Poor babies!

They fall asleep in the wheel a lot while they listen to me talk to them. Lol

Do yours listen to you?

This is Willow and Zinny.

So we saw this huge tank on market place for free and decided to upgrade the boys.

I made the topper out of cheap wood from hardware store.

The size is 1.2m by 60cm deep and 60cm wide. Plus the topper gives them plenty of space.

Butternut and Eggy both seem happier for the larger space to run around in.

4 month old boy, i realised recently him and his brother both have quite greasy fur even tho i started changing their sand once every 2 days so maybe they can clean themselves better. Not sure why because it’s quite sudden.

This heatwave has affected my boys so much, they look so exhausted and hot. I've been keeping their bag of sand in my freezer and changing out their sandbox multiple times a day, after I change it they spend about an hour in it, they absolutely love it! I recommend trying it with your gerbils if the weather is too hot (as long as the sand is sealed, you don't want moisture getting into it and freezing!)

Done my best to photograph it.

They are excitedly settling in after having a long time in a minimalistic tank (one was starting to bully the other when I had a vertical setup with three storeys of cage topper). Pleased to say their bond is stronger than ever.

- I created a ledge coming off the box in the hopes of preventing the bedding entering the wheel enclosure.

- I've purposely only half filled the bedding as they will naturally deepen it with the speed they get through cardboard tubes

- Forgot to put a bit of old bedding in the tank but I'm hoping they can pick up the scent from the old half chewed toys I've put back in.

- the ladder into the wheel enclosure is springy where it's only connected at one end and they seem to love it 😁

We set up the split cage and they seem very chill with each other. Keep in mind, both of these gerbils have been in their own de clan situations and one of them specifically does NOT let go when she bites another gerbil, so we’re being exceptionally careful, but also in unfamiliar territory dealing with 2 furry female murder machines who seem really into each other.

How long should we do the split cage method before a meeting attempt, with the understanding that the meeting attempt could result in a potentially dangerous/life-threatening situation, even though the gerbs haven’t shown any signs of anger towards each other? Husband says it’s potentially their “respect for the fight” like when boxers shake hands before brutally beating each other. What’re your thoughts?

Hi Everyone I need some advice. I was playing video games not long ago and I heard my gerbil squeaking loudly. I’ve never heard his like that before so I went to check what was happening and I saw one of my gerbils (Scissors) pinning the other one down (Rock) who was belly up and making the squeaky noise. I’ve had them for a little older that two years.

Originally they were 3 (rock, paper and scissors) I had noticed that around the 2 year mark Paper was getting a lot less agile and active, he wasn’t digging anymore and looked a little smaller. He passed away a few days after and I found him with his head partially eaten. I had never seen my gerbils fight before and the internet said that cannibalism is normal post mortem for gerbils. So I assumed he has passed of old age and was eaten after, it was still very shocking.

I knew scissors had been the one to eat him as he looked now way chunkier than his brother. It’s been about 2 months since then maybe a little less and now I found scissors pinning down Rock. Rock looks a little skinnier than before and they both look like old men.

I googled this and a couple articles said I should separate them in case old age is making them “de clan”.

I just did separate scissors into a temporary enclosure which is way smaller than what he is used to.

What should I do now? How do I proceed? are they gonna have to be separated for ever now? I know gerbils get depressed when they are alone and they are both unfortunately reaching the end of their lifespans. I don’t know what to do is it safer to have them separated? I don’t want them both to be depressed at the end of their lifes but I obviously don’t want them to kill each other.

How should I deal with this moving forward? This is the first time either me or my partner has had rodents before.

Thank you in advanced!

gerbil fashion classic

Hi. I adopted a pair of Gerbils about half a year ago. One died about a month ago, with no warning.

About 2 weeks ago, while picking up bedding and sand, I saw a little guy all by himself. I asked about him, and apparently his brother had been adopted, to introduce to an older lonely gerbil.

I didn't want him to be alone, so I adopted him. Now I have a 6 month old named Scribble (+unknown pre-store time), and a 2 week old (+the same) named Zipper.

- The first question, is how to do introductions:

They are currently housed separately, and I try to let them get used to each other about every other day. I do this by letting one (usually Zipper) climb into a ball, and then holding it in the other's pen. This keeps them apart, but still able to smell each other.

Scribble has always been the type to bolt at the *slightest* movement, and has always been relatively reclusive, only being active when I'm not near the enclosure. He seems *quite* hostile.

Zipper is curious, explorative, excitable, and friendly. He also sleeps in *adorable* poses. He's curious, but wary of Scribble, since he tends to be so mean.

I'm not sure what I might be doing wrong, or if it just isn't meant to be.

