Gerbils come from the rodent’s family and nowadays they have become favorite choice as pets. They have a very close resemblance with rats, but some of their facial features are different. They are very entertaining as pets as they are fun and play around with family members. Gerbils are very easy to take care, but it will better if you know how to take care of a gerbil before you bring them home. This will make things easier for you. Here are some simple steps on how to take care of a gerbil.
Things Required:
- Gerbil food
- Upright bottle of water
- Large aquarium (15 gallons)
- Aspen or bedding (no pine or cedar)
- Cardboard, cedar, or tissue for their nest
- Untreated wood for chewing
- Cardboard or wooden box
- Chinchilla sand
Steps:
- Maintain a good diet; this is the first step for taking care of gerbil, maintaining a good diet. Like humans, gerbils will need a well balanced diet of proteins, greens, vitamins and certain fats. Make sure that you give them a well-balanced gerbil food and a variety in that as well. Remember that you must give them very little sunflower seeds, as they are very fattening.
- Give them a water bottle and get a good one. Get a water bottle with a metal spout in it. It will help if you get one with clear plastic, so you will come to know how full it is with a glance. It will hang properly on a mesh lid inside a glass aquarium.
- Give your gerbil enough room. Let’s assume that you are getting two gerbils, then you must get a tank of 10-20 gallons. This will give the gerbils enough room to run, dig, jump and kick the bedding without creating a lot of mess. You will have to secure the lid with a mesh lid. Always remember that you must never get a small, wire or plastic cage.
- You will have to come up with some sort of exercise for them. Remember that exercise is very important for any kind of pet. You will be happy to know that gerbils are active pets, you will have to give them the space and plenty of nooks and crannies, where they can have hours of exercising or activities.
- Always encourage their active minds. Gerbils will love it when they are mentally occupied with some tasks, like making a nest or digging tunnels. They will start spending hours in shredding the cardboard systematically, tearing the tissue and straw for making a comfortable bed.
- Love the gerbil, because emotionally gerbils will need some special considerations. In the wild, they will always live in groups, so at home you must at least have two gerbils. However, you will have to pick gerbils that have been raised together, are of same gender, and you must never separate them for a long time. Sometimes, it can be possible to introduce the gerbils by the use of split cage, but is it not meant for the new users of gerbils. Males will be better in groups as compared to females. Females should always be kept in groups of two, while you can keep the males in larger groups.
- Remember that you will have to learn what your gerbils will need. If you have never had a pet before, then you must consider in investing in a book and do plenty of research on their habits, cost of upkeep and health before you buy a pet.
- Do not feel the need of breeding them. For the first time gerbil owners, you will have to resist the urge for getting into breeding. Remember that responsible breeding is one of the major undertakings and it will cost a lot of money rather than bringing money in. The thought of having cute, small gerbils can be very appealing, but don’t forget that gerbils will have 11 pups at once. Further, the gerbils will start mating soon after they have given birth. Therefore, if you keep the male and female in one tank, then you will have to get ready for another litter.
- Handle your gerbil in such a manner that he is tame. It is important that you tame your gerbil, so that you can manage him on a daily basis. Remember that you must lift the gerbil from his stomach and gently. Never ever, pick him up with his skin or tail. Whenever you are playing with him, make sure that his eyes are clean and free from mucus and he has no bite marks from other gerbil.
Tips and Warnings:
- The more space you give the gerbils inside the cage, the less they will want to run away. Never buy a hamster cage that has plastic tunnels. You will have to line their cage with carefresh bedding or aspen.
- Remember that never give them too much fresh fruits or vegetables, because this can upset their stomach.
- Take your gerbil to the pet if he looks tatty, does not eat or if he does not play with the other gerbils.
- Gerbils will wrestle or box for fun, but if you notice the fight getting ugly then you will have to separate the gerbils.
- You will not have to bathe the gerbils, because they clean themselves and never smell. However, they will love the bath with chinchilla sands.
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