The Big Degu Cage Build

The Big Degu Cage Build - Part Eight

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 saucer wheel from a metal dish and parts from a lazy susan soon.

I also have my chinchilla dust for their baths, some big balls made from grass and sisal for them to play with, a tube which I'll be using under the substrate as a hideaway, and a small wooden tunnel. I also have my eye on a branch designed for reptiles until I can go out and find some 'free' branches. I have a feeling that they'll eat £12.99 in no time though!

Comments

The Degus Have Moved In

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. :)

Degu Home Decor

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