# degus!!! :) :)



## johnandjade

so, jade decided on getting degus. I must admit I absolutely love them!! 

does anyone else keep or have any experience with keeping them?


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## Yvonne G

At first I thought you meant "tegu", but I googled it and see, "The degu is a small caviomorph rodent that is endemic to the Chilean matorral ecoregion of central Chile. "

I've never heard of them. But my grandson has a big tegu.


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## 4jean

Several years ago my sister purchased 2 as Christmas gifts for her daughters. The pet store assured her they were females, which was correct....however apparently they were pregnant females! Much to her surprise one had 8 babies, the next day the other had 7....and the pet store would not take them back! They were very cute and social....but 17 is WAY too many degu. She is a college professor and was lucky enough to find homes for them...but it was quite an experience!


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## johnandjade




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## johnandjade




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## johnandjade

jade called.. one got out when she was feeding! she got it back in though, lesson learned I hope lol


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## spud's_mum

johnandjade said:


> jade called.. one got out when she was feeding! she got it back in though, lesson learned I hope lol


Awe they're so cute!
Glad she managed to catch it.


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## johnandjade

spudthetortoise said:


> Awe they're so cute!
> Glad she managed to catch it.



so am i! the little guys can actually 'loose' about half there tail as a defence but thankfully both safely home with tails intact


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## spud's_mum

johnandjade said:


> so am i! the little guys can actually 'loose' about half there tail as a defence but thankfully both safely home with tails intact


Same with gerbils! 
I never touch their tails as I am terrified that they would loose theirs


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## johnandjade

so I think now we have decided on names... baldrick and hamish


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## johnandjade

so the little guys are settling in, and it's obvious who the dominant one is...


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## Yvonne G

That's a pretty cute little animal. Do they bite? What do you feed them?


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## johnandjade

Yvonne G said:


> That's a pretty cute little animal. Do they bite? What do you feed them?




 they are yvonnee, so much fun to watch. they are on pellets just now, but diet is a strict issue. they are 'diabetic' so homework must be done.. have found a degu forum but it's purely for research I won't be jumping ship . no bites (yet) , but one will hand feed . bit of time and they will tame, its even possible to taech them tricks


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## jaizei

I'd never heard of mammals losing their tails as a defense!?!?!?!


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## johnandjade

jaizei said:


> I'd never heard of mammals losing their tails as a defense!?!?!?!



same here! I think it's around half they 'loose' , however it's painful and won't regenerate. @spudsmum will know more than me


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## johnandjade

these guys are awesome!! baldrick is already coming and sitting on my hands but still won't allow me to pet him. hamish doesn't like me yet but is warming to jade


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## johnandjade

so today's goal is to build up a 'table' for the cage, also going to try cover the 2 sides and back with plexi to keep the sawdust in the cage. 

make do and mend part 2  


jades ordered a playpen so when that arrives i'll be able to tackle the inside and add a second level


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## jaizei

johnandjade said:


> so today's goal is to build up a 'table' for the cage, also going to try cover the 2 sides and back with plexi to keep the sawdust in the cage.
> 
> make do and mend part 2
> 
> 
> jades ordered a playpen so when that arrives i'll be able to tackle the inside and add a second level



Have you thought about coroplast? I think it's lighter than plexi. People use it a lot for guinea pig (and other rodent cages).


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## johnandjade

jaizei said:


> Have you thought about coroplast? I think it's lighter than plexi. People use it a lot for guinea pig (and other rodent cages).




we have plexi we had for inside fidos enclosure to protect backdrop, had to remove as reflection was an issue. I'm great at 'up cycling' materials as i'm too cheep to buy more. typical scot


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## johnandjade

top tip, drag thread of screws over a bar of soap to ease effort needed when screwing up


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## spud's_mum

You're probably going through the taming process (as am I, but with the gerbils) and thought I'd share a method that I have just started using over the past couple of days and now they come out and are calm with me.