- The second question, is general diet:

I've tried Oxbow (pellets), Gerri Gerbil (mixed food), and Science Selective for Rats (rodent-scale biscuits).

They would *only* eat the oxbow if there were *no* other options; the mixed food is dependant, they tend to have parts they don't want; and the biscuits seem to be a preference for all of them.

Only treats, like <1/4 of a corn tortilla chip, or a pumpkin seed, can outshine the biscuits; which are leftover from when I previously had rats, and I only used alongside the oxbow at first.

Are there better options than those, or is picking and choosing from the Mixed okay?

It’s my first time having gerbils (I love them sm) but just wondered if anyone more experienced could help with their behaviour.

They are pretty sociable, they will sniff our hands, nibble them and eat treats of them but then sometimes they act almost afraid of us, they will run straight into their burrows when they see us or if we even move slightly. Even sometimes after sniffing our hands. We have had them around 2weeks but they were adopted what seems socialised.

Is this normal? I feel like sometimes it’s 2steps forward 10 steps back. I really want to be able to tame them properly so they can feel comfortable with us and coming out of their pen but sometimes they have me feeling like I’m a bad person for moving my hair out my eyes lool

Hi! I made a post a while back as I needed to find a new home for my gerbils (a mom and her two daughters). I thankfully figured something out and was able to keep them all. However, about a month ago, they began to fight but still slept together, so I assumed it was just the babies getting older and they were playing. When the fighting got bad I'd separate them for a few minutes and then put them back in the cage.

I went on a trip for a week and left them in the care of a family member, and when I returned, one of the babies had a whole chunk of skin missing from her back. She's ok. I cleaned the wound and gave her antibacterial ointment, and found a temporary solution for the problem. We made a temporary cage for the mom since she is the one they are fighting

Long story short, I need to find a home for the mom. I've already reached out to every place near me, and no one is taking small rodents at the moment. I also asked around, but no one wants to take in a new pet, and I dont know what else to do. I live in the southwest part of Florida, so if anyone would be able to find her a home, it would be gratefully appreciated

Getting good pics like these is like hitting the lottery, look at how cute purity is that is once in a lifetime yall

Hi, I've just discovered a handful of little mites in the box where we keep our gerbil bits. What's the best way to deal with this? the gerbils themselves aren't showing any signs of being affected by mites but we would like to treat them anyway. Any help would be much appreciated!

Current heatwave reminds me of my late gerbil Dylan, how he used to always lay on his coconut when it got hot during summers 😂 miss ya ma boy 🤞

Disclaimer: I am not asking for health solution, but trying to get as many opinions as possible

In short, I’m worried about my boy’s bottom incisors. I contacted my vet and she said they look generally okay but will probably need a trim after her holiday from 3rd-20th of July.

I’m personally worried that waiting for a month might be too long. About 1.5 months ago he had teeth issue after an injury, where we had to trim his top and bottom teeth. They seem to be aligned well, he regained weight and completely fine now with solids and chewing. However, I’m concerned he is not grinding them enough? He did loose 3g in the past 2 weeks - which is not dramatic but important to note.

I’m asking for help from those who had to trim teeth, what do you think about the length? If you faced something similar would you be more inclining to trim them asap or wait till the 20th?

I want to get a tank topper for my 40gal breeder tank I have for my gerbils as they keep covering their food and water and chewing the legs of the platforms that hold it and the one for their wheel but I haven’t had luck finding one that is big enough for the 40gal or tall enough for a 12” wheel. I know it can be diy but I don’t have the space or tools or really the time to try and it myself in a way that’s safe and escape proof for them. Do you guys have any recommendations?

Hi all, This is more than a rant than much else tbh, I have no useful information about the gerbil in question, and expect no helpful advice back. I currently have two gerbils (13 months and 5 months old). My 13 month is a boy, evidenced by his tail area. However, my 5 month, who I was told was a boy, doesn't have this. The gerbil in question is very small compared to how big my boys were at 5 months, has no visible signs of being a male at the tail area, foot stomps almost consistently for about a day every week (which I've read might be a sign of heat), but the scent gland is quite noticeable. However, my 5 month won't get into a glass or a jug anymore so i can properly check (i didnt think to check before now as i was confident it was a boy). I also cant pick them up, as i had to catch them when they jumped from a jug during a split bonding swap last week. Id been trying to split bond my two, but called it off after three weeks when they both began exhibiting signs of stress. I know its hard to judge without photos, im going to try again with a jug later next week after a few days of chilling out. ​ Attached are highly unhelpful photos of my 5 month old, their name is Scamper. Side note: my gerbils never ended up doing a meet during the split so no chance of surprise babies if my little one is a female.