Should I be worried?

[Purplebunny]

I hope Jerry is ok? Sending him big degu huggies from my 5!

[Sammy H]

Jerry is fine!!

He is just as naughty as ever, if not worse, and playing on being spoiled a lot after the op. THe vet has done a really great job, it looks so neat. I'm really glad he's ok!!

He has a check up on wednesday, so if anything happens i'll let you know.

[Amethystbelle]

aaaaaawwwww glad to hear the little fellow is ok Give him a big tickle from me and my boys

[Purplebunny]

Good luck for Wednesday, I hope everything is ok? Another round of degu huggies...

[Sammy H]

Oh, btw, I have decided not to try and mix R&R and Jerry. Maybe when his eye is fully healed, I'm not sure. Its seems a bit unfair to do this now.

Rum and Raisin are sulking at the mo cos Jerry is getting more attention... and he knows it!! I think he is playing on it slightly

[Amethystbelle]

Its probably best for the time being if you are going to retry wait a few months till his eye and the tissues inside have fully healed. If he's living next door to them he should be fine especially with lots of hugs, tickles and tlc from you

[Sammy H]

don't worry, he's getting lots of hugs (until he gets too wriggly).

i don't want him to get hurt any more from fighting so i just think it would be better if he stayed on his own for a while. maybe eventually......

[Amethystbelle]

I hope everything has gone ok today with Jerry's check up and he is doing well? Please give him a tickle from me

[Sammy H]

Sorry, haven't updated you yet have I!

Jerry got the all clear from the vet!! He is back in the main partitioned cage, chasing Rum and Raisin up and down. He was getting bored in the "sick degu" cage, and chewing EVERYTHING but, now he has degus to play with (through metal mesh anyway).

His fur is growing back in patches around his former eye and he looks a little bit daft but much better!! He's actually been quite good at not scratching his stitches, so he shouldn't have to go back to the vet (fingers crossed).

Thanks all for your support and advice (both for Jerry and Ben, when he needed it)

[Amethystbelle]

aaaaaawwww that is absolutely fantastic news I bet he's giving the other two a run for their money again

[Sammy H]

He's funny cos he follows them around all over the cage and tries to scrabble under the mesh partition at the bottom!!

Whenever i try and open the cage, i have to put my arm in the way to keep them from jumping into each other sides of the cages. he always grabs me by the skin (hard - but not enough to draw blood) and tries to drag my arm out of the way.
He can be a bitey little !bleep! sometimes

[Amethystbelle]

Yes Herbie does that with me he like digs on my hand to get it out the way so he can get out and sometimes he drags his teeth along my arm but not very hard just gently to try and move me Sounds like Jerry has made a fast recovery, its amazing how these little animals bounce back so well as when humans have surgery it takes weeks if not months to recover from but animals just bounce back

[Sammy H]

he was bouncing off the cage walls for the few days after the op (we think cos he had been given painkiller injections and didn't realise how big an operation he'd just had!!). he slowed down a bit afterwards, but it great now!!

sounds like you are luckier with herbie!! jez bites just a little bit too hard for my liking!! is there anything you (or anyone else reading this) recommends for trying to cut down on the nibbling of flesh?? He's pretty bitey most of the time, particularly with fingers....

[Amethystbelle]

My first degu Nipper used to bite and he used to bite hard, he used to be ok one minute then walk up to me when he was out and bite me and walk off like nothing had happened I tried everything with him but nothing worked so i put it down to his upbringing as they was nearly 2 years old when i got them and nothing i did or tried stopped him biting. I tried making sure my hands were clean before touching him, i tried bribing him with treats, i even tried ignoring the bad behaviour and not making a fuss but nothing worked and he bit till a few days before he died

Is there any time he bites you more? Like after you have fed him or maybe after you have touched the other two? As i know with mine they have a nibble if they can smell each other especially Rupert as he hates Bertie and Herbie. So Jerry might bite more if he can smell your other two!? Or if he can smell food on your fingers? I have read articles on degu behaviour and they suggest they are cleverer than the average rat and can pick up on something quite quickly that they shouldn't do that they get attention for so another idea might be to try ignoring the bad behaviour such as when he bites you and see if this has any effect?

[Purplebunny]

Glad to hear he is back to normal! Great news indeed....