Basically, you sit by the cage (kneeling down) with the door open so that they can come in and out to get used to your scent. Maybe even put a few treats on your lap. 
Pip and squeak even happily sit on my shoulder now 

Keep us updated


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## johnandjade

spudthetortoise said:


> You're probably going through the taming process (as am I, but with the gerbils) and thought I'd share a method that I have just started using over the past couple of days and now they come out and are calm with me.
> 
> Basically, you sit by the cage (kneeling down) with the door open so that they can come in and out to get used to your scent. Maybe even put a few treats on your lap.
> Pip and squeak even happily sit on my shoulder now
> 
> Keep us updated




baldrick will jump out onto my hand  , hamish is still shy.


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## johnandjade

so we have a make do stand!


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## johnandjade

plexiglass sides and cardboard back to eliminate mess


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## johnandjade




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## johnandjade

easy on off


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## johnandjade

ta da!!



note the blue roll paper on a tention rod . 

not bad for a couple hrs work with the off cuts from fidos old house!


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## johnandjade

baldrick will now take a treat from between my lips . jade has also got the little guy coming oven when called and jumping from shelf to shelf, to where she points . hamish is eating from jades hand and getting used to me.


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## johnandjade

sooo... baldrick only went to sleep in my hand!!! he was 'gromming' me then went to sleep and allowed me to pet him !! will post links for you tube when I upload


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## johnandjade

the funniest bit is me with the sholder shrug lol ... but baldrick had no fear


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## johnandjade

baldrick sleeping in my hand


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## 4jean

It looks like you are all getting attached to each other! What fun. They are adorable.


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## johnandjade

4jean said:


> It looks like you are all getting attached to each other! What fun. They are adorable.




thank you


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## johnandjade

some little improvements.. made a ramp and added in a wee toy. we took out the hide box as was not used and too big, we replaced with a smaller hey one


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## johnandjade




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## johnandjade

baldrick jumped off my arm and went exploring yesterday :/ he went back home after around a half hours. now he comes and jumps onto hands straight away with no treats . I think hes ready for a ball!


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## johnandjade

so i went to pets at home again after work... and got a ball!!  , and a suspension ladder type thing... hopefully no escapes tonight though!


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## johnandjade

baldrick is learning


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## johnandjade

PG 13... lyrics!


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## Moozillion

I never heard of degus before- they are ADORABLE!!!


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## johnandjade

so we ordered the new 'degubah system' last night, it's around 3x larger that the one we have. trawled the forums it its the best cage to buy from what i can tell 


Little Zoo X-Trail Rat Ferret Chinchilla Degu Cage https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00JEYOIH4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_ZF84wbG6TYG2S


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## johnandjade

the little guys were busy last night collecting trophies...



a toilet roll tube and a chew toy,
really impressed they made it all the way up with them!


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## johnandjade

baldrick is now a poster child


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## johnandjade




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## johnandjade

homeward bound to build up the boys new cage, AKA 'the degubah system'


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## johnandjade

almost done





yeah I can fit through the doors!


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## spud's_mum

johnandjade said:


> almost done
> View attachment 167808
> View attachment 167809
> View attachment 167810
> 
> 
> yeah I can fit through the doors!


Looks great!


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## johnandjade

forgot the final pic!



the boys love it  , and hamish will come over and take a treat from me now


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## johnandjade

the instructions were a big help



NOT!


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## johnandjade

so.. we think hamish is a girl... and pregnant!! I really hope so, a couple months and we should know for sure.


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## johnandjade

fido was kind enough to donate his window box to the degus as a new sand bath.


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## johnandjade

hamish now spends a lot of time lying down up there... which is a sign of pregnancy. 'he' also looks pear shaped, and the bits look female from what we can tell. a couple times a while back we heard baldrick shouting for around a half hr... which they do after mating! it's really looking like pups 

luckily we have the old cage now as a seperation period is due after birth as female is highly fertile right after.then its baldrick to the vet to be nutered (sorry pal  ) and they can live as a family! the males help to raise pups  , we will have another cage for the male pups and rehome to friends that would want as known they would be looked after. 

fingers crossed!!


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## johnandjade

bowling with baldrick, he got a strike first time!!!


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## spud's_mum

johnandjade said:


> View attachment 168053
> 
> 
> hamish now spends a lot of time lying down up there... which is a sign of pregnancy. 'he' also looks pear shaped, and the bits look female from what we can tell. a couple times a while back we heard baldrick shouting for around a half hr... which they do after mating! it's really looking like pups
> 
> luckily we have the old cage now as a seperation period is due after birth as female is highly fertile right after.then its baldrick to the vet to be nutered (sorry pal  ) and they can live as a family! the males help to raise pups  , we will have another cage for the male pups and rehome to friends that would want as known they would be looked after.
> 
> fingers crossed!!


