With regards to my previous post on degus foraging, a comment was left asking: how can I persuade my degus to dig? I was going to reply to this comment directly but decided, instead, to create a post answering this question (as best as I can) - in the hopes more people will read it. I would first like to thank Becky for asking this question, secondly I would like to remind readers that I am by no means an expert on degus or their behaviour; I am an enthusiast. Becky Asked: Hey there, I have recently tried to make my degus space to burrow on the bottom shelf; it consisted of hay, straw and wood shavings, but the mixture doesn't seem firm enough. I have put in lots of thick branches and tubes connecting from the top of the mixture to the bottom but they are really not interested; I have tried to make my own burrows but they just end up being walked on top of. I've had this in for nearly two weeks now and just wondering if there's any suggestions to make them start burrowing. Thanks very much Becky Hello Becky, I guess the first thing to say is that, unfortunately we have no way of making our degus do anything really; they really are stubborn little blighters! You are not the only owner that I have heard from, who has trouble getting their degus to "dig and forage". I am sure that in the wild they must dig large cave systems to avoid predators and keep warm, 2 things they need not worry about in captivity. If they are truly comfortable in their home digging may not be a priority. I myself had great trouble encouraging my degus to dig. I tried many different mixtures of substrate, but like you, my degus simply walked over it. I have attempted to introduce digging to my degus on numerous occasions. To hazard a guess, they probably had access to a digging pit every other 2 months for about 8 months. Eventually I settled with my current mixture of Hay, Straw (lots of it), wood shavings and snake aspen. Of all the different mixtures and ratios I tried, I found this to be the most stable. Of course you will require lots of (large) branches in the substrate and ready made tunnels help as a starting point for the degus. I have been very lucky indeed this month as out of the blue my degus began to dig. Other possible factors may include: The number of degus you own, their current hierarchy and recent history. I believe the degus dig and create nests not just out of necessity but also as a social activity. My 4 boys have only recently become a stable group, after a long bout of introductions. Digging may not have been a priority until their social lives were stable. The amount of space you have provided your degus and how close your enclosure is to their natural environment. Obviously we can never hope to create a natural habitat inside our enclosures, but we can try. I have strived for a more natural theme within my enclosure (providing branches with leaves to climb etc) and offered them plenty of space by removing "cluttering" toys - creating larger running spaces. Perhaps this more natural environment encourages natural behaviour. (Please note that since I have created a more natural aesthetic, increased running space, offered a natural diet and increased colony size; my degus have become less tame.) Tips that may encourage digging, foraging and burrowing:
As long as your degus are happy, you should be happy for them, do not try to force them to do something they do not want to do :) I hope this information is useful! Kind regards, Josh Smithomatic
1 Comment
jake smith
6/11/2012 05:07:06 am
very helpful josh, i will try this with my degus :P Leave a Reply. |