Sena's DW :: Watermelon Life

Way back YEARS ago I used to own a pair of degus. Degus are South American ground squirrels, they look a lot like gerbils only way bigger, and the chew EVERYTHING. Also their tail skin will slough off if you pick them up by their tails, so like, don't do that. And you can keep two males together, they'll form a close bond, unlike with most rodent species. They are also very gentle and sweet and make really good pets. I adored them.

Mine were named Bedrock and Granite, and I had them for almost ten years. Bedrock passed away first, which was sad enough, but after that Granite started to get really depressed. He moped around and went off his food, was barely drinking even. But there wasn't much I could DO because I had gotten them SO LONG AGO and from a store an hour's drive away, and had no way of going out and just buying another degu to keep him company.

BUT at the same time, I had Ichigo. Ichigo was the last of my mice, plain brown, nothing special really, but she had been living on her own for some time and she was about a year-and-a-half old, getting up there for a mouse. She was doing fine on her own, but I knew she must get bored because she would chew mindlessly at the bars of her cage or stare into space for endless spans of time.

So. Knowing it was probably a bad idea, I carefully took Ichigo out of her cage and put her in the terrarium with Granite.

She explored the place while Granite sat up on top of the wooden cabin I had in there for him, just watching her. Then he decided to go introduce himself-- and that was that. The two of them absolutely fell in love with each other. They did everything together. Ichigo got Granite eating again, they built a nest together, they played together, it was downright AMAZING to watch.

Six months later, though, Ichigo reached the end of her life. I got up one morning and she was laying out by the food dish and couldn't seem to move. I watched Granite desperately try to get her up and fail each time. Then he started bringing bits of the nest out to her, tucking them in around her where she was laying. It was absolutely heart-wrenching to watch these tiny animals love so, so deeply even as they lost so, so much.

After Ichigo was gone, I purchased another mouse for Granite, but it was too young and had too much energy. It annoyed him and he didn't want anything to do with it. He didn't last long after that. He stopped eating again, and one day I found him dead in the terrarium.

But I learned SO MUCH about an animal's capacity for love from watching Granite and Ichigo. It's something I'll never, ever forget.

I can't sleep, so I'm ( breaking in new characters. )

EDIT: ( And then there were random photos. Mostly of Neko. )

So, since my aquarium has gone seriously downhill (ARGHSTUPIDALGAE!!) and I can't seem to get it worked out, I've decided to convert it into a terrarium for Bedrock and Granite. :P

Yesterday, I transferred my two piddly goldfish into a smaller aquarium, and tomorrow I'm going to empty out the big one, scrub the hell out of it, and then make it into a nice, comfy home for the degus. I was supposed to do it today, but I wasn't feeling 100%, so it didn't get done. ^^; Ahaha...

EDIT: Bah, I just got off my duff and did it tonight. It was a pain in the butt to empty the 20-gallon tank and haul downstairs to clean it out, but it's done. Now my squirrelies are in their new home, and seeming mighty happy. Next time I'm at the pet store, I'm going to get them a new nest-box type thing. :)

Mm. Bedrock is very skinny right now. He's not sick or anything, he's just lost a lot of weight. I think Granite is hogging the food or something, since he's a chubby little rodent, despite Bedrock's skinny-ness. *pokes degu* Bad squirrel.

Anyway, I took Bedrock out and put him into another cage, where I intend to leave him for about a week or so (maybe two), and see if that helps at all. If having him with no one to pick on him over food is all it takes to get him gaining a bit of weight back, then I guess it's just Granite. In which case I really have no idea what I'm going to do... ^^;;

They're not happy about the whole situation, though; the cages are about a food apart, and the two of them are right up at the sides of them most of the time, scratching at the bars or just squeaking and looking sad and lonely.

Makes me feel bad, even though it's for their own good... ;__;

I've had my degus (Bedrock & Granite) for about four years now (I believe), and only now am I finding out that they should be supplied with dust for dust bathing--like you would do for a chinchilla. =_=;; I just read that in a pet magazine that I got when I took Tri and Neko to the vet last month...

Supposedly, dust bathing is good for them. I should let them do it once every couple of days or so. And because I love all my little furry friends and I want them all to be as happy and healthy as possible, I will be going out and buying dust for them ASAP.

...yup.

Now!

( That's an ENGAGEMENT ring! )

Nazoko just flings things at Nozomi a lot, doesn't she? ^^;;;