How exciting 
Can't wait to see the little ones


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## johnandjade

hamish  


either fat or pregnant, hopefully the latter


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## johnandjade

and wee baldrick, who has a boo boo  we think it's 'chafed' from chewing the cage bars, it now looks a little flaky wich I read means it's healing?



jades ordered lots of fun new stuff for the new cage so hopefully that will reduce nasty cage chewing. he doesn't appear to be bothered by the bald patch at all.... i may have to re name him 'bald rick'


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## johnandjade

so what do do after all the hay has been eaten from the ball... easy! jump inside


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## johnandjade

so hamish now seams to moderately tamed . we are still unsure of 'his' sex, one more month should tell!


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## johnandjade

hamish


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## johnandjade

baldrick


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## johnandjade

we have babies!!! jade just called, cant wait to get home


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## johnandjade

wahhh!!! a wee degu baby. only one pup,


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## johnandjade

had to improvise quickly with bits of plexi and cardboard, have isolated baldrick on top level


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## johnandjade

hamish or him'ish  and the pup


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## spud's_mum

AWWW! S/he's sooooo cute! Are you keeping it?


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## Momof4

How cute!!!


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## johnandjade

spudthetortoise said:


> AWWW! S/he's sooooo cute! Are you keeping it?




you already know the answer


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## spud's_mum

johnandjade said:


> you already know the answer


 Yay


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## johnandjade




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## johnandjade

We are thinking of the name 'gomez'  

now i get to complain to pets at home  . I'm after vet bills and a cage!


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## johnandjade

one phone call later, we are getting a free cage . going to try get the same one we have and sell it  retails around £250. going in store to tell them i want cost of nutering covered as well. hee hee hee.


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## johnandjade

baby degu is still doing well, him'ish is doing a great job! being very attentive to pups calls, made a nice cozy nest and only leaves nest for a short time to eat or check things out. 

baby has been out exploring already, him'ish is quick to carry him/her back up to nest. we have placed a pillow underneath the nest hammock to cushion pups leaps of faith


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## johnandjade

baby is now 24hrs old so hopefully that means the little one will survive . still reluctant to get attached as I think it's 6 weeks before they stop nursing, but can eat regular pellets after a couple days! I have total faith in him'ishs' maternal instincts as she has been focused 100% on pup. we are feeding here extra goodies to help her recovery... but you couldn't tell at all! she is still running away in the wheel, though not for long as baby will squeek and duty calls! 

an amazing outcome, glad jade picked them  so now it's time to swat on care again, thankfully jade has joined a degu forum and we have available information.... but I'm sticking with TFO  

just waiting on jade finishing work then it off to pets at home to complain , i best get into character! i plan on leaving with basics for cage... bottle, wheel etc.. as well as a new cage they sell at £270, the cheepist is £90.... I'll settle for store credit... AND the cost of nutering to be covered as well as any other incurred vet costs. game on


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## johnandjade

freebies



around £70- £90 worth. they will neuter baldrick ( sorry pal ) and pup if male for free. have to contact customer service as cage is not a stock item but should be given. result!


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## johnandjade

free stuff in place, baldrick is alot happier now he has a wheel and stimulation  we took out the pilow as were informed fibers could be an issue, stuffed pillow case with staw and replaced.





the pup all going well will be out and about in a few days! so the nasty looking make do will hopefully be tidyed up this weekend.


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## johnandjade

so him'ish has moved pup into nest box... hopefully that means the little one will be out and about more 

mum is still very protective, will bark at me if i get too close or stay too long. which is awesome! she has always been a lot more comfortable with jade so guess I just have to take a back seat.



we had to remove wheel from the 'nursery' as babys can be squished by then . daddy got a wheel in the 'penthouse' and is happy as larry.. he has been in it 90% last night and back at it this morning


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## johnandjade

hard to get decent pics just now





I think jade has decided to call it gizmo


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## johnandjade

jades thread on pup http://deguworld.proboards.com/thread/20215/help-new-parents


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## JoesMum

How long before you have to sex the pup and make sure it isn't male @johnandjade?

