YAYS! crisis averted.
since getting home i've been frequently concerned about the degus.
they are getting to be maybe 4 years old now, and i suspect that is really quite old for rodents.
a few weeks ago, bravo developed an eye infection. luckily i was able to cure it myself, with gentle swabbing with sterile salt water. they were quite upset by the treatment, but much less upset than a trip to the vet's woudl make them. i'm keeping their diet quite strictly low-sugar now, they've not had any raisins or dried fruit since i got back. i left them with real professional degu feed, just to ensure their health. i can't afford to feed them that now, so they are back on my homemade blend, with lots of hay. i've recently made thier feed mix with more nuts and fibre and fewer molasses-containing guinea pig pellets. chinchilla pellets, lentils, sunflower seeds, grape-nuts, oats, wheat, almonds and corn.
today i was alarmed to notice that they had lost the fur off thier front paws. alie, with her superior rodent knowledge and experience came to my aid. sure enough, as she stood there she immediately caught alpha chewwing at his little feets. her diagnosois was physical irritation, possibly mites. they will be getting daily sandbaths now. i checked online, and it seems that most skin problems stem from a fatty acid deficientcy and evening primrose oil is the main cure all for degus. to my delight, i discovered katie had a bottle of EFA capsules, ingredients - organic flax seed oil, evening primrose oil, sunflower seed oil. to my further delight, i didn't have to trick the little rats into taking it, after slicing the capsule in half i handed them each half a gelatin capsule of oil and they held them in thier paws and drank it all, as if they were drinking out of tiny cups. i spilled a bit on my hands, they spilled a bit on thier paws and hopefully that will do the trick.
nunoh got into my writing desk the other day. i had left it open with the chair pulled up infront without thinking that he'd get into my mail. alas, that crazed rabbit got up into my desk and then threw all my mail and papers all over the floor. then he knocked over a mug, my inkwells, and kicked my pencil box onto the floor. the sound alerted me, and when i opened my door there he was, with a photo in his mouth. he cast a sideways glance at me and then threw it off the desk. i cursed him, but mostly broke out laughing since it was unbeleiveable cute. i put him on the floor, moved my chair and i began picking things up off the floor. and then i heard an eating noise. nunoh had chewed through the wrapper of a gross dutch candy that erika had sent me. before i could blink, the rabbit chomped into the candy ball and it was gone. i had no idea what the candy was.
"dear erika, gross candy emergency"
she reports that the candy was full of ammonium chloride, also known as Salmiak.
gross, but aparently not poisonous.
stupid rabbit. what kind of creature eats liquorice covered ammonium chloride? and he refuses to even take a nibble out of the clover and alfalfa i planted in the yard for him.
also, what is wrong with the dutch that they produce such hideous confectionaries?!?
i applied for a whole bunch of jobs.
hopefully something sutable for me will turn up.
they are getting to be maybe 4 years old now, and i suspect that is really quite old for rodents.
a few weeks ago, bravo developed an eye infection. luckily i was able to cure it myself, with gentle swabbing with sterile salt water. they were quite upset by the treatment, but much less upset than a trip to the vet's woudl make them. i'm keeping their diet quite strictly low-sugar now, they've not had any raisins or dried fruit since i got back. i left them with real professional degu feed, just to ensure their health. i can't afford to feed them that now, so they are back on my homemade blend, with lots of hay. i've recently made thier feed mix with more nuts and fibre and fewer molasses-containing guinea pig pellets. chinchilla pellets, lentils, sunflower seeds, grape-nuts, oats, wheat, almonds and corn.
today i was alarmed to notice that they had lost the fur off thier front paws. alie, with her superior rodent knowledge and experience came to my aid. sure enough, as she stood there she immediately caught alpha chewwing at his little feets. her diagnosois was physical irritation, possibly mites. they will be getting daily sandbaths now. i checked online, and it seems that most skin problems stem from a fatty acid deficientcy and evening primrose oil is the main cure all for degus. to my delight, i discovered katie had a bottle of EFA capsules, ingredients - organic flax seed oil, evening primrose oil, sunflower seed oil. to my further delight, i didn't have to trick the little rats into taking it, after slicing the capsule in half i handed them each half a gelatin capsule of oil and they held them in thier paws and drank it all, as if they were drinking out of tiny cups. i spilled a bit on my hands, they spilled a bit on thier paws and hopefully that will do the trick.
nunoh got into my writing desk the other day. i had left it open with the chair pulled up infront without thinking that he'd get into my mail. alas, that crazed rabbit got up into my desk and then threw all my mail and papers all over the floor. then he knocked over a mug, my inkwells, and kicked my pencil box onto the floor. the sound alerted me, and when i opened my door there he was, with a photo in his mouth. he cast a sideways glance at me and then threw it off the desk. i cursed him, but mostly broke out laughing since it was unbeleiveable cute. i put him on the floor, moved my chair and i began picking things up off the floor. and then i heard an eating noise. nunoh had chewed through the wrapper of a gross dutch candy that erika had sent me. before i could blink, the rabbit chomped into the candy ball and it was gone. i had no idea what the candy was.
"dear erika, gross candy emergency"
she reports that the candy was full of ammonium chloride, also known as Salmiak.
gross, but aparently not poisonous.
stupid rabbit. what kind of creature eats liquorice covered ammonium chloride? and he refuses to even take a nibble out of the clover and alfalfa i planted in the yard for him.
also, what is wrong with the dutch that they produce such hideous confectionaries?!?
i applied for a whole bunch of jobs.
hopefully something sutable for me will turn up.