I know this is probably silly since they’re naturally arboreal, but I know for some rodents they have very sensitive spines and should avoid ramps. I have my gerbils in a tank with a top expander, and maybe I’m being overly cautious but I get nervous about the way they jump down.

Before I even start I just want to say I have already called the vets and as it’s just a cut they refuse to see her unless there is a behavior change. (There isn’t)

About two days ago I woke up to my eldest gerbil (about 3 and a half) bleeding from the top of her face and since in the past she has cut herself on something before (was healed within two days) I knew how to clean it and place her back as advised by the vets last time. Yesterday I woke up with the cut bleeding again so I called the vet and like last time they were saying cause of her age bringing her in could cause my stress then help.

She had been acting herself the whole time(fast digging/running , using her chews, drinking and eating her normal food aswell as taking treats from me)

This morning it had healed and was only a scab but this evening when looking at her through the tank I could see it bleeding again. It took me hours to get her to come up so I could clean it again as I didn’t want to destroy her burrows.

Vets say there is nothing they can do unless her behaviour changes but this is the THIRD time it’s started bleeding again. I really don’t want to stress her out by taking her to the vet as they keep saying they won’t be able do anything anyways but I can’t just keep letting this cut open again every night?

Also taking her to the vet would mean destroying her burrows which she only just made again after her monthly deep clean!

Sorry for the rant any advice is appreciated as kind of out of options! Thank you

by that i mean like on a fluffy duvet with lots of cushioning

i think mine like it! but i don’t want to scare them if it’s not a thing people do

would an approx 40 gallon fish tank be ok for two gerbils? i’m getting them in a few months but im lowkey clueless on housing.. would a 40 gallon fish tank with lots of bedding + chew toys be ok??? ah i’m so stressed 😓😓

Went to a pet/garden shop today and they also got a small animal section... we got our 2 boys from this place a year ago (they are still happy and with a good home) but i saw these 3 little gerbils and my heart just broke 😢 If i had enough space and money, i would take them right away but i just can't afford this rn 😢 I saw a worker around the cages so i did tell them that this is NOT the way these little ones should be living and she just replied with 'yeah but they are easier to catch this way because they can't hide'

Poor poor babies

(This is OhGreen in Antwerp)

I have had 2 gerbils, both boys, for almost a year now and never had this problem. Recently when I pick one of them up, the second I put him back his brother starts chasing and attacking him relentlessly. I have to put him in a little prison for 10 minutes to calm down and he's fine afterwards.

Any idea why this is or anything I can do?

Hello!

I am a sucker for all animals and came across a gerbil in bad condition on Facebook marketplace. My coworker agreed to take it in as I can not fit another animal in my room and household in general. She’s had one before but not one recently, we know it needs a friend eventually but right now we just want to get it in a better house and better care. Tell me ALL the basics that we need for it! We are both doing research now as well but I figured you guys would have a good summary of the housing needs :)

I can only see one place saying they can but I’m small quantities but nothing else anywhere.

I’ve had two babies from the same family for two months now and they’ve always seemed to get along really well and the reason I got these two was because they seemed to interact together the most, But recently the larger of the two has started stealing food from the smaller one whenever I give them treats. I’ll give them both sunflower seeds and they’ll both run to opposite ends of the cage to eat them and then the larger one will chase the smaller one for his seeds. Why would they suddenly be displaying this new behaviour and should I be worried? Included picture of the two cuties Dingo (brown one) and Pluto (black one)

i have two gerbils, my one gerbil monkey is showing signs that he’s gonna pass soon. refusing food and water, loss in body heat, labored breathing and he can’t move much. i would take him to the vet but i cannot afford it, he’s also 4 years old so it’s most likely his time has just come. besides trying to make him as comfortable as possible and making their tank easier to get around i cant do much. my other gerbil is in good health, some smaller issues (scent gland tumor but he’s still kicking). my main concern is once monkey is gone what should i do about my other boy? i dont have the availability to buy more gerbils (two smaller boys to keep him company until his passing) and at his age i dont think it’d be safe to try and bond him with another boy, especially since the two of them have been together their entire life. any advice is welcome.