My friend who runs a guinea pig rescue has to separate the males from Mum at 3 weeks.


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## johnandjade

JoesMum said:


> How long before you have to sex the pup and make sure it isn't male @johnandjade?
> 
> My friend who runs a guinea pig rescue has to separate the males from Mum at 3 weeks.




6weeks for degus. pets at home offered to sex it, I laughed at them and called them incompetent lol


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## johnandjade

woohoo, the idea worked and looks ok.








knew it would be useful for something!


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## johnandjade

attached easily from outside cage.. pup proof made easy 

only doing a little at a time to avoid disturbing them too much


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## johnandjade

how we separated baldrick... used a tray and placed sandbath on top to stop him lifting tray.


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## johnandjade

johnandjade said:


> how we separated baldrick... used a tray and placed sandbath on top to stop him lifting tray.
> View attachment 174257


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## johnandjade




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## johnandjade

pup pics


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## johnandjade

day 5 and pup is looking stronger everyday. he/she is spending a lot more time out of nest.. has been climbing up the bars, starting to nibble on things and trying solid foods . we have seen him'ish nursing pup as well. all good signs  

baldrick seams to be coping ok in isolation, no sign of distress or loneliness.


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## johnandjade

so we have decided on'hope' if pups a girl, jades first viewing says its female


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## johnandjade

hope is now a week old, all is looking well. this weekend we plan on trying to clean out the nursery is him'ish will let us and try to sex hope.


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## johnandjade

well it's looking like hope is male... he'll be moved in with baldrick and we'll get another female to go in with him'ish. 

we will need to rename hope, jade is thinking gizmo.


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## JoesMum

johnandjade said:


> well it's looking like hope is male... he'll be moved in with baldrick and we'll get another female to go in with him'ish.
> 
> we will need to rename hope, jade is thinking gizmo.


Can two entire males be kept together without fighting? Or will they need the op?


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## johnandjade

JoesMum said:


> Can two entire males be kept together without fighting? Or will they need the op?




they should be OK without ( or with  ) . we will have 'play dates' and see how it goes. the males help with parenting so hopefully it'll be a smooth transition


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## johnandjade

yet more name choices, we are now thinking on calling pup 'neo' , like the matrix. neo is doing very well, he (we believe) happily interacts with us, he will come over to say hello and take a treat. we also had a play date with pup and dad! it went fine


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## johnandjade

pup is now big enough that we are able to put in a wheel and saucer into the cage, and he enjoys both



he is also quite the little climber now!


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## johnandjade

neo has been in with baldrick for around an hour now... and they are getting on quite the thing . a few little spats, but to be expected. 

wondering if it's possible to have neo nutered and just alternate him between mum and dad, say a week at at time? I'm thinking it will eliminate loneliness, 'keep things exciting' for all 3 and eliminate the need for another wee degu and another degubah system. 

... i'll ask jade to post on the degu form and do the homework, it may cause more harm than good


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## johnandjade

and then there was 4!! this little hope



we got herlast week. she is around the same age as neo. we have 2 cages now, one for the boys and one for the girls.




we have still to properly kit out both cages, just awaiting delivery, though both cages have all the essentials.


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## johnandjade

the girls, him'ish being shy and hope in the wheel


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## Tidgy's Dad

jaizei said:


> I'd never heard of mammals losing their tails as a defense!?!?!?!


Not quite.
A degu will loose skin off the base of its tail if picked up by the tail, or grabbed by a predator. 
This is the defense mechanism. 
Then it will chew off the tail itself down to the basal tail vertebra to avoid bloodloss. 
Their tails don't regrow.


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## johnandjade

the boys new sand bath... a 10ltr brandy glass!!! we will be getting one for the girls as well, it's perfect for the job!! saves sand being kicked out of a shallow container and as is elivated, frees up floor space

we also have 4x 33cm running wheels now, one each . these little critters really do love em!!! thanks to jade doing her homework we learned that smaller wheels can cause spine injuries.


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## Tidgy's Dad

A very interesting and nice thread, John.
Sorry it's taken me so long to find it. 
And don't forget I love piccies of Fido, too.


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## Tidgy's Dad

I particularly enjoyed you freebies etc, from the pet shop.


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