Make Your Gerbil Happy

Gerbils are small rodents that come from a desert environment, but they make excellent pets for responsible kids and adults as well. If you have a pet gerbil or if you are considering getting one, you will want to learn all about their needs in order to keep them happy. Like most creatures, gerbils need a clean place to live, nutritious food, clean water, toys, affection, and regular veterinary care. Keep reading to learn how to make your gerbil happy.

Steps

Providing a Happy Home for Your Gerbils

  1. Consider getting two same sex gerbils and not just one. Gerbils are very social creatures and like to live with other gerbils. When first buying your gerbil you should consider getting more than one. This will keep your gerbil much happier. However, if you already have a gerbil(s) and introduce a new one, it is likely that they will fight.
    • Consult a vet before getting another gerbil to see if it is a good idea for the health and well-being of your pet. If you decide to get another gerbil, you may need to use a split cage to introduce the new gerbil to the old one before putting them into the same cage.
    • Do not get a male and female gerbil or they will breed. While the baby gerbils may be cute at first, gerbils breed quickly and it is easy for a pet gerbil population to get out of control. Most people would find it difficult to provide adequate housing, food, and care for dozens of gerbils.[1]
  2. Keep your gerbils in a wire cage or a 10 gallon tank with a wire mesh cover. Line the cage or tank with plenty of bedding such as timothy hay or aspen shavings. Place the cage or tank out of direct sunlight and away from drafts. You don’t want your gerbils to get too hot or too cold.
    • Do not use pine or cedar shavings because the fume may be harmful to your gerbils.
    • Make sure that you provide enough bedding for your gerbil to dig and burrow, since gerbils are natural diggers.[1]
  3. Provide your gerbils with accessories that will make them happy. For example, your gerbil will enjoy an exercise wheel. Gerbils need lots of exercise to be happy, and an exercise wheel is a great way to provide them with that. Make sure that the wheel does not have any openings that may cause your gerbil’s tail to get caught.
    • Give your gerbil a nice enclosed place to sleep. Gerbils like to hide and sleep in tight, dark spaces, so place a small flower pot or a box in your gerbil’s cage.
    • Add pvc tubes to your gerbil’s cage for tunneling and playing.
    • Place a rock in your gerbil’s cage for perching and inspecting. [1]
  4. Provide toys for your gerbil. Just make sure that the toys are not made from soft plastic because your gerbil will chew these items to shreds. Look for toys that your gerbil will not be able to shred, such as hard plastic toys and strong wooden toys.[1]
    • Anything made of cardboard will also get chewed to shreds, but it won't hurt your gerbil.

Feeding Your Gerbil

  1. Feed your gerbil a special gerbil seed mix. Look for a specially formulated gerbil food mix at your local pet store. Follow the package instructions for how much to give your gerbil each day and serve the food in a small ceramic dish placed inside of his cage.
    • One way that you can begin to bond with your gerbil is to pick out some of the larger seeds from the mix, such as the sunflower seeds, and feed them to your gerbil by hand.[2]
  2. Provide a water bottle for your gerbil. Gerbils need to have access to clean fresh water at all times. Use a hanging water bottle to provide your gerbils with plenty of water. Make sure that the water bottle’s tip does not touch or come too close to the bedding or the water may drain out.
    • Check the water bottle’s tip daily to make sure that it is working properly.[2]
  3. Give your gerbil treats. Cheerios, rice crispies, apples, carrots, and lettuce are all good choices to treat your gerbil. Make sure that whatever you give your gerbil does not contain any sugar, flavors, or other additives. Do not give your gerbil junk food.
    • Give your gerbil a large chunk rather than small ones or they may get lost in the bedding. Remove the treat after your gerbil has finished with it.[2]
  4. Give your gerbil something to chew on. Like all rodents, a gerbil’s teeth never stop growing. Gerbils need to chew to keep their teeth from growing out of control, so make sure that you provide your gerbil with a sterilized bone or a pesticide and chemical-free stick to chew on.[1]

Caring for Your Gerbil

  1. Clean your gerbil’s cage regularly. To help keep your gerbil happy, you will need to keep his cage nice and clean. Once per week you should also perform a deep cleaning on your gerbil’s cage. Remove everything from your gerbil’s cage (including your gerbil) and scrub the sides and bottom with warm, soapy water. Then rinse and dry the cage before putting in new bedding, your gerbil’s accessories, and your gerbil. In addition to a weekly deep clean, you should also do the following every day:
    • Remove and replace any soiled or damp bedding.
    • Remove and dispose of droppings.
    • Remove old food.[1]
  2. Handle your gerbil with care. It will take some time and patience before your gerbil is ready to let you hold him. Build up his trust in you by allowing him to sniff your hand and even give you a little nibble. You can also offer your gerbil some treats from your hand to build up his trust in you. Once your gerbil is more comfortable with you, you can try to pick him up.
    • To pick up your gerbil, gently cup both hands around him and lift him slowly out of his cage. Do not swoop in and grab him or you will startle him and cause him to hide from you.[3]
  3. Allow your gerbil some supervised time outside of his cage each day. Gerbils also need time outside of their cages to be happy. Once you have established trust with your gerbil, take him out of his cage once per day for a little supervised play time outside of his cage. Make sure to keep him in a room where you can monitor his movement. Otherwise he might burrow somewhere and make it difficult for you to find him.[1]
  4. Get regular veterinary care for your gerbil. A healthy gerbil will be much happier than an unhealthy gerbil. If a gerbil is well cared for, it may live to be 3 or even 4 years old. Take your gerbil for regular check-ups with the veterinarian to make sure that he stays healthy and happy.
    • An unhealthy gerbil may have a variety of symptoms, such as sneezing, difficulty breathing, diarrhea and lethargy. If your gerbil is sick, take him to see a veterinarian right away.[1]

Tips

  • If you notice that your gerbil is digging a lot, it may mean that he needs more bedding to be happy. Try adding more bedding to his cage to provide him with more room to burrow and dig.[4]
  • Keep your gerbil's water fresh and clean.
  • Gerbils love treats, but too much lettuce will give them diarrhea and too much spinach has nitrates, which kill white blood cells.
  • Try to put toilet paper rolls in their cage, they like chewing on them.
  • Talk and interact with you gerbils every day.
  • Try not to give any plastic toys to your gerbils. Gerbils need to chew on something to wear down their teeth but if they chew on the plastic it might make them sick. Cardboard toilet paper rolls are great tunnels and chew toys for gerbils. Avoid plastic hamster cages because they might chew through them and escape.
  • 10 gallon tanks can be a bit small for two gerbils, consider getting a 20 gallon instead

Warnings

  • Never pick up your gerbil by the tail. You can cause serious harm to your gerbil.
  • Never drop your gerbil. Hold your gerbil while sitting down or over a surface.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/small-pet-care/gerbil-care
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 http://agsgerbils.org/Learn/Gerbil_Care_Handbook/care.php
  3. ↑ http://www.egerbil.com/handling_and_taming_gerbils
  4. ↑ http://agsgerbils.org/Learn/Gerbil_Care_Handbook/behav.php

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