Degus
A Chilean rodent that is awake in the daytime, which few small pets are. It lives in colonies and is one of the more talkative rodents kept.
Photo by Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.5
Overview
The degu is one of the very few small pets that is awake when you are. They are mainly diurnal, most active in the morning and evening, and they live in groups of one or two males with two to five related females, digging communal burrow systems they share and maintain together.
They are also the reason the food bowl matters more here than almost anywhere else on this shelf. Degus are prone to diabetes and to the cataracts that follow it, and they are used in research for exactly that reason, so sugar is not a treat to be rationed, it is something to leave out. No fruit, no honey sticks, no sweetened muesli. Adults run 170 to 300 grams and 32 to 44 centimetres including the tail, and they live five to eight years.
Temperament
Sociable, busy and constantly talking. Degus are highly vocal, with alarm calls, mating calls and a running commentary between parents and young, and a group of them is genuinely noisy in a way a hamster is not.
They should never be kept alone. A single degu is a member of a colony with no colony, and it is one of the clearest cases on this shelf where solitary housing is the welfare problem rather than a preference. Same sex pairs or small groups, introduced young, work best.
Care and grooming
Grass hay first, then a plain hay based pellet, and greens in moderation. Nothing sweet, ever, including the dried fruit that comes mixed into most small animal food.
They reingest a good proportion of their own droppings overnight, which is how they get a second pass at the fibre, and that is normal and necessary. Handle the tail carefully or not at all: it is the one part of a degu that should never be used to catch or hold it.
Living and exercise
A large cage with a solid floor and bedding deep enough to dig in, because burrowing is what the species does for a living and there is no substitute for it in a bare cage.
Give them a dust bath as well, along the lines of a chinchilla's, and plenty of wood to chew. Degu teeth grow continuously and should be orange in a healthy adult, so pale white teeth are a sign to get a vet involved rather than a colour variation.
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