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Preparing for Degu Pregnancy

3265 Views 10 Replies 2 Participants Last post by  sara_warren5, 
S
Hello, My name is Sara and I have a degu who is about to give birth any day now! Could even be today. I am brand new to degu owning. We got her in June and she wasnt with a male with us. So were thinking she got pregnant in the store. (Even though she was seperated from the males in the store at the time we bought her) She is about to give birth and she is caged with two other females who she gets a long with great, in fact the one girl is taking great care of her through all this. I need some advice as to what I should do when she is giving birth, after she gives birth and when the babies start getting bigger. My degu is only 5-6 months old as of now and im scared shes going to lose these babies. So my questions are what time of day do degus normally give birth or is it all random, also what can I do to make sure she is safe, happy, and is healthy! I need to know that it wont be my fault something goes wrong here. Please get back to me as soon as possible. Thanks in advance. Also any websites that have good info would be helpful too!
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S
Make sure she's eating a high-quality, varied diet and keep the room she's in quiet as it gets close to the day. If you need to handle her, be very gentle (perhaps scoop her into a container). Did she build a nest yet? I'd clean the cage now, leaving the nest intact if it's there. This way the babies have a nice, clean cage (since it's hard to clean a cage with newborns).

Make sure you have both a regular vet and an emergency vet lined up just in case. She'll probably be fine, though, especially with other degus there to help her :).

Other than that there isn't much you can/should do. If she trusts you you can begin handling the babies right away (and definitely start handling within a week of their birth to begin taming them). Degus rarely reject their young but you should watch to make sure she's nursing them, too.

Keep me updated on how she's doing :).
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S
Well can you tell me what a high-quality varied diet is for a degu? I havent been handling her too much but everytime i open the cage she runs to come out. She loves me. She hasnt built a nest yet to my knowledge but I created a hidden corner she can only access through a small hole so I know she feels safe in that corner. Shes been in it a few times. I just cleaned the cage like 2 days ago. Her first due date was today on that 80-90 day gestation. She definetly does trust me and I hope when she has the babies her attitude toward me stays the same. Ill definetly keep you updated when she gives birth :) but yeah id like some info on a high quality varied diet.
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S
What are you currently feeding? :)
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S
I am feeding pieces of lettuce every single day and a chinchilla feed. It was $20 for the bag so it isnt cheap stuff. I cannot find degu food any where that is why i dont feed that. It says on the back of the bag that the feed has 17.5% protein(min), crude fat 5.0%(min) crude fibre 21.0(min), crude fibre 26.0%(max), moisture 12.0%(max) calcium 0.6(min), calcium 0.9%(max), phosphorus 0.3%(min) and so on lol its long. vitamin statement is vitamin a 29,5000 IU/kg vitamin d3 1,150 IU/kg, vitamin E 50 IU/kg and ingredients are timothy hay (25%), oatmeal, canola meal, ground flaxseed, ground canola seed, dried dield peas, dicalcium phosphate, ligninsulfonate pellet binder, dried beet pulp, salt, dried parsley, dried carrots, dried cauliflower, dried leeks, dried spinach, dried chicory root.. yeah i just copied a lot of info lol but i need help and want the best for these guys. am i doing everything okay as to feeding wise.. what can i do differently or add too.
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S
You don't have Sunseed Sunscription where you live? I know it's available in Ontario but I'm not sure where. Dried beet pulp is just a form of cheap sugar so I'd consider switching to a feed with no sugar at all. I don't see any problems other than that, it's good that it's timothy hay based.

What kind of lettuce do you feed? As for other ideas, here's a list of foods I fed my degus which I posted a few days ago in another thread:

Romaine lettuce
Green leaf/red leaf lettuce
Escarole
Chickory
Dandelion greens and flowers*
Marigold flowers
Lavender
Wild grasses
Clovers
Alfalfa sprouts*
Cucumbers
Broccoli leaves
Kale*
Spinach*
Zucchini
Bell peppers
Parsley
Basil
Oregano
Mint
Cilantro

All of the above were fed fresh. Ones marked with an asterisk were limited because of the calcium content.

I gave the following as occasional treats only:

Carrots and carrot greens
Sweet potato slices (skin removed)
Dried tomatoes
Peanuts (unsalted)
Walnuts (whole, made for a fun toy)
Sugar-free cereal

There's no need to feed all of that stuff, the key is giving a good variety :).
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S
what is sunseed sunscription? i have never heard of it? I am feeding the lettuce that you buy in a circle lol i think its called iceberg or something.
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S
It's a brand of degu food.

That kind of lettuce has pretty much no nutritional value to degus (and humans)...it's mostly water. I would feed romaine lettuce instead. Romaine lettuce is darker green and more leafy :).
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S
ive never heard of that kind of food. but...... she gave birth today at approximately 145am. She had 3 healthy babies. :D Shes doing great. just before writing this she came right up to me and jumped into my hand for a treat. shes a doll and shes so far healthy and her and babies are doing well :)
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S
Yay, that's great to hear!
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S
yeah :) but she doesnt seem to be spending much time with them. She has them covered up in toilet paper but she never seems to be with them. Their not crying or weeping but is it okay if she isnt with them when their quiet? lol
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