Degus are sociable, intelligent, and full of personality — but they do not tend to trust humans straight away. If you have just brought home new degus (or are thinking about adopting), understanding how to tame and handle a degu gently and patiently will make all the difference to your bond with them. 🐾
The good news is that degus, when handled correctly from an early stage, can become genuinely affectionate and curious companions. The key is going at their pace, never rushing, and always letting them feel in control.
Understanding Degu Behaviour Before You Begin
Degus are prey animals. In the wild, anything fast-moving, unfamiliar, or looming overhead is a potential threat. When you first bring degus home, they may hide constantly, alarm-call at every movement, or thump when they hear a loud noise.
This is completely normal. It does not mean your degus are unfriendly or will never be tame — it means they are doing exactly what prey animals do. Your job, in those early weeks, is simply to become familiar and non-threatening. 💛
Step 1: Give Them Time to Settle
When you first bring degus home, resist the urge to immediately try to handle them. Give them at least three to five days — ideally a week or more — to settle into their new environment without too much interference.
During this time:
- Talk to them softly while near the cage — let them learn your voice
- Move slowly and calmly around the enclosure
- Sit near the cage so they can observe you without feeling threatened
- Provide plenty of hides so they feel safe when they need to retreat
The first step in learning how to tame a degu is simply becoming part of the furniture — a familiar, non-scary presence in their world. 🌿
Step 2: Introduce Your Hand Without Reaching In
Once your degus seem calm around you and are not immediately fleeing when you approach the cage, start introducing your hand. Hold a small piece of safe food — a dried herb, a plain puffed rice piece, or a tiny piece of dried herb — near the cage bars or just inside the open door.
Do not reach into the cage or try to touch the degus at this stage. Just let them approach your hand and sniff it. They may dart away initially — that is fine. Repeat this multiple times a day, briefly, until they are confidently taking food from your hand. 🌾
Step 3: Let Them Come to You
As your degus become more confident with your hand near the cage, start resting your open hand inside the cage (not trying to catch or grab). Let them explore your hand at their own pace.
At this stage in learning how to tame a degu, patience is everything. Some degus will be climbing all over your hand within a week. Others may take several months to feel confident enough. Both are normal — degus have individual personalities and comfort levels. 💛
Step 4: Begin Gentle Handling
Once your degu is comfortably sitting on your hand inside the cage, you can start gently lifting them. Scoop rather than grab — never squeeze or close your hand around them from above (which mimics a predator strike).
Important safety rules for handling degus:
- Never hold a degu by the tail — their tail can detach (called tail slip or degloving) as a defence mechanism, and it causes serious injury
- Always sit on the floor when handling degus for the first time — they can jump unexpectedly
- Keep handling sessions short initially — five to ten minutes maximum
- Always return them to the cage before they become stressed or wriggly
End every handling session on a positive note — before they get unsettled, not after. 🐾
Building Trust Over Time
Taming a degu is not a one-time event — it is an ongoing relationship. As your degus become more used to you, you can start offering handling outside the cage, letting them explore from your lap, and extending handling sessions gradually.
Signs that your degu trusts you:
- Coming to the cage front when they see or hear you
- Taking food from your hand confidently
- Grooming you or each other while sitting on you
- Bruxing (tooth grinding) — this is a contentment sound in degus, similar to a cat’s purr
- Falling asleep on or near you during handling time
Not all degus will become lap animals — some remain more independent — but all degus can learn to feel safe and comfortable with gentle, consistent handling. 💛
What to Avoid When Taming Degus
Some common mistakes can set back taming progress or damage trust. Avoid:
- Forcing handling before they are ready
- Grabbing or chasing them inside the cage
- Loud noises or sudden movements near the enclosure
- Holding them too tightly
- Letting children handle them unsupervised before the degus are well-tamed
- Handling when the degu is showing clear stress signals (alarm calling, flattening against the floor, trying to escape)
If your degu seems more stressed than usual, take a step back and go back to hand-feeding through the bars for a few days. You can always rebuild from a previous stage — the goal is a degu who enjoys handling, not just tolerates it. 🌿
Quick Summary: How to Tame a Degu
- Give new degus at least one week to settle without handling pressure
- Start with voice, presence, and hand-feeding through the cage
- Let them come to your hand — never chase or grab
- Begin gentle scooping when they are comfortable, sitting on the floor
- Never hold by the tail
- Keep early sessions short and always end on a positive note
- Be patient — some degus take weeks, others take months, all are worth it
At Greatfield Small Animal Rescue, every degu in our care gets socialsation time and we always provide full guidance on how to tame a degu before rehoming. If you have questions, our team is always here to help. 🐾✨
Further Reading
- RSPCA: Degu Care and Welfare
- Degu International Community Forum
- Bacchus Residents: Small Animal Care Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to tame a degu?
It varies a lot between individuals. Some degus warm up within a couple of weeks, while others may take two or three months of patient, consistent gentle work. There is no set timeline.
Can you hold degus by the tail?
Never. Degus have a defence mechanism called tail slip or degloving — their tail skin can shed or detach when grabbed, causing serious injury. Always scoop from below.
Do degus like being handled?
Most degus, once well-tamed, enjoy interaction and can become very affectionate. However, each degu has its own personality, and some will always prefer shorter handling sessions than others.
