Are there any pros & cons you'd add to the list? & if you need advice for taming new gerbils, this video should help: 🎬 ru-vid.comUx6YXjEW2fE?feature=share ☺️
My first ever pet was a Gerbil, around 40 years ago. I have no idea why he popped into my head this evening, but it brought me to your video. Rest in power Jimmy the Gerbil. 🐭
I will say that personally I've found gerbils to be far more high maintenance than mice or hamsters. All rodents need things to chew on, but gerbils will chew up literally anything and everything you put in their enclosure. If it isn't stone or metal, they'll destroy it. So I had to use cinderblocks to give them a shelf to put their wheel and food dish on, otherwise every other day I'd come home from work to a collapsed shelf and a flooded soggy mess of bedding. They also seemed a lot more inclined to want to sleep all day and run in their wheel all night, and they also seemed completely determined to make sure none of the sand stayed inside their sandbath.
Gerbils are very social overall as I've bred them in the past, but like all animals they have unique personalities. I've had more reserved ones, aggressive ones and friendly social ones. My first one let me pick her up all the time. When I'd pet her head she make these little squeaky sounds but she'd stay there and not bite so I'm guessing she liked it. She'd let me feed her. Her boyfriend which she had babies with loved my father. He was also athletic like a squirrel jumped out of the tanks we had for them and balanced himself on the edge and crawled up and down my dads arm but when I put my hand there he'd sniff me and back off. Lol 😆 I also had one one of their kids that lived 4 and half years. They definitely live the longest from most rodents. I also had a rat once he wasn't social st all and didn't like exercising lol 😆
Nice video. you really covered the basics. Though vet bills do vary from place to place. I live in Maine, America, and my vet only charged 100.00 for both diagnostic and medicine combined, to save a tank of 5 from a bacterial infection. It was awful, but I was able to save 5 out of 6 thanks to a good vet and speedy actions. I've been a breeder for 2 decades so every now and again I click on videos like this to see what's going on out there, and this one didn't disappoint. You've made some excellent points, especially about bonding. I find family units are more likely to stay bonded, and boys more than girls will stay bonded. I've an 80 gallon with 5 boys, The dad, and 4 sons from 2 different litters. All happy lil guys. :} All in all very good video, very informative for people who are just coming into this.
Thanks, I'm glad you found it useful ☺️ yeah vet bills definitely can vary, my own charge around £50 just for a basic appointment 😩 thankfully I haven't had any major issues yet (🤞) It's really interesting hearing your experience with bonding and groups, I'm always interested to learn about different perspectives from rescuers and breeders like yourself, with all the gerbs you guys see you've definitely got a very unique view on things like this ☺️
I had Gerbils for a few years when I was younger and again for going on 7 years now, I've never been bitten by one and only had 1 falling out between them which was a group of 3 (it was 4 but one sadly died) I tried to find the instigator a friend but no where would sell a solo gerbil (which is good) and nowhere had a solo one for adoption so I became his buddy. It wasn't perfect and I kept looking for one but to no avail and if another falling out happened with 2 pups it would mean 3 tanks in the house and I was already pushing my luck with 2 large ones. He lived to be 3 and a half and seemed to be the happiest little thing, He was out at every opportunity, he sat on me for as long as he wanted or until he pooped or peed on me and whenever he heard anyone near his tank he would run to the window to see them or climb on top of his burrowing box to get closer. He went downhill quickly which was heartbreaking and I decided it would be kinder to help him on his way instead of hope he got better with the medication the vet said was available to try (The vet agreed with my decision as there was no guarantee it would work quickly enough). I know have 2 little monsters that are about to turn 1 and whilst they still are happy to see me and be handled, one much more than the other. He just tolerates it but is fine when he's up I miss my little buddy
I'm so jealous that nowadays keepers can reffer to so cool videos like this. As I was young and kept 2 of these I had only 1 german book about this spicies and I couldn't find many refferable sources of knowledge about them, so despite my best intentions, I made many mistakes. I remember that some of the information I found, was even wrong. For examplethe - they told me that you can't teach them coming when you call them by their name. My gerbil did it. Keep doing these videos. They are great!
