Gerbils are easily tamed and will bite less then their cousins, the Hamster. Gerbils have a very gentle attitude and are not easily scared or startled like the Hamster. They are very active, social and playful animals! They are not nocturnal like their Hamster Cousins, so they are playing during the day and at night! They love to sleep together in groups as well! Gerbils are very social and are comfortable in pairs, unless you are wanting to breed, keep only the same sex in the cage together. Please remember, if plan on keeping two together, then they should be purchased at the same time so they could be raised together!
Housing:
Gerbils can adapt to any type of small animal cage. The most important thing to remember that the cage needs to allow plenty of room for the Gerbil to play and burrow. So a wire bottom cage is not appropriate for Gerbils! The SuperPet CritterTrials and Starter Homes are good prepackaged cage purchase choice. But if you can afford it, the best cage for a gerbil is a long aquarium, such as a 20 gallon long tank. The 20 Long will house up to 4-6 Gerbils. This will provide the gerbil with a chew proof cage that can be filled deep with a layer of comfy bedding that they can dig and burrow through. You can hide pieces of PVC pipe/ or SuperPet Tunnels in the bedding for them to run and play through, satisfying their natural instinct. You can also purchase a tank top to secure on top of the tank. Tank tops are wire tops that secure to the top of the aquarium. If you are just buying 1 - 2 Gerbils then a 10 gallon tank and top set up is sufficient.
Gerbils can adapt to any type of small animal cage. The most important thing to remember that the cage needs to allow plenty of room for the Gerbil to play and burrow. So a wire bottom cage is not appropriate for Gerbils! The SuperPet CritterTrials and Starter Homes are good prepackaged cage purchase choice. But if you can afford it, the best cage for a gerbil is a long aquarium, such as a 20 gallon long tank. The 20 Long will house up to 4-6 Gerbils. This will provide the gerbil with a chew proof cage that can be filled deep with a layer of comfy bedding that they can dig and burrow through. You can hide pieces of PVC pipe/ or SuperPet Tunnels in the bedding for them to run and play through, satisfying their natural instinct. You can also purchase a tank top to secure on top of the tank. Tank tops are wire tops that secure to the top of the aquarium. If you are just buying 1 - 2 Gerbils then a 10 gallon tank and top set up is sufficient.
Bedding:
Gerbils should kept in Aspen, CareFresh or shredded newspaper bedding. Cedar is not safe for small animals due to the oils in the wood. The Cedar is known to cause respiratory damage and even death in small animals. Pine Bedding, some experts say yes it is safe while others say no. Many Breeders will use Aspen while others are still using Pine Shavings.
Gerbils should kept in Aspen, CareFresh or shredded newspaper bedding. Cedar is not safe for small animals due to the oils in the wood. The Cedar is known to cause respiratory damage and even death in small animals. Pine Bedding, some experts say yes it is safe while others say no. Many Breeders will use Aspen while others are still using Pine Shavings.
Feeding:
It is HIGHLY recommended that you feed your Gerbil high quality of food. The reason why is because the higher quality of food has the necessary vitamins and minerals in them for your Gerbil. The lower end food lines that the Super Chain Stores and Grocery store sells contains only fat and fillers, nothing for nutritional value! For example, you do not want to feed you and your family nothing but candy every day for the rest of your life. You will end up having health problems and die at a younger age. This is what you are doing if you feed low end food to your pet!! You will find that by feeding your pet the better food will improve its life span and will show more signs of being healthy! And a lot of the times, the Pet Stores are cheaper on the better food products then Super Discount Chain Stores. Remember that this pet is part of your family now! Remember to feed daily the Gerbil/Rodent Block seed mix. You can offer your Gerbil vegetables only in small amounts. Vegetables contains moisture and too much moisture can cause digestive problems. Also remember to remove any uneaten vegetables at the end of the day. You can also provide bread, in small amounts, also, Hay such as Timothy as well to the gerbil as a treat. Chew toys and treats should be given to gerbils also. You can place paper towel rolls in the cages so the gerbils can chew and play with it.
Provide fresh water at all times!
It is HIGHLY recommended that you feed your Gerbil high quality of food. The reason why is because the higher quality of food has the necessary vitamins and minerals in them for your Gerbil. The lower end food lines that the Super Chain Stores and Grocery store sells contains only fat and fillers, nothing for nutritional value! For example, you do not want to feed you and your family nothing but candy every day for the rest of your life. You will end up having health problems and die at a younger age. This is what you are doing if you feed low end food to your pet!! You will find that by feeding your pet the better food will improve its life span and will show more signs of being healthy! And a lot of the times, the Pet Stores are cheaper on the better food products then Super Discount Chain Stores. Remember that this pet is part of your family now! Remember to feed daily the Gerbil/Rodent Block seed mix. You can offer your Gerbil vegetables only in small amounts. Vegetables contains moisture and too much moisture can cause digestive problems. Also remember to remove any uneaten vegetables at the end of the day. You can also provide bread, in small amounts, also, Hay such as Timothy as well to the gerbil as a treat. Chew toys and treats should be given to gerbils also. You can place paper towel rolls in the cages so the gerbils can chew and play with it.
Provide fresh water at all times!
Tid Bits:
With PROPER care Gerbils can live 3-4 years on the average. Now if you are doing minimal care and feeding low grade foods then your Gerbil's life span is cut in half to 6 months to 1 year.
Never lift a gerbil or pull it by its tail. The tail is very fragile. They should be picked up slowly by cupping the body in both hands. Gerbils can jump, so be careful when holding them. Gerbils go thru stages as it grows older, just like children to teenagers then into adult hood! Every gerbil is different in their personality! Be patient and respectful toward your gerbil and do not let a nip scare you away. Gerbils are very curious and playful creatures! Gerbils love to dig, burrow, and run in wheels/balls. They also love to chew and they will constantly will chew on anything they can. So provide lots of chew toys for them! The chew toys will help keep their teeth cut down!!
With PROPER care Gerbils can live 3-4 years on the average. Now if you are doing minimal care and feeding low grade foods then your Gerbil's life span is cut in half to 6 months to 1 year.
Never lift a gerbil or pull it by its tail. The tail is very fragile. They should be picked up slowly by cupping the body in both hands. Gerbils can jump, so be careful when holding them. Gerbils go thru stages as it grows older, just like children to teenagers then into adult hood! Every gerbil is different in their personality! Be patient and respectful toward your gerbil and do not let a nip scare you away. Gerbils are very curious and playful creatures! Gerbils love to dig, burrow, and run in wheels/balls. They also love to chew and they will constantly will chew on anything they can. So provide lots of chew toys for them! The chew toys will help keep their teeth cut down!!
I hope my caresheets help you, and I hope you have fun with your fur friend. :)
Posted by bird_boy
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