Tag: pet care

Did I order too much degu food? No, I don’t think so.

The meadow hay is for eating and to go in bed boxes, the other type of hay is for Tobias, he hasn’t been eating much hay recently and I’m hoping a different type might entice him.

There are 4 different bags of dried plants as degus need a variety, in terms of weight it makes up about ¼ of their usual feed, fresh plants/herbs/vegetables are on top of that.

I used to be able to get a dried plant mix that contained artichoke but the manufacturer removed them so there are so a couple of bags of dried artichoke pieces. They’re pretty hard which is good for wearing down their teeth.

What would you like to see on this blog? I try to keep it a positive place and I assume that most people who follow me are here for cute photos. Would you want to see more about the degus’ health? It would make the blog less positive but more accurate of what it’s like having pets. Do you want more informational posts? If so please tell me what topics you’d like to see! Comment on this post to let me know what you think

Pet care tip: if you’re trying to work out your pet’s respiratory rate by yourself and you’re struggling to keep an eye on the time while counting breaths take a 15 second video of your pet, then watch the video, count the breaths and multiply by 4 for their breaths per minute. That way you only need to focus on one thing at a time.

Added bonus: if your pet is breathing heavily or having difficulty breathing you have a video you can show your vet in case your pet isn’t exhibiting the symptom at an appointment. The more information you can give your vet the better.

Things to consider when buying a wheel (in addition to all the usual, is it a safe material/design/big enough/quiet/turns easily etc) definitely not inspired by real life events, honest

  • does the wheel fit through the cage door? remember to account for the depth of the wheel, don’t just measure the door diagonally at it’s widest point
  • if the wheel doesn’t fit through the door can the cage be taken apart to get the wheel in?
  • do other items that need to be taken out for cleaning fit past the wheel?
  • does the cage tray still come out or is the wheel too low?
  • can your pet easily get on to the wheel or is it too high?
  • is the wheel somewhere you can clean it without needing to take it out every time? especially important if the cage needed to be taken apart to get the wheel in
  • will the wheel be attached to the cage bars, if not what will stop the wheel from moving?
  • how heavy is the wheel vs how sturdy is the cage?

My vet gave me a tip for if your pet isn’t eating before you resort to force feeding (which is distressing for your pet and you). If you have some wet food you can put a little on their paws and hopefully they’ll groom themselves and accidentally eat in the process.

Vet bills

This is something I’ve been meaning to make a post about for a while. When I was researching degus back before I got them the advice I found said that with degus it’s best not to bother with insurance and just pay for vet bills as they come up. For degus like Thomas and Tobias who have good genetics and rarely need a vet this works well enough. There was a lot of inbreeding in the situation my four rescue degus came from and they have a lot of health problems, the main one being dental disease. I wouldn’t trade them for anything but a dental costs £60 each time and Daniel currently needs them on a monthly basis. This is a statement of my vet bills for last year:

Except that the actual total is more like £1800 as my usual vet was away in Thomas’s last week so we went to a different surgery where there was another vet who has experience with degus. Thomas’s vet care in his last week alone cost £300.

I’ve got a diary with a page a day and I’ve added tabs to help me keep track of who’s been to see the vet when, this is what the year looks like so far:

Daniel is yellow and three of those trips were dentals, Jack is orange and Scott is green, they’ve had two dentals each. Tobias is blue, he’s had an issue with his eye that’s been going on for a few weeks.

It’s important to consider where you’re getting your pet from – obviously not every rescue pet will have severe problems, if they’re from an accidental litter that’s very different to a situation where continuous inbreeding has been allowed. I don’t mean to put anyone off who wants to get pets, I just want to help people be able to make an informed decision.

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thepipsqueakery:

Sinbad’s water bottle got stuck and needed some jostling. Alex fixed it, but I guess he didn’t want to wait for her to put it back before he had a drink.

Every once in a while, the odd vacuum and surface tension seal that makes water bottles with a stem and ball work will mess up. It usually just takes a squeeze of the bottle until it drips to get the flow going again, but hamsters can’t do that. Always keep an eye out for signs that your pets aren’t drinking. #hamster #sinbad #floridafiasco #thirsty

I’ve had this happen a couple of times, and once a degu managed to get a small seed lodged in the end so the ball got stuck.

(Source: https://www.instagram.com/)

Petblr Masterpost

allanimalsgallore:

This is a list of unproblamatic petblrs. Unproblamatic meaning: lgbt+ positive, doesn’t support animal cruelty (Or methods of animal cruelty involved in ‘training’, like shock collars and prong collars), and features mostly petblr content on their blog. I’m also leaving out animal rights activists as they don’t really have the best interest of animals in mind! People will be on the list multiple times depending on the animals they own!

If you’d like to be added to this list, let me know. I’ll check out your blog. Please state what animals you have and the blog you’d like to be listed. If you’d like to be removed, also let me know. If you see anyone on this list that doesn’t meet what I’ve said, message me with your claims and I will check them out.

