Question:
Hello:
My daughter has five degus and received a baby male as a gift. we put the
babies cage in the bigger cage for a week to get htem use to each other. i
then took out the male and let the baby in with the females. one of them
beat him up badly. he ws almost dead. we nursed him back to life and have
kept him seperated. his tail was cut up and scratched. now it looks like it
is infected and the hair is worn off. this is near the body part of the degu
not the end of the tail. the tail itself is looking funny. we have put on
anitbiotic cream and i am just wondering what else i should do. it does not
appear to be in any pain. just swollen tail and red, with a area that looks
like it is infected. we have no vet here that looks after these kinds of
animals. any help would be great. thank you


Answer:
I have no experience with degus but there are other members who do and I hope they can offer you some advice. How is he doing now?


Answer:
Degus tails can come off if you pick them up by it. Maybe something happened that caused the tail to start seperate, but not completely so now it's infected. Try bathing the area in warm water and then applying antibiotic cream to the area. If it doesn't start getting better soon, I'd take him to a vet. Even a vet that isn't experienced with exotics will be able to offer some advice and maybe give you some stronger antibiotics. When my degu was hurt we had to give him oral antibiotics as well as topical, so maybe that's what your little guy needs.
Another quick note (I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it again!): When handling an injured degu, wear gloves!! Getting bit by one HURTS! I still have a mark on my finger from being bitten 2 months ago.
Good luck with your degu. Let us know how he's doing or if you need more suggestions.


Answer:
I agree with Nikki, just one thing though... I'm not sure if this is what happened, But NEVER EVER put 2 males in with females. Also, Disinfect everything before introducing, and do it in a neutral zone with no other smells of one certain degu.


Answer: