, they climb on my hands and my head and try to escape. Just this morning I had to put them in the storage box I use for transporting them to their play area because 1 climbed out when I wasn't looking! Looks like someone will be on 'goo' duty when I do the major clean out on Sunday. As well as being incredibly naughty little degus this morning, it looks like they were also up to no good last night. My girls have got lots of things to play with and keep them amused. Cardboard tubes, a wheel, digging pit, makeshift burrow, egg box, bridges, tunnels, and a toilet rol...

My 3 degu girls absolutely love eating fresh herbs. Mint, basil, and chives are their favourites and chives seems to be the one they like the most. I've been thinking of ways to enrich their environment so while I was eating my birthday breakfast this morning I set about making what I like to call the Fresh Herb Degu Eatery. A portable herb garden that can be put in their play area for them to nibble on. To make the Fresh Herb Degu Eatery you will need: An empty 2 litre ice cream tub and lid. Wire mesh with holes approx. 13mm Wire cutters Thin wire Pliers Craft Knife Thick Needle Scissors Fresh herbs or herb seeds of your choice Soil or compost It takes approximately an hour to make and can be used straight away with fresh herbs. Of course, if you decided to plant seeds you will have to wait until they have grown. Let's get started… Step 1 — Prepare the Lid & Mesh The first thing you need to do is cut a hole in the ice cream tub lid. I used a c...

Today is the 3rd time since my Degus moved in that they've been out of their cage to play. The girls are still a little nervous around people so it was a bit of challenge when I let them out to play the first time but it's getting easier. Until they are tamer I am using their dust bath (a large plastic sweet container) and a large plastic storage box to transport them to their play area on the stairs landing. I put the sweet jar in their cage and as each one enters I gently take it out of the cage and they climb out in to the storage box. Then it's just a case of carrying them and some toys and food upstairs. One thing is for certain. Degus are incredibly entertaining to watch and practically fearless. I lost count of the number of times they went up the leg of my brother's shorts as he sat guarding the way down the stairs. Degus are funny little creatures... Well, mine are. When they are in the cage they all run a mile when you go anywhere near them. Wel...

I am hoping that the sneezing one of my degus has seemingly developed overnight is an allergy to the wood shaving. They have all been sneezing a little here and there but it seems worse in one of them. She keeps grabbing her nose as if something is irritating it. I must admit that when I first filled the cage the wood shavings affected my own nose something rotten so it's hardly a surprise if this is an allergy. My local pet store doesn't have any Carefresh animal bedding or alternative dust free recycled substrate I can use so until I can get down to Pets at Home I have temporarily filled the cage with straw and hay. I may continue with the straw, as they seem to love hiding in it, and use a small amount of absorbent material beneath it to help with soaking up the pee. She seems happy enough in herself but I will keep an eye on her just in case. UPDATE August 25, 2012 — Both the straw and hay were considerably dusty, which I didn't realise, but I have since clea...

My girls have been a part of the family for 5 days now. I left them alone for the first 2 days to let them get used to their new surroundings but now that's over I've started to tame my degu girls. They are already quite a curious bunch of degus anyway and like to play the "sniff-and-run" game by cautiously approaching new things, sniffing it, then promptly running for cover. On Sunday I started placing my arm in the cage at random intervals throughout the day for about 20-30 minutes. I placed my hand palm down on the floor and just stood there, quietly talking to any degu which would come to investigate. I was quite surprised by how quickly they became trusting of my hand and by nightfall yesterday, they were all quite comfortably sitting on the back of my hand as they munched on their food. I don't have names yet (my brother still wants a Big Bang Theory theme) but I have temporarily called them Nosy Rosie, Noisy Annie, and the other one, so that I know who...

The girls have settled down a little since I got them on Friday so while they were snoozing earlier this morning I took the opportunity to take some photos of their degu home decor. Bottom Section - Grass Hammock If you've read some of my Cage Build Posts you'll know that the cage is built in 2 parts, a bottom & top section, for easier moveability. The bottom floor of the bottom section is the digging pit. My aim is to make this as natural looking as possible. It is filled with around 15cm of wood shavings and some hay. I've used horse wood shavings as the shavings are large and allows the degus to burrow when mixed with the hay. Underground Hideout They have an underground area which is a hay tunnel sunk down in to the wood shavings. If you can't find one of the girls the first place to look is here because they love playing in it. You can also see a few willow branches. I got a bundle of 20 of these from B&Q for £6.99. They're about 50cm long a...

