es

Gerbil Care

Gerbils are pleasant and easy pets. You can get a couple, keep them in a cage, play with them when you want, and let them entertain you! They're inexpensive to get and take care of, don't smell, don't break things, and are pretty quiet. What more could you want? How could they not be, these Mongolian desert rodents have a scientific name that translates to "clawed warrior." What could be cooler than that?

Basic Gerbil Stats

* They drink, excrete, bite, and smell less than other pets. * They live between 2.5-5 years. * They rarely need to go to the vet and don't need vaccinations. * They won't need the same little houses that hamsters use; they're content with nesting in the bedding you fill the bottom of the cage with. * They're very social and do better when with a companion.

Essentials

You need to get these items for your gerbils before they get home. They're going to need somewhere to go and something to eat right away. Make sure you can provide for your new pets.

Fun Additions

These would be great to get for your gerbils, but aren't absolutely essential. Try to get somethink to brighten their days. It won't take too much time or money.

What to Be Careful Of

* A pair of gerbils is the best idea. Try to get two who already know each other. Otherwise, you'll have to introduce them through a split cage. * More than two females together will fight. * If you try to lift them by their tails, the tails will break off. * If they're making clicking noises when breathing or seem surprisingly sluggish, take them to the vet. ** A vet could cost $25-$40 for a small procedure, but an after hours visit could break $100. * If you start breeding them, you could get 50-100 babies within a year. Don't do that unless you're really sure you want that many. ** Keep the different sexes apart or you'll get fights and even more babies. ** Selling them to pet stores may turn them into snake food sooner than into pets. ** You can tell which sex gerbils are by comparing the distance between the genitals and the anus. Males have a longer distance than females.

How to Care for Them

* Give them new food and water every day. ** Baby gerbils will eat more than older gerbils; cold gerbils more than warm gerbils; and pregnant gerbils more than those without child. * Keep the bedding dry. * Clean the tank every 1-3 weeks. If it smells or looks gross, clean it sooner. * Play with them daily. Let them sit in your hand, pet them, and watch them crawl around. * To pick them up, first put your hand in the cage and let them sniff around until their comfortable. Then put one hand on their hindquarter, cradling and lightly gripping the base of their tails, then lift them onto the palm of your other hand. As long as you're gentle, slow, steady, and sure, they shouldn't flail or try to jump out. * It one gets a cold, isolate them and keep them warm and they should be better within 2-3 days. * If they have diarrhea, are sluggish and not eating, take them to the vet. They may have Tyzzers Disease.

Feeding

* Give them a day's worth of food at the same time each day. Clean out the dish before each feeding. ** Put regular food in one bowl and treats in a separate dish or from your hand. * Cavy Rescue says that you should supplement a diet of dandelion leaves, and raisins." About.com says, "Avoid raw kidney beans, raw potato, onion, potato leaves, or rhubarb leaves." ** Make sure everything is fresh, pesticide-free, and clean. ** Don't leave food in the cage overnight. It will spoil and everyone will be unhappy. ** Lettuce is a great laxative. ** If they get diarrhea, stop feeding them green vegetables. Hopefully, that will stop it. *sunflower seeds. They're likely to pick out their favorite components and end up with an imbalanced diet because seeds are so high in fat. **Gerbil/Hamster mix, go for a lower fat variety. * If they look/act sluggish or malnourished, try to alter their diet a bit and see if that's the problem. If not, take them to the vet. * Hiding food in the cage will give them a hunting game and a treat!