Degus need a spacious, appropriate home and regular opportunities to explore, forage, dig and manipulate objects. Environmental enrichment aims to improve physical and mental welfare by making those opportunities available in captivity. It begins with the species’ behaviour and the individual animal, rather than simply adding more toys.
Captive animals may develop repetitive activities such as pacing, rocking, excessive licking or self-injury. These behaviours can have different causes. Zoo research has helped evaluate enrichment, but results from other species do not establish that every technique will work for a degu.
Why provide enrichment?
Before problems become established
Owners often look for enrichment only after a problem has developed. Persistent bar chewing, apparently excessive wheel running or repetitive gnawing deserve assessment, although ordinary chewing or exercise is not automatically a stereotypy. Established patterns may be difficult to change, and their health consequences matter as much as the inconvenience they cause.
Provide suitable opportunities before problems appear. Search tasks, different safe textures and opportunities to choose between activities can support curiosity and the use of senses such as smell. See the article on stereotypies and behavioural problems for the distinction between observation and diagnosis.
Enrichment as part of a wider response
Enrichment can be part of treatment and prevention, rather than merely a distraction. It should not replace investigation of pain, unsuitable housing, social incompatibility or insufficient opportunities. Equally, a single new object cannot be promised to cure a stereotypy. Physically blocking a behaviour or punishing it without addressing the cause may simply hide the problem or add distress.
Consider compatible companionship, adequate space and meaningful activities together. Some established patterns persist even after their original cause improves. A vet or qualified clinical behaviour professional can help when the cause or best response is unclear.
Different animals respond differently
A degu may ignore an unfamiliar object, investigate it later or destroy it within seconds. None of these responses alone proves failure. Offer appropriate choices gradually and observe preferences. Do not force contact with a novelty or repeatedly disrupt a nervous animal’s territory. Over time, the most suitable activities will become clearer.
Making enrichment at home
Many activities require little money, specialist equipment or craft experience. More elaborate projects can be mixed with simple ones. The French article originally described an aim to share a new idea each week; that was an editorial intention, rather than a promise of a current publication schedule. The purpose remains to help owners make suitable activities themselves.
Start with safety
Inspect both the finished design and how it will change when chewed. Strings, loops, wires, small detachable pieces and materials that may be swallowed can cause entanglement, choking or intestinal injury. Active supervision is not enough to make a plainly hazardous toy acceptable. Remove damaged items promptly.
Use cutting tools, saws and other equipment according to their safety instructions, with appropriate adult supervision and protection. Keep the animals away during construction and cleaning.
Materials requiring caution
- Plastic: accessible items that can be gnawed into sharp fragments or swallowed are unsuitable. Consider durable alternatives and minimise unnecessary waste, while remembering that “natural” is not itself a safety guarantee.
- Fluffy nesting material, cotton wool and loose fibres: these can entangle limbs or be swallowed. Fabric accessories also require inspection. Fleece is less prone to producing long threads than some woven fabrics, but is not safe if an animal tears off and ingests it.
- String and cord: thin strings and synthetic threads present particular hazards, but thick natural hemp is not automatically safe either. Avoid loops, frayed fibres and accessible lengths that can tighten around the body.
- Nails, screws and staples: chewing can expose sharp ends or loosen fixings. Design them so they remain inaccessible and inspect regularly. Avoid accessible staples, which can be pulled free.
- Adhesives: the original article discusses cyanoacrylate, neoprene, polyurethane, epoxy, MS-polymer, acrylic and vinyl products. Their safety depends on the exact formulation, curing and use. “Water-based”, “solvent-free” and a non-toxic craft label do not establish safety for ingestion by a degu. Do not endorse an entire brand, including Cléopâtre, on the assumption that every product contains only starch and water. Prefer designs without accessible adhesive and check the particular product’s documentation.
- Adhesive tape: remove it from recovered materials; strips and fragments can be swallowed.
Potentially useful materials
- Plain paper and cardboard: clean, suitable recovered material can be used for hiding food or simple puzzles. Remove tape, staples, wire, coatings and other hazardous components.
- Wood: use untreated wood from a positively identified suitable species, whether branches or boards. The French article listed oak, walnut, pistachio, sumac, mango, thuja, chestnut and grapevine as toxic on the basis of tannin references. Those references do not establish a blanket degu toxicity classification for every species or plant part in that list. Do not use unidentified material or assume that all branches are suitable. Avoid accessible plywood, melamine-coated boards and unknown treated timber in toys intended to be chewed, as their adhesives, coatings and emissions require assessment.
- Other collected objects: twigs, bark, leaves, moss, pine cones and stones can offer variety only when correctly identified, clean and suitable. Avoid contaminated or pesticide-treated sites, sharp edges and heavy objects that can fall or collapse into a tunnel. Collect responsibly rather than assuming anything found outdoors is safe.
- Paper nesting material: plain, unscented tissues, toilet paper or paper towels can provide material to manipulate. Avoid printed, perfumed or additive-treated products, and remove wet or contaminated material.
Everyday materials can therefore provide useful activities while reducing waste. In the playful spirit of the original article’s reference to Tyler Glenn’s Trash, we can adapt the familiar proverb: “One person’s trash is another degu’s treasure.” Safety and the animal’s response remain the deciding factors.
For further ideas, see feeding without a bowl and the indoor playpen guide.
Sources
Swaisgood, R. R., & Shepherdson, D. J. (2005). Scientific approaches to enrichment and stereotypies in zoo animals: what’s been done and where should we go next?. Zoo Biology, 24(6), 499–518. https://doi.org/10.1002/zoo.20066
Mason, G., & Rushen, J. (Eds.) (2006). Stereotypic Animal Behaviour: Fundamentals and Applications to Welfare. Second edition. CABI. https://doi.org/10.1079/9780851990040.0000
UFC-Que Choisir (n.d.). Bricolage : les principaux types de colles. Consumer information on adhesive properties; not a degu-ingestion safety assessment. https://www.quechoisir.org/decryptage-bricolage-les-principaux-types-de-colles-n57573/