Gerbils

Why You Should Adopt Gerbils

Gerbils are fast and furry creatures! These fascinating, quick critters know how to burrow into the hearts of their handlers (HUMAN GUARDIANS).

Before You Adopt Gerbils: Quick Facts

  • Designed to be the perfect desert animals, gerbils are expert diggers and have strong hind legs.
  • Gerbil bodies are efficient at processing water and are totally equipped to resist high temperatures. Don’t be alarmed if they go through their water more slowly than expected! 
  • Despite being “desert animals,” they live comfortably in an air conditioned environment.
  • Gerbils are very active and a joy to watch!

If you are thinking of adopting gerbils, please read the information below to see if they are the right pet for you.

Companionship

Gerbils are very social creatures and do best with having the company of at least one other gerbil. Unless the male in a male/female pair is neutered, gerbils should be kept in same sex groups.

Depending on the size of the habitat, gerbils can have more than one companion, however groups in numbers higher than three are more likely to have territorial issues. This can lead to fights to the death.

In cases where a gerbil is adopted as a single gerbil, that gerbil can be introduced to another gerbil using the split tank method. However, if it’s an adult or senior gerbil, sometimes it is best to keep them as a single. A single gerbil requires even more attention, but they can still lead full and happy lives.

Housing

Gerbils do very well in a 20 gallon long aquarium habitat. With this kind of habitat, they should have at least six inches of bedding to burrow in, just be careful to not put as much bedding around the water bottle. In addition to solely using an aquarium, a wire tank topper can be added to a ten gallon aquarium to create a habitat with digging space and a place for gerbils to have a view outside their tank. Tank toppers can be purchased at most pet stores or on smile.amazon.com. A tank topper option can be used for single gerbils and is not recommended for multiple gerbils. With the tank topper set up, the majority of the ten gallon tank can be filled with bedding. This allows for ample digging and tunneling space for the animal. If the gerbil has a wheel, it can be attached to the tank topper.

The downside of the tank topper set up is the gerbils may chew on the bars. However, if they are provided with plenty of cardboard and wooden chew toys, bar chewing can be kept to a minimum.

The following video provides a good look at the aquarium with tank topper set up:

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Bedding

Kaytee Natural Clean and Cozy bedding is the best bedding for gerbils. The Kaytee bedding allows the gerbils to tunnel and have their tunnels hold their form. Carefresh Bedding is a good second option, but the gerbils tunnels will not hold as well with Carefresh. These brands can be purchased here.

Food

Oxbow food is one of the best food brands for gerbils. Seed mixes are not as well suited because they can lead to selective eating. Food can be placed in a ceramic bowl, but your gerbil is likely to dig it out of the bowl. Scattering food allows your gerbil to forage, a behavior that is natural for them. 


Exercise and Play

Gerbils with large tanks and enough digging space do not require a wheel. If your gerbil has never been introduced to a wheel they will be just fine without one. If your gerbil does need a wheel, Kaytee Silent Spinners are one of the best and more affordable wheels. The Kaytee Silent Spinner is made with a hard enough plastic that gerbils cannot bite off pieces and potentially ingest it. The proper size Kaytee Silent Spinner wheel for a gerbil is medium or large, nothing smaller. Important! Wire mesh and rung wheels are dangerous to gerbils as their tails can become damaged in them while running. If you’re willing to spoil your small angel, Wood wheels are available on smile.amazon.com are ideal, but a bit expensive.

Bathing

Gerbils love to have a good sand bath. To give your gerbil a sand bath, you must first make sure you are using the correct product.  Tiny Friends Farm Bathing Sand is available on smile.amazon.com and is meant for gerbils. Other products, especially those meant for chinchillas, are called bathing dust and can cause respiratory issues in gerbils. Giving your gerbil a sand bath is fairly simple (VIDEO?)rovide the gerbil with a ceramic or glass bowl and fill it with a layer of sand a few centimeters deep. Your gerbil will instinctively roll in the sand all on their own. Once your gerbil starts using the sand bowl as a toilet, it is time to remove the bath. 

 

Tricky behaviors Gerbils, especially females, can de-clan, or “break-up.” When gerbils try to go their separate ways in captivity it ends in fighting. Unfortunately these fights can be lethal and the gerbils need to be separated as soon as possible.  Gerbils can de-clan even if you do everything right, but there are some steps to help a break-up become less likely. When cleaning your gerbils home, mix in some of the old bedding in with the new. Gerbils are scent oriented and will respond positively to environments that smell like everyone in the clan. Gerbils should also be kept together in temporary housing while you clean their habitat. Only provide one house for sleeping so your gerbils will sleep together and strengthen their bond. If you notice your gerbils are no longer sleeping together, they could potentially de-clan and its a good idea to have back up housing on hand. If your gerbils have small pushing spats, this does not necessarily mean that they will de-clan, they are probably sorting out dominance, but it is important to keep an eye on aggressive behavior, especially if it seems to be escalating.  Once a gerbil bites another gerbil and draws blood, they should no longer be kept together. That being said, bonded gerbils are very affectionate with one another and it is enjoyable keeping them. As long as you keep the warning signs in mind and take steps to reinforce their bond, your gerbils should be content to stay together.

Resources

Here are some useful websites where you can find more information about gerbils:

Policies

**Remember: Small Animals DO NOT make good starter pets for children** Their care should be entrusted primarily to the adults in the household. For details, check out our Adoptions to Children Policy