Why gerbils?
They are peppy, alert, urious and easy to handle. They have an equable
temperament, and they rarely bite.If so should happen, it will
probably be only a little pinch, just to remind you that it actually
has feelings. And if it should bite hard, it probably
depends of
that the gerbil has been scared, very upset, or treated badly.
A gerbil rarely make noise - unless you irritates it, and even then
it just makes some tiny squeeks. Mainly they communicate by scent. Ok
- if you give them a lot of cardboxes to chew on, just before bedtime,
they will make lot of noise with it, but then you're the only one to
blame!!
:-) They don't smell much, and they are rather cheap to maintain. They
are fun to watch, and very beatiful. Unlike the hamster, they are not
pronounced nocturnal animals, on the contrary, they have a various daily
rythm: Sleep for a couple of hours, up and eat, runnig around, play,
then they take a nap again. Someone said they have the same unregulary
daily rythm as an student. :-) They are almost as much awake at daytime
as at night-time. If you spend very much time with them, and give them
lot of attention, they can be very tame.
They are intelligent and always up to som mischiefs. It's not unusal
to see a gerb move things in the cage, or build hills on strategic places,
so they can easily escape from the cage when no one is watching! You
always get som good laughs when you have gerbils around. For example,
it's hilarius to watch four gerbils trying to drink from the waterbottle
at the same time! For some reason it's like the same second
one of them start to drink, the others find that they are just about
to die of thirst!
They are very resolute, once they got an idea. If they, for example,
are determined to get up from the cage somehow, and they just don't
give up until they are either exhausted or succeed. My slate male Dumle,
once managed to gnaw big holes on the top lid twice, and succeed to
get out.
Once i got home a late evening, and found him sitting in my window,
with a very satisfied look in his face! The hole he'd gnawed, was 6-7
cm inside diameter, so it was quite a big hole! So i had to buy a stronger
mesh for the lid. One other thing that's rather popular, is to climb
up upon the waterbottle, and then try to push the lid off. My Festis
learned how to jump up, climb on to the lid with all claws as long as
possible, and try to gnaw a hole in the lid. Dumle used to climb up
on the top of the running wheel, trying to push the lid off, fortunatelly
the border was so wide that it's no chance for him to do that successfully.
They become great personalities, aspecially if you spend lots of time
with them. Each and everyone of them have their own speciality, just
as we humans. And by the way, if you think that you are the owner of
the gerbils, you are so wrong!! It's the gerbils that own you! They
can quickly find out their own way to call for your attention, and mostly
it's in a way that you just can't ignore!
Fanta and Dumle, f e, took the sprout on the waterbottle in their mouth,
and then they slam the bottle toward the glass, with a great rumble:
“Hey! Human! Come and pick me up AT ONCE!! Or i'll make such noise
it's make your ears hurt!”
Pepsi used to hang in the top lid, with his front paws, dangling his
back legs. Festis made backflips in the tank: “Hey,Mom! Look what
i can do! Now since i can do such a nice trick, you must pick me up
as a reward!”
Humle jumped up and down, so it looks like he's on a trampoline: “pick
me up, pick me up! Ohhhh PLEASE pick me up!”
Gerbils are also great building constructors, and they spend lot of
energy to create burrows and passages. My two girls Festis &
Fanta, are always having a new building-project going on. Almost every
mornin g when i look, they have made a new design.
And have you ever seen gerbils sleeping together? That's about the cutest
thing you'll ever see! They are so totaly relaxed, and laying in a bunch
all mixed up, sometimes you wonder how they can breed under there...
Back to the top
Can i have only one gerbil?
NO! That's not to recommend! Gerbils are very socialized
animals, and mostly they will be very unhappy if you force them to live
all alone!
Besides, they are easier to tame if they don't live alone. If you don't
want to risc any unwanted babies, you can buy two gerbils of the same
gender. They will be just fine together. It doesn't matter if you get
two males or two females, but some people (including me) say that males
are more easy to get tame, and they will get more devoted to you.
A couple of gerbils with same gender will live as happily together as
a bonded pair with one male and one female. However, it's not recommended
to house more than two females toghether in the same tank, because females
are more territorial than males, and sooner or later they proabaly will
start fighting. With males, on the other hand, there are no restrictions
in how many you can keep togehter, just as long as you don't add new
gerbils to an already existing group.
The best thing to do, is to take them from the same litter. In that
way they are already used to eachoter, and you don't need to introduce
them. It's to prefer taking gerbils from a private breeder, than from
a petshop. A private breeder know what genes they have, and you can
be sure the gerbils are not taken from their mom to early, or that they
have deseases. If you have a lonely gerbil, who needs a new partner,
it's for the best if the new partner is not sexually mature, otherwise
you must be aware of that it's necessary to introduce them in a speciall
way, so called "the split cage method. Introducing a not mature
gerbil (younger that 8 weeks), should not be a problem, especially if
they are males. Males are very caring for young gerbils, and will probably
accept the newbie without any further introducing. Of course it's necessary
to keep a close eye on them for the next 3-4 hours, to detect any signs
of fighting.
For introducing grown-up gerbils, or if the lonely gerbil will not accept
a new young one, you must follow a special routine, see Gerbil
FAQ 2.7
Important! You should not try to introduce a new gerbil
to an already established group of gerbs! (= a group of gerbs, that
have been living together for a while). It will probably cause you big
problems, and it may end up in deadly fights!
Are gerbils suitable pets for children?
That depends of the child. However, small kids should not handle gerbils
on their own. Though gerbils rarely bite, they are very lively animals,
and they rarely sit still. Therefore, it's easy that the gerb, when
it climbs on the child with its sharp claws, the child may be scared,
or the gerbil can take a jump down to the floor, and get hurt. Small
children also have a way to hold very tight, something that's not apreciated
by the gerbil. It will try to escape, and it may even get the child
a bite in its efforts to get loose.
My personal opinion is, that the child should be at least 8-9 years
old, before you can trust
it with holding the gerb by itself. But even then there should be an
adult there to watch. You must never forget that it's the adults responsablility
to make sure both the child and the gerbil will be safe! Use your own
common sense!
Back to the top
Housing gerbils
Personally, i think that an old aquarium is a nice option. Mainly
for one of two reasons: You can see your gerbils and what they are doing.
It's interesting to watch when the tunnels and dens are created. And it's
easier to keep clean around the tank, they can't scatter the litter on
the outtside of the tank so easy. Gerbils are diggers, and when they can
make quite a mess around the tank, floor and furniture, when they are
working. One thing to think about, though, if you choose an aquarium,
is to have a top lid that keeps them from escaping, and let the air circulate.
Glass or plexiglass is not to recommend, it will not make enough air.
Gerbils can develope respiratory infections in environments that have
bad air circulation.
This is what you can do instead: Buy a piece of wire mesh in the harware
store. It should not be too fine meshed, to avoid the gerbs to chew holes
in it. (that's what happened to me, i chosed a mesh that was too fine
once, and one night when i came home, i found a black little gerbil running
around on the floor. He had chewed a big hole in the mesh) Mesure how
big it should be, and remember to add at least 2 inches to fold down.
If you make the fold too small, they can knock the top off the tank with
the nose. Cut up a bit in the corner, wrap-over and fix together. A top
lid is necessary, because gerbils are excellent jumpers, and are by nature
very curious. They will try to escape from the tank, to investigate the
surroundings. Some og my gerbs can easily jump 30-40 cm up, maybe more.
If you don't have any used aquarium, you can use a cage for giuneapigs
or rabbits. There are several models to choose among. If you are thinking
about using a wire cage, be aware of that it can be qouite
untidy around the cage, as gerbs will litter a lot when they
are digging their tunnels. One more thing to think of, is that make
sure the wires a close enough, so they won't be able to escape trough
the bar. They don't need much space to do that, it's amazing how they
can squeeze themselves out!! They don't need much more than 2 cm to
be able to squeeze in between the bars.
One of bunch of boys are living in a plastic tank, made for guineapigs.
It's made in two pieces, you can esily clean it because the upper half
can be removed. The upper half is transparent, and it's furnished with
a removable lid. I had to put ann extra mesh on the lid, because they
used to squeeze themselves out between lid bars. This kind of tannk
works very well, because it's airy thanks to the top lid, and the litter
stays in the tank. My other two boys live in a old aquarium, and so
do the two grey girls. My youngest girls live in a plastic tank, same
kind that the first one, only a little smaller. You can see them here
below.
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What about the size of the tank?
One main rule is at least 10 gallon for 2 gerbs, the
more gerbs you'll have in the tank, the bigger tank. It's very important
that they have enough space, if they are to crowded they probably
will start fighting, and believe me, you don't want that!
It can be very nasty!
For bedding in the tank, you can use wood shavings, but you must
make sure that there is no pine in it. Aspen is the best choise.
Gerbs can be very sensitive for the oils in fur and pine, they can
develope seriuos allergics, or respiratory infections. Signs to
look out for are soary or bleeding noses "clicking"
noise when breathing, repeated zneezings.
Alternatives to wood shavings are corn cob, shredded paper, cat litter
made of cellulosa, or sand. It's more expensive, but it can be worth it
if you want healthy and happy gerbils.
The Dani Clan has more info about this.