My gerbil has a bunch of fluid in her stomach the vet said that it’s either heart failure or cancer and they can do an ultrasound to know more but it’s likely there’s nothing they can do and to just keep her comfortable. Should I get the ultrasound incase there’s something they can do. She didn’t sound very confident in her surviving this…): I don’t want to sedate her for an ultrasound if there’s no point. Has anyone gone through this?

Hi guys,

Very bad photo but my gerbils tail is bleeding. It looks too 'clean' of a cut for it to be caught on anything, so I've assumed it's either from stress/biting her own tail? I know some gerbils' tails can fall off.

Her sister also passed last Thursday and she is on her own now, could this be contributing to it?

Hi guys! Fairly new gerbil owner here. I just received my first two babies a little over a week ago. I have them all set up in their new habitat, but they are both around eight weeks old and are still quite skittish around people. After I let them settle in a little more, I'm considering purchasing either a bonding pouch or a bonding scarf to help them adjust to being held and brought along the house with me.

https://preview.redd.it/emkncpvbihwc1.jpg?width=1140&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7d3e870c9eadb805b59c60396c3df67f910bf6fe

I've heard these are great for other small animals like rats, ferrets, and sugar gliders, but I was wondering if any of you guys have had success using them? I'm definitely looking to get one with a zipper instead of an open top because of how squirmy and jumpy my little girls are, but I mostly worry about the material of many bonding pouches, as a lot of them are made from fleece or fabric that could potentially be chewed on or ingested. While every gerb is different, but do you guys have any tales of caution when it comes to using these? Have your gerbils tried chewing on the fabric or mesh windows of your bonding pouches? Are there any other safety precautions I should be aware of? And most importantly, are these actually comforting to your gerbils? I'm a bit worried about my babies getting frightened or uncomfortable while staying in one of these.

Thanks in advance!

Hi all! My lovely Khaos has rapidly put on weight recently and become less active, I managed to see her tummy and definitely saw what I suspected was a tumour. I've taken her to the vet who confirmed this and she's booked in for surgery this coming Monday. However she doesn't seem great today, she seems more tired, eyes not bright and shining. She is still taking small snacks but she is struggling to move I think due to the weight/tumour. She's not a big people person but I stroked her head earlier and she actually closed her eyes and let me do it for quite some time which is unlike her. She has now moved to bed with my other gerbil (who thankfully hasn't left her side throughout this) but I'm worried she won't make it until Monday. Is it worth going to the vet again or just waiting it out until the surgery? Thank you so much in advance! (Picture for payment of advice!)

So my baby, Lev, has a weird lump, she’s been to the vet (the best exotic vet in the area, everyone I know swears by him) & he said he’s never seen anything like it. He seems pretty confident he could get it off easily if I do choose to go through the surgery but we won’t be able to test & find out what it is until/unless it’s been removed so won’t know 100% if it’s the right decision until it’s already done.

I need to make a decision sooner rather than later and just wanted to see what people’s experiences with gerbils going under anaesthetic are before I make that final decision.

Personal experience, medical knowledge etc all welcome :) thanks

Picture of Lev for attention :)

So one of my gerbils died last night, like about a month or two ago they started declanning but I got them to stop that and it happened again but then they seemingly went back to normal (playing with each other and everything) what are the next steps I should take? I'm assuming the one that passed was sick and that's also the cause of their declanning scuffles (there's no blood on her and she seems unharmed and up to last night they were sleeping snuggled up together), should I take my other girl to the vet? They were both about 2 years old now so should I look into getting my girl a new buddy? Any advice is greatly appreciated

My gerbils seem to sleep an awful lot. Is it because they're bored? They have plenty to climb on and chew and bedding to tunnel in but I hardly ever see them out and about. They don't currently have a wheel. They're still only babies and I guess there's still an element of shyness when people are in the room. They're friendly though and when I open the tank they will come and see what's going on and they love the play pen and climbing all over me and my son. It just seems odd that they're so rarely visible in the tank. Thanks x

They have a 50 gallon tank set up with 8-10 inches of bedding, a wooden platform, a cardboard box hide out, and a big wheel, I take them out every day and have a tub with bedding, a sand bath, and toys that I set out on my bed while they are playing. I take them out for 30 minutes to an hour each day and let them roam my bed. I've tried keeping a Sand bath in their tank but they dig the sand out.