General Pet Care:
@petcareawareness
@socialjusticeichigo (Has a dog, reblogs animal welfare content, runs petcareawareness)

Dogblrs:
@achoirofcritters (one mixed bully breed, one Australian shepherd, another mixed breed)
@spartathesheltie (Shetland Shepherd) 
@maisietheyellowlab (Labrador)
@tser (Miniature Poodle)
@the-pasta-pack (Italian greyhounds)
@loachlinguini (Siberian Husky)
@bettas-are-awesome (Lab mix)
@furyourowngood (Collie)
@baby-girl-banana (one dog)
@philoskylax (standard poodle)
@memezywimzie (Border Collie)

Catblrs:
@chibimonkey (3 cats)
@achoirofcritters (Russian Blue, Maine Coon mix, 2 other cats)
@tser (Domestic longhair and shorthair)
@bettas-are-awesome (2 cats)
@baby-girl-banana (2 cats)
@adhdseabunny (4 cats)

Rodentblrs: (Rabbits are included in this list even though they’re not rodents, also hedgehogs)
@allanimalsgallore (3 guinea pigs)
@chibimonkey (Hamster)
@achoirofcritters (2 fancy mice)
@bettas-are-awesome (gerbils, guinea pigs)
@pet-of-subs (3 rabbits)
@baby-girl-banana (four hamsters)
@noodlepancake (guinea pigs)
@thebettatales (mouse, guinea pig)
@gecko-garden (2 chinchilla, 3 mice)
@kimchi-krazed (2 rats)
@snootsfinsandfur (Syrian hamster, guinea pig)
@pastelferret (2 Ferrets)
@thislittlerattie (4 rats, 1 rabbit, also a foster)
@claricespieces (hamster)
@kissasnake (Rabbit)
@sillydegu (six degus, one hamster)
@rat-lover19 (19 rats)

Birdblrs:
@jayce-space (A special needs cockatiel, 2 budgies, a lovebird, a parrotlet)
@tser (African gray parrot)
@furyourowngood (ringneck doves)
@thebettatales (9 chickens)
@spoiledbratsanctuary (parrot)

Fishblrs:
@jayce-space (2 betta, a snakehead, various other fish)
@toothless-the-betta-fish (3 betta, 3 mystery snails, 2 nerite snails, 2 Malaysian trumpet snails, saltwater tank)
@hella-free-space (3 bettas, also willing to answer rat questions)
@allanimalsgallore (1 betta, 3 nerite snails)
@tser (Assorted fish)
@finsscalestails (guppies, corydoras catfish, future betta)
@tricksterwithafish (2 betta fish)
@pet-of-subs (8 bettas)
@mooseinaboot (Betta fish) 
@witchyfishyfun (betta fish)
@fishhhhhhh (six betta fish and other tropical fish, 2 nerites)
@loachlinguini (loaches) 
@bettas-are-awesome (4 betta, aquatic snails)
@furyourowngood (20 gal tank, various freshwater)
@elemental-kiss (aquatic snails, betta fish)
@baby-girl-banana (two betta, various fish)
@stygianterrorfish (1 betta, 9 cordoras sterbai)
@furyourowngood (55 gallon tank)
@noodlepancake (fish)
@quasarlasar (cichlids, tropical freshwater semi-aggressive tank, loaches, catfish etc)
@thebettatales (3 bettas)
@immersive-lore-friendly-cheese (various fish)
@spoiledbratsanctuary (8 bettas)
@gecko-garden (five planted tanks)
@lappysfish (One betta)
@snootsfinsandfur (one betta, two community tanks)
@kouhafish (11 betta)
@adhdseabunny (3 goldfish, plecos)
@shrimpbo (fish, shrimp, and plants)
@aquariumkids (goldfish, malaysian trumpet, mystery, and nerite snail, general freshwater content)

Reptileblrs:
@jayce-space (gargoyle gecko)
@tser(4 crested geckos, 1 leopard gecko)
@wheremyscalesslither (various snakes)
@elemental-kiss (leopard gecko, crested gecko, gargoyle gecko)
@baby-girl-banana (ball python)
@thebettatales (2 corn snakes, 1 kenyan sand boa, 1 african fat-tailed gecko)
@gecko-garden (4 leopard geckos, 9 crested geckos)
@snootsfinsandfur (one bearded dragon, one leopard gecko)
@a-lotl-creatures (day gecko, gargoyle gecko, a savannah monitor, 5 crested geckos, 2 leachies)
@memezywimzie (bearded dragons, leapord geckos)
@kaijutegu (Tegu, good at lizards and snakes
@kissasnake (2 kenyan sand boa, 1 corn snake, 1 ball python)

Amphibianblrs:
@jayce-space (axolotl)
@elemental-kiss (Fire Belly Toad, American Toad)
@chibimonkey (African Dwarf frog colony, two axolotl) 
@thebettatales (firebelly toads)
@a-lotl-creatures (Axolotl)

Bugblrs: (This goes for anything crustacean, such as Isopods, too. Also goes for spiders)
@peppermintmantis (General bugs)
@allanimalsgallore (isopods, springtails, helix aspera)
@tser(isopods, mantises, roaches, slug)
@furyourowngood (Snails)
@cornsbeans (tarantula)
@fishhhhhhh (land snail)
@chibimonkey (Praying mantis)
@gecko-garden (Tarantula, dubia roaches)
@a-lotl-creatures (Madagascar Hissers)

Horseblrs:
@memezywimzie (one horse)

Sign of dental disease: discomfort eating, pawing at mouth. Daniel had one tooth at the back which had become severely overgrown. Due to being unable to eat properly on one side his incisors grew unevenly – his top incisors started to grow at an angle which led to a gap forming between his bottom incisors. Once his molar was trimmed his incisors were able to be worn down correctly when eating.

Sign of dental disease: swelling on the left side of Jack’s mouth (right side of the photo). As well as being able to see this, a hard lump could also be felt.

Jack had a loose tooth at the back at the top on the left-hand side, as a result of this eating on this side became painful and as he avoided eating on that side the rest of the teeth also became overgrown on this side.