Never use Cedar for the gerbils, it's
very dangerous, and can cause death!!
Your gerbils will need a water bottle to drink from, glass or plastic
is just a matter of taste. A food dish to put their food in. Choose
one made of ceramic, porcelain, glass or stainless steel. Plastic
dishes they'll probably chew in pieces. If you can put on a place
above the ground its fine, otherwise they'll just bury under the
bedding. Maybe you can make a shelf to put it on?
Will they need a house to sleep in?? Not necessarilly, but they
are happy if you give them som nice, soft material to make a nest
from. Of course you can buy them a little house made of plastic
or wood. But I think it's a waste of money, because they'll probably
chew them up in pieces. Or use them as a toilet...... A glass jar,
or a ceramic flower pot, is cheaper and just as suitable. For nesting
material you can give them toilet paper, paper napkins or cleenex.
Never give them fabrics, the threads can make serious damage if
they get stuck in a thread with a leg, especially pups.
Warning!! Think of this if you put
flower pots or jars upside-down in the tank, for the gerbs to climb
on:
Be sure that the pot/jar is standing steady on the tank floor, and
that there's no way for them to dig and crawl under to get inside.
I nearly lost one of my boys this way. He was shut up inside a floor
pot that was upside -down in the tank. The pot was standing on a
layer of wood shawings, and he was digging his way under it. When
he got inside, and the shaving was gone, the pot was standing close
to the plastic floor, and he couldn't dig hemself out of there.
Thank god we found him in time!! He was kind of sweaty, as a result
of all the frenetic digging and scratching, but he recovered after
a lot of drinking. A gerbil's fluid balance is very important, since
they are desert animals, and i they loose too much it can be deadly.
Should i give them toys to play with?
Gerbils need something to be activated. Empty toilet rolls, card board boxes,
envelopes are excellent things to give them. I give mine boxes from
rice, macaronis, and other packages. And envelopes are favorites!
They make such nice noise! Even milk packages, well rinsed and dried
can be used sometimes.
Ask your grocerie store, they may have some empty boxes to spare.
Coconut shells, with large, big holes in, or a piece of a tree branches
or a tree stem also make nice toys. Make sure the holes is big enough,
so the gerbs can't get stuck!!
Use your imagination, there are plenty of things you can do to amuse
your gerbils! If you're in lack of inspiration, go to http://home.talkcity.com/StudioDr/go5/ideas.html
or "http://www.maisel.de/~eva/cages.htm, to get
some new inspiration.....One more thing your gerbs will need, is
something to sharpen their theeth against. A branch from a fruit
tree or a birch is an excellent "teeth sharpener". Gerbil's
teeth grow instantly, and must be held short, otherwise they can
get trouble eating. Sometimes it's necessary to cut the teeth for
them, but it's not easy to do by yourself, and if you are not used
to it, i recommend you to let the vet do this for you. Ok, what
more can you give them?
A couple of flower pots to hide or sleep in, and maybe a hamster
wheel for exercize, could be nice. But not all gerbils like running
the hamster wheel, so don't get surprised if your gerbs ignore it.
Of all my 9 gerbs, there are only two who enjoy the wheel. The others
just can't see the point......
Those plastic things then?
Some people buy theese plastic houses with attaching tumnels, for
their gerbs. They are nice, but in my opinion totally unnecessary
to have in the tank. In time they
will chew it up, and that'll be a waste of money. But if you feel
you really want theese things for your gerbs, an alternative can
be to buy some and put them i the bath tub. That's what i did.
The bath tub is a very suitable play area for the gerbs. It's easy
to clean, and it's difficult for them to escape. I have
bought some of theese plastic houses and tunnels, and put them in
the tub, so all of my gerbs can use them. All i have to do is to
clean out the tub with water before putting a new bunch of gerbs
in there. I also hvae a bowl with chinchilla dust in there, so they
can take a bath if they want. A couple of plastic bottles, without
the bottoms, and some Lego things are also popular things to play
with. Some of theese things you can see on pictures in the photoalbums.
For me this is an excellent solution. I don't have to buy several
sets of everything, and all my gerbs can enjoy the sam toys. And.
as i said before, it's easy to clean up after them.
But among all toys, my gerbil's favorite toy is the couch and myself!
They really love to
climb and run i the couch, and climb on me, on my head, back, and
shoulders, a play hide-and-seek in the pillows, or slide down my
back....Of course they sometimes "accidently escape to
the floor, but that's the way it is...and i have excellent help
from the dog when i catch them. But remember never to leave them
alone, and keep in mind that gerbs are very fond of chewing on things,
they can easily get the idea of chewing on the wallpapers, pillows.
and other things in your couch....
Back to top
Should i give them hay?
