Introducing my gerbils

[Daisy]

My other passion aside from hamsters is gerbils. I got my first gerbils for my 11th birthday. They were 3 males: a white one called Sugar, a black one called Spice and a golden one called Coffee. Spice lived the longest. He died aged about 4.5, and then I wasn't allowed to get any more gerbils until I was 18.

When I was 18 I got back into gerbils, discovered the world of proper gerbil care, and ended up owning Honey, Treacle, Lily, Daisy, Rocket and Storm.

Now I have my current four (who live in two pairs):

Tilly (darker) and Wispa (lighter)



Astra (grey) and Twiglet (brown)



They all have different personalities. Tilly is very sensitive. When she feels unhappy, such as after her friend/adoptive mother Daisy died and she was on her own, she is prone to become neurotic and develop phobias. Fortunately she was able to make a new friend in Wispa, and now she is much happier. Wispa is a pretty calm and laid-back gerbil, but can be a bit sneaky.

Astra is cheeky, confident and funny. Twiglet is her sensible big sister. Twiglet will be the one who has to check everything out extensively to make sure it's safe, whereas Astra just plunges straight in.

 

[Tulsi]

I love gerbils. I had an agouti one as a child that I called Ginger. She would run up my arm and sit on my shoulder. They come in such a variety of colours these days.

I have read that they love to chew.

 

[Maz]

They are all such gorgeous colours! I didn't know gerbils came in darker colours like that - I've only seen brown ones. I have heard they can get a bit neurotic if on their own so it's lovely Tilly has a new friend to keep her company.

 

[RainbowBrite]

It is so lovely to see your gerbils and hear all about them. I find gerbils very interesting and cute.

 

[Daisy]

I love gerbils. I had an agouti one as a child that I called Ginger. She would run up my arm and sit on my shoulder. They come in such a variety of colours these days.

I have read that they love to chew.

Yes, they're known for being incredibly destructive! I save cardboard tubes and boxes for them to shred. They also love it if you give them a big pile of hay to demolish.

 

[Daisy]

They are all such gorgeous colours! I didn't know gerbils came in darker colours like that - I've only seen brown ones. I have heard they can get a bit neurotic if on their own so it's lovely Tilly has a new friend to keep her company.

They are a bit prone to neuroticism. Poor Tilly used to have a fear of the sound of cardboard being chewed, which is very unfortunate for a gerbil. Fortunately she got over it.

 

[Maz]

Oh poor thing. It sounds a bit like hamsters varying in personality. Some are terrified of everything. My current Syrian doesn't seem scared of anything (and destroys cardboard!) but he doesn't like hands. Little noises make him look a bit confused though - like the back door closing.

 

[Maz]

That's Raffy of course

 

[Daisy]

Unfortunately I very unexpectedly lost Tilly yesterday. She got very ill over the course of a few hours and had to be put to sleep. She was only a few days away from her first birthday.

I'm finding it quite hard. When an elderly pet dies, it's always sad but I find I can accept it as the natural end to a full and happy life. But when they die so young, it feels so unnatural and wrong.

 

[Maz]

Oh Daisy I am so sorry. Yes it must be incredibly hard with such a young gerbil. It is so cruel when they die young. I can only send big hugs. I know she will have had the most amazing care with you and it is just terribly sad. Did the vet know what it was or was it just one of those unexplained possible genetic predispositions? Do take care.

 

[Daisy]

Oh Daisy I am so sorry. Yes it must be incredibly hard with such a young gerbil. It is so cruel when they die young. I can only send big hugs. I know she will have had the most amazing care with you and it is just terribly sad. Did the vet know what it was or was it just one of those unexplained possible genetic predispositions? Do take care.

Thank you.

We don't know what was wrong. She had abdominal pain and pink urine so maybe a kidney problem. She was generally very unwell and in so much pain, putting her to sleep was really the only option.

She never had any signs of illness before. On the contrary, she seemed incredibly healthy. She was a rescue so there could have been a genetic predisposition to something that came on very quickly.

 

[RainbowBrite]

I am so sorry to hear this Daisy. It must have come as such a shock to you. I hope her friend is okay. I know you will both miss her very much.

 

[Member ID2]

It is heartbreaking when this happens and such a shock. I've been there. It's almost impossible to comprehend at first.

You took the only and kindest option left to put an end to Tilly's sudden illness and she was lucky to have you by her side when she needed you most.

Play well at the bridge little Tilly.

 

[Daisy]

Thank you everyone.

Tilly's friend Wispa has been nervous since Tilly died but a local rescue has a young female available for me to pick up this week and she should be much happier with a new friend. It's one of hard things with gerbils that after losing one, you often have to immediately start thinking of getting another for the one left behind.

 

[Maz]

I was thinking that as well, that Wispa may be affected. Good news that you have found another friend for her.

 

[RainbowBrite]

It is so lucky you have found a potential friend for Wispa. I hope they are able to bond. I understand how difficult it is to have to rush out and get the remaining little one a friend. I had the same situation when I had guinea pigs.

 

[Member ID2]

Do you have to deep clean the cage like we do with hamsters after one dies or would that affect the one left behind? Or maybe it depends on the cause of the death.

Do you have to slowly introduce a new gerbil like people have to do with mice to see if they are compatible?

Poor Wispa must be feeling very lost at the moment. I hope that she will be happy with her new friend.

 

[Daisy]

Do you have to deep clean the cage like we do with hamsters after one dies or would that affect the one left behind? Or maybe it depends on the cause of the death.

Do you have to slowly introduce a new gerbil like people have to do with mice to see if they are compatible?

Poor Wispa must be feeling very lost at the moment. I hope that she will be happy with her new friend.

You do have to fully clean the cage to get rid of the old scents, otherwise it can destabilise the new bond. It needs to be a fresh start.

To introduce gerbils, you need a small tank with a wire mesh divider. You put one gerbil on each side and swap them round 3 times a day. The idea is that their scents will be evenly distributed on both sides, so eventually they don't see it as individual territories but as one shared territory.

You monitor their progress by observing how to react after each swap. If they act agitated and scent mark. they're still feeling territorial so they aren't ready yet. The ideal is for them to be so relaxed, they settle down to sleep straight away. When you think they're ready, you remove the wire mesh divider and watch them closely for at least the first 2 hours. Sometimes it will turn out they weren't quite ready to live together yet, and then you put the divider back in and continue swapping sides.

The time it takes from putting them in the split tank to being ready for an introduction varies depending on the gerbils. If you're introducing a young pup and an adult, it can just be a couple of days or even a few hours. The pup doesn't have any territorial instincts yet and craves adult companionship, so it's just a case of making the adult is going to play nicely. With mature females (the most challenging to introduce), it can be a month or even more. The gerbil I'm bringing home is only 3-4 months old, so she's not a young pup but she's not fully mature, so I'm hoping it won't take too long.

 

[Member ID2]

That's really interesting to read. So, were Tilly and Wispa sisters and didn't need this introduction phase?

 

[Daisy]

That's really interesting to read. So, were Tilly and Wispa sisters and didn't need this introduction phase?

No, they were unrelated. They took 5 weeks to introduce because Tilly was fussy. Wispa is quite laid back so I'm hoping for a quick introduction this time around.