Octodon degus — Fact Sheet

Octodon degus · Octodon degus

Full care guide and sources

📋 At a glance

🏠 Enclosure

Plan for a large chew-proof enclosure for a stable same-sex social group, ideally 120 x 60 x 100 cm or larger with shelves and deep digging space. Temporary introduction or hospital cages can help with monitoring, but permanent housing still needs dry bedding, water, cover, chew-safe shelves, ventilation, and enough complexity that animals can avoid conflict. Bare oversized enclosures often make new animals defensive or inactive; clutter and sight breaks make space usable.

🪨 Substrate and furnishings

The enclosure should be functional first and attractive second. Use secure nest boxes, tunnels, chew-safe branches, cork, untreated wooden shelves, a solid running wheel, a sand bath, safe digging areas, and enough visual barriers that the group can move without feeling exposed. Heavy furnishings must not collapse or trap feet.

Bedding should support digging and stay clean. Avoid dusty bedding, sharp decor, sticky tape inside the enclosure, unstable rocks, fabrics that fray into threads, and small loose items that could be swallowed. Doors, vents, cable ports, and lids must be escape-proof and chew-resistant.

💡 Lighting

Provide a clear day-night rhythm for this diurnal rodent. Degus do not need UVB, but they do need bright daytime room light, shaded retreats, and true darkness at night. No visible night lights should shine into the enclosure.

🌡️ Temperature

• Daytime air: 18-24 °C

• Cool zone: 18-22 °C

• Night: 18-24 °C

• Measure the sleeping area and cooler end with separate digital thermometers. Keep heaters guarded and thermostatically controlled; do not create an exposed basking spot.

💧 Humidity and water

Target humidity and water management: normal dry indoor humidity with dust-free bedding and constant fresh water. Humidity should be paired with ventilation. Constantly wet, dirty air encourages respiratory and skin problems, while very dry dusty bedding can irritate eyes, nose, and feet.

Offer water in a heavy bowl, a bottle, or both, and check bottle sippers every day because blocked tubes can dehydrate a group quickly. Keep bedding dry around water points and clean wet areas before they smell.

🪳 Feeding

Feed a varied, species-appropriate diet: high-fiber hay, safe dried herbs, low-sugar rodent pellets, branches for chewing, and very limited treats. Young animals usually need smaller and more frequent meals; adults need body-condition-based feeding rather than food every time they appear interested. Overfeeding is as real a welfare problem as underfeeding.

Keep the diet high in fiber and very low in sugar. Do not add fruit, honey sticks, sweet seed mixes, fatty treats, or insect prey as routine food. Remove uneaten fresh items before they spoil and watch body condition rather than feeding every time the group begs.

🩺 Health — warning signs

Common problems include diabetes risk from sugary food, dental overgrowth, bumblefoot, respiratory irritation from dusty bedding, obesity, heat stress, and social stress. Warning signs include weight loss, repeated refusal to eat, drooling or a wet chin, uneven tooth wear, weak grip or poor movement, wheezing, nasal discharge, swollen eyes, foot sores, mouth injury, burns, diarrhoea, or unusual aggression from an otherwise settled animal.

When something looks wrong, first verify the basics with instruments: warm zone, cool zone, night temperature, humidity, water access, hide fit, diet, dental wear, group dynamics, and recent stress. Serious weakness, injury, breathing signs, dental pain, neurological signs, or rapid decline need an experienced exotic-animal veterinarian.