Well, there's different opinions about that. Gerbils don't need hay for digestion,
unlike giuneapigs. My opinion is that you should be careful giving
hay to gerbils. There are mainly two reasons for that: The dust
from the hay can help causin grespiratory infections, aspecially
in pups and young gerbils. The other reason is that the hay can
be mouldy, and that can develope seriuos allergics. Even guineapigs
are sensitive against that. Also, the hay can contain mites, and
mites are very hard to get rid off. I've seen both mice and guineapigs
die from mites attcks, and believe me, it's not a pretty sight....it
can be very painful for the animal.
Fresh grass on contrary, are mostly appreciated, but don't give
too much, and make sure not to get it from areas near traffic ways.
And also make sure it's not wet! I give my gerbs fresh grass in
summer, and they love to make nests of it! They don't eat much,
uless it isn't clover, they are crazy about clover!! But remember
they can get diarrohea if tehy eat too much. However, if you are
determined to give your gebs hay, here are some advice for you to
follow:
Smell the hay, to reassure it doesn't contain mold. If you can sense a
slightly scent of mold, or aif it smells musty, don't buy it. Mostly you
can find the mold in the middle of the bale, often it's black, but sometimes
it can also be white/grey.
Make a visual inspection of the hay. Make sure it doesn't contain other
plants or herbs.
Make sure the hay isn't too old. Ask when the hay has been harvest. If
the harvest was less than 8 months ago, it shold be ok. Older hay contains
more dust, and if it's too fresh it can be moisty, and that could mean
mold.
Also look out for bugs in the hay. Mites can be very difficult, not
to say impossible to discover.
If you discover any of the things mentioned here, don't
buy the hay!
The hay should be kept cool, and don't take more than necessary
for the moment.
If you notice your gerbils are scratching themselves a lot, especially
so they get wounds, take them to the vet emediately, it can be mites!
Back to top
How often should i clean the tank?
It depends on how many gerbs there are in the same tank, and how big
tank yov'e got. Gerbils don't uriante much, and therefore they don't
smell much. That's one of the nicest things with gerbils. when it comes
to cleaning, one rule is, to bendover the tank, and use your nose. If
it smells much, it's time for cleaning! I ususalyy clean the tanks every
4:th week.
Sometimes more often, sometimes less often. Get rid off all old bedding,
rinse the tank and all things in it with hot water. Be sure to dry all
hings carefully!. Fill the tnak with new, fresh bedding, and maybe some
"new" toys. I have a hole bunch of toys i
exchange every time i clean. Then you can put your gerbs back, and start
enjoy the show! It's so funny to watch them running around and investigate
after cleaning the tank!!
"OK!! Who's been cleaning up here, when we had such nice mess??"
"Darn, she's destroyed our nice burrow!"
" Where are all nice dirt?"
"Hmmm, this one wasn't here earlier! Woonder what this is??!"</FONT>
and so on .
I always have such a ball, watching them. And of course they don't approve
your way to put things in the tank. Thay must move things, and hide
things, dig new
burrows and passages...and so on. Work, work, work!!
Most gerbils like to take a sand bath now and then. It helps them keep
the fur soft and shiny, and removes dirt and grease. All my gerbs love
sand baths! Buy some chinchilla dust, an put a layer in a bowl. It's
preferred to use a bowl with high edges, they spatter a lot. Exchange
the sand when it looks dirty. They will use it for toilet also, so i
sure will get dirty! I use only a thin layer, so i exchange the sand
after 2 days. Bathing in water, on the contrary, is not to recommend.
Gerbils are not good swimmers, and they don't appreachiate having the
fur wet. If the fur is very greasy, try with a sand bath, or you can
use a wet clothe or spunge, to clean it with. Make sure to dry it fast
and well! Mostly the gerbils are very clean, and take care of the hygiene
very well by themselves or for eachother, and don't need any help from
you.
Here's some links to great sites with information
about gerbils and gerbil care.
The
National Gerbil Society
Here you can find everything you need to know about gerbils, and more.....
The
Dani Clan
- maybe the best private gerbil site on the web? What isn't here to
read isn't worth knowing...
The Gerbil
Information Page
The Gerbil Information Page - Another great site with lots of info!
The
gerbil FAQ
(Frequently Asked Questions) The most frequently asked questions about
gerbisl and gerbil care....If you are a newbeginner in gerbils, this
i s the site for you?
Gerbil Mailing List
A mailing list for gerbil owners, breeders, or just future owners. Lots
of experienced people are members here. There is always someone to ask
if you have problems!! They've helped me several times!! Don't know
what i had done without them.....
About
Gerbils
Great site with lots of information.!
Of course there's lots of more great gerbil sites, check out my Linkpage! |