My poor girls spent the whole night with hardly any water thanks to a dodgy water bottle. It seemed to be working fine but when I woke up this morning and the water level hadn't changed I realised something wasn't right. I took the bottle out and gave them a glass ramekin with a shallow amount of water in, then headed to the local pet store for an emergency plastic one to put through the mesh. When I got back the water in the ramekin was gone and my girls started drinking from the new bottle as soon as I put it in. Living World Glass Water Bottle After much reading I found that there were quite a few others leaving reviews on glass non-drip pet water bottles stating that they didn't work. I wasn't going to be defeated though as I'm uncertain about using the plastic bottles (even on the outside) after my rats caused a flood with theirs a few years ago. I spent this morning fixing my glass bottle. Shook the bottle to fill the nozzle and it worked fine until ...

This morning 3 little degus became the newest members of my family and they're the 3 cutest girls ever! I was up until midnight filling and dressing their cage ready for them to move in and they are loving it. 2 of them still think that there are only 2 floors and not 4, and all 3 have spent most of the day running in their wheel. Just before I settled down to write this they were all in a 'goo pile' on top of their cabin. It's a little dark in the room for a decent photo and I don't want to use the flash so I'll have to wait until there's a little more light to get a photo of them huddled together. They are all still a little flighty and scared of the camera but I managed to get a few decent photos of them. Don't have any names yet as I'm waiting to see what kind of personalities they have. My brother wants to call them Penny, Amy, and Bernadette… The Big Degu Theory! UPDATE — Here's a little video my brother recorded. :)

It's almost 7PM and I'm not finished. At 5:30PM, while hanging the doors, I realized that there were no more screws of the correct size left and the shop would be shut before I got there. So I have only the top doors hung. Before bed I'm going to finish the inside by adding branches, bridges, ramps, ladders and other accessories. Then I'll fill it with wood shavings and hay ready for my new family members. Tomorrow I'll be outside waiting for Wilkinsons to open so I can get some more screws before I go to the pet store and my dad will kindly hang the remaining doors while I'm out. Hopefully they won't have sold out of degus before I get to the pet store.

I only have one day left to try and get my cage complete if I want to get my degus on Friday. My helper (brother) has urgent work to do for clients so I've been left on my own to finish it off. Shelf covered with ceramic tiles to help keep degus cool Despite being on my own I got quite a lot done today. I made a chiller shelf from an old pine shelf, timber offcuts and a few ceramic floor tiles. This will help keep the degus cool as the room they will be in is a few degrees warmer than the rest of the house. I also managed to lightly sand and varnish the interior one last time. This will help protect from anything that might get on the walls and it'll be wipe clean. The outside of the cage is also a lovely shade of 'sand' and purple to match the room. Vinyl tiles on shelf to help protect MDF from degu pee I also managed to to lay all of my vinyl tiles on the base and shelves but annoyingly I'm 2 tiles short so I'm going to have to buy some more of the...

Work on the cage has slowed a little due to other commitments but all four doors have now been meshed and the aluminium angle has been cut to size. The angle will protect the doors from degu teeth and protect them from any sharp bits on the mesh edges. 2 of 4 doors with mesh attached Tomorrow I'm not expecting to get much done other than maybe a coat of paint on the outside as I'm frantically trying to meet a deadline for work. I had hoped my order of cage accessories would arrive today as the website had them sitting in my local delivery hub but it looks like it'll be Monday now. I can't wait to get them! I've ordered: Some wooden bridges and ladders to use as ramps through the cage. A glass water bottle so that I can put it inside rather than through the doors. A 2 storey log cabin for their nest box. A grass hammock which they'll non doubt have chewed in a few hours. A temporary large wooden wheel. I'm hoping to be able to make them a flying ...

Made the door frames today with just enough time to cover one of them in mesh. Would have liked a little more done but they were just so incredibly time consuming. We were originally going to glue and screw the doors but we couldn't figure out a way to drill pilot holes through the butt joint efficiently. Instead, we glued and stapled them with a staple gun you use for upholstery. The seem solid enough as it is and the aluminium trim will help strengthen them even more. I'm still in the middle of an order of cat and dog paintings for Whitby Galleries and my extra paper arrived this morning so I better crack on with finishing those tomorrow. I'm aiming to get the mesh on the rest of the doors and the inside of the bottom section, back, and sides primed over the weekend.

Only 7 more days before my new furbabies move in and there isn't that much of the cage left to build… just time consuming things and a few shelves. This afternoon we fixed the 13mm x 13mm pet enclosure mesh to the kiln-dried pine wooden frame that was attached yesterday to create a ventilated roof. We used 15mm netting staples. I also managed to get the 2 internal levels cut ready to be attached after I've sealed the inside against degu pee. I've read mixed reviews about pee protection. Some people leave their MDF or plywood bare and rely on copious amounts of dust-free wood shavings to do the soaking. Others are a little more dubious (and so would I with MDF) and have used vinyl tiles on the bottom and the levels but left the sides bare. A few brave souls have painted and / or varnished everything. The way I see it is like this. A degu can't chew through a flat surface so as long as you end up with the same flat surface after you've primed and sealed t...