Gerbils need a very specific setup to be happy and it can be expensive. A glass tank with a cage topper for it is usually best. They need lots of room to burrow so a 10 gallon glass tank is way to small. I bought my gerbils a 40 gallon glass tank with a huge cage topper that can cover the entire thing. Wooden furniture/equipment is best for gerbils and it even looks nicer as well even if they chew on it a little (and they definitely will). Never ever get your gerbil a metal wheel, their tails can get caught between the bars and they could lose their tail. The wheel should ideally be made of wood and it also has to be big as running on smaller wheels is bad for their backs cause the stretch a little when the run plus they have their long tail they need to protect. Always buy two gerbils that have been cage mates already, they need a friend at all times or they become depressed. If one gerbil dies buy your older gerbil a young gerbil friend. Make sure the new gerbil is the same gender. The younger the better cause they don't see a child as threat and to the young gerbil it is more or less like moving back in with their parents for them. Female gerbils are way more territorial than males are making it harder for them to make new gerbil friends. I was lucky enough to have a small animal classroom at my school so I was able to learn how to raise gerbils there for 5 years before eventually getting my own gerbils. Most of the gerbils in that class were male and they were calm, easy going, enjoyed cardboard mazes, and more friendly with humans. Female gerbils always seem to have a lot of energy and a mission, they chew up carboard like termites and enjoy exploring their cage inside and out. They are even more daring than male gerbils and have taken more attempts to try to leave their enclosure when I am distracted and they get the opportunity. If they ever fight or I can tell one of them is clearly uncomfortable with what the other one is trying to do to them I separate them and put one in a smaller enclosure for about 10 minutes. Once they are reunited they almost always forget their argument from earlier and go back to normal. Their whole setup probably cost me over $600 dollars in total but the good side is they live a long time and you only need to setup a fancy enclosure once. You might need to replace some wooden equipment every couple of years but overall food, bedding, and home maintenance for them is pretty cheap from that point on. Overall I am glad I got gerbils, they really are a under appreciated rodent as most love guinea pigs and hamsters more. Very few realize gerbils are very different and require different living conditions. Please do your research on this lovable rodent before you adopt them. Also yes they are very clean for a rodent and very efficient at helping you dispose of your cardboard.
I had the same gerbil enclosure a few years ago as well and even tho I brought the bigger version it was still quite small, then I went into the pets at home today and see a massive cage that’s recommended for 2 gerbils even tho a few years ago the one they sold for 4 gerbils was much smaller, I’m glad they finally made better cages but Idk why they couldn’t just do that in the first place
Yeah, it's great to see the progress they're making! Still have some improvements to make but it's so good to know that they're not selling those tiny horrendous things anymore!
I have 2 gerbils and they are amazing pets! We got them in May 2020 and we loved them tons, nowadays we also have a dog and dogs are more important to upkeep than gerbils, sadly one of our gerbils has a tumour on its chest, we can get surgery but we said no (the vet also recommended no) so it’s on track to pass in under a month or so, surgery could lengthen that to 6 months but the risk of something bad happening in surgery is too high, yeah! so in summary they are perfect pets if you’re busy or older so I would definitely recommend them. Edit: He has sadly passed away on the 25th February 2023.
Awh I'm sorry to hear about your gerbil, my Pumbaa had a growth in her tummy too, it's never easy 💚 I do agree though, I think they can make great pets for the right people ☺️
Some pros from me and a con. Pros: very friendly and rarely bite, adorable, very clean - little odor. As for the con, they are little cowards lol. The tiniest movement or sound and they'll go running into their bedding.
