Living with Degus

Mark it down as one of the worst parenting mistakes – ever! Please take note and do not repeat what I did!

Over March Break we were doing some errands and I said, “Wouldn’t it be fun to pop into the pet store to see the fish and cats?”

Monumental error.

While in the pet store the young employee of Pets Unlimited proceeded to take all the pets out of their cages so the boys could pat them. When he heard how the boys had been begging for a guinea pig (because their best friends have one) and I constantly said, “no”, he showed the boys something else.

“This is what you really want! They are called degus. They are the friendliest, most docile and trainable of all the rodents.”

“Yeah! That would be cool! Let’s get that!” That was my husband piping up.

“No! Where’s the discussion?” that was me trying to maintain a rodent-free home.

By the time we had left the store, the boys (all three of them) had committed to getting a degu. All because I had thought it would be a fun adventure to go to the pet store.

I’ve lived with exotic pets before. Our family grew up with my sister’s 5 ½ foot pet iguana, Darwin, for 20 years! I happily ignored “Uglet”. But, a degu?

What is a degu?

I had never even heard of a degu until that day. Admittedly, they are cute. They have big ears, a furry long tail, and are a cousin to a chinchilla.

The boys vowed to pool their money and earn the extra by doing jobs around the house. To their credit, they did. They had enough money to buy a degu and the various things needed for the cage.

Research

We started to do our research. The next shocking thing that we found out is that degus are social creatures. You can’t just have one – you have to have two or they will die of loneliness! Now instead of having one pet I didn’t want, we’d have two!

The Cage

We did a lot of research on degu cages. They are very active animals and need a lot of space to run, climb and explore. One suggestion we found was to take an old dresser, remove the drawers and build a variety of levels within the structure. My husband, being extremely handy, did this.

Because degus chew constantly, everything had to be made from wood. But, not just any type of wood. There are only certain kinds of wood that are good for them to chew. One type is apple. Luckily, my friends with an apple orchard had just pruned their trees and we went over and grabbed some branches for the degus to climb on.

Feeding

These are sensitive creatures that are prone to diabetes. There are only certain food that they can eat and anything with sugar (including fruit, raisins) very infrequently. It’s a lot to keep on top of!

Homecoming

Thomas had his heart set on one particular degu in the pet store. He had affectionately called him knuckles because the degu had repeatedly bitten him on the knuckles when he went to visit them. Why he would want the pet that bites the most is beyond me!

We finally convinced the boys to get the two more docile degus in the next cage who were cuddled up sleeping. They were put in cardboard boxes for the transport home. Within the 5 minute ride, one of the degus had severely chewed around the breathing hole and was about to escape. Luckily, the cage was ready to go.

Living with Degus

I have to admit they are cute and friendly little creatures. They make a lovely warbling sound when they are happy. The boys are spending lots of time training them and getting them used to their sound (by talking to them) and their smell (by leaving an old sock in the cage – for real!). If you sit by the cage and talk to them, they will come up and say hello and follow your voice around the room.

The dog is not too sure what to think of these new squirrel-like creatures in the house, though!

 

 

So far so good for the first week in! As for me, I still haven’t touched them yet, but am working up to it. Remember, it wasn’t my idea in the first place!

More Information

I have pinned a lot of great articles about degus to my Pinterest page if you are interested in learning more.

Check in with me later to hear more of our adventures with degus! Did Laura finally pet the rodents? Did Gracie the dog lunge through the cage to chase them? Have the boys given up feeding and playing with them?
Time will tell!

What exotic pets have you lived with? Tell me about it below!