love the DIY cage! great video. Pet stores suck! i wish people did more research before buying their cages and thinking because the pet store sells it that it must be suitable
Ah thanks, it's just a temporary home for them as it doesn't quite meet the minimum 😅 but we're in the process of building them a new tank topper for a full size glass tank atm 🥰 and yeah, pet stores are terrible for the misinformation and awful products they sell and promote, unfortunately many people see pet store staff as knowledgeable experts, which just isn't true in most cases, people definitely need to do more research, but I think pet stores need to improve too, having some government intervention in terms of legal minimum care standards would also help , I think it's a systemic problem and lots of unsuspecting people get sucked into it believing they're doing the best for their animals 😕
@@PetConnectionInternational yeah the pet stores have no pressures and just target kids with the cute cages which look like toys. Its sad but i see a lot of people informing new pet owners on tiktok etc so i feel like there's a lot of people trying to make a difference
When I got my gerbils as a kid, I loved them, a got a pair of what the pet store told us was 2 girl gerbils, turns out they were boy and girl, a year later 4 babies were born, one I called Domino, he grew up around me and turned out to be the most imprinted little guy ever.. he would literally put his little hands up on his enclosures walls when he saw me and just stare at me until I took him out, he enjoyed pets and falling asleep in my hands… all my other gerbils were skittish but I still loved them
When I decided to keep gerbils as a pet,, I really wanted a Mongolian gerbils like in your videos.. Unfortunately,, in my country Indonesian there's no "breeder" that have it this kind.. Fortunately,, I still keep gerbils tho' but the fat tail gerbils not Mongolian gerbils #lol 🤣🤣
Awh, fat tailed gerbils are super cute too 🥰 they're really funky little creatures, I've thought about getting some myself at some point in the future ☺️
@@PetConnectionInternational yesss they are.. But,, still!! I wants Mongolian gerbils!!! Cause I love their variation of color especially the dark one's #lol.. hopefully,, someday I can have one's. 😬😬
One of my gerbils died today. Few hours ago. They had red mites and we cleaned the cage more often. We thought they went away (we didn’t see any of the red mites for a long time) and suddenly there are so many…. So I think he died because of them. It’s sad. The other gerbil Ted is now left alone. Will clean the cage for that stupid red mites and then try to give him away to couple with another gerbil.
I have 2 of them and they're very active and when someone is on a visit.ages, yes it and watch them because I am we have them where a couch is a couch, their table and there are day and day watch, literally the people that visit and they are funny very funnyand now they are, they are running in, I don't know how to say that, but the Deira very hard best to train, but they are very cute and like they're so cute
With the rise of dangerous dog breeds roaming the streets and causing mayhem (I'm sure some here would agree), I think its much safer to get a pet you can keep in house away from the madness outside and away from constant predators. I'm definitely thinking of investing in some.
Need some help, had our gerbills for like 3 or 4 months now, and they’re still very skittish and hate being picked up, try and play with them every day and they seem to get into it then all of a sudden become esteem skittish again
Gerbils getting skittish sometimes is very normal, they can easily get a random spook by a noise, movement or smell, even the most tamed gerbils will still occasionally get spooked and run off ☺️ But if you want some more hand taming tips I do have a couple of videos that may help, this is my original video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-20IXwsUOZ48.html And this is my more recent one with a few extra tips: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-0CDEAymyTgw.html Hope this can help ☺️
I always found gerbils so much nicer and friendlier than hamsters. And they don't smell as bad as hamsters especially female hamster which are just down right mean.
I had hamsters, little basterds but me, got a gerbil as woman in shop said there nicer…she lied , little fucker bit and that was it for rodents and me , I still love catching mice (when they get in the house) and letting them go in the yard but THAT gerbil bite in 2002 was the end of Small rodent ownership for me …got cats now and they’re great
Thanks for the video :) I've been researching gerbils for a few hours now since I saw one in the store today. I live in a 1 room studio, which means that a gerbil cage would be in the same place where I sleep. I sleep with the window cracked so in the winters it cools down considerably in my room. I'm concerned whether that would be too cold for a gerbil or would their bedding isolate enough for them to be comfertable? Also any recommendations on gender and group composition if I were to buy two/three gerbils. Thanks :)
The bedding does most of the work keeping their temperatures stable, so if you have a large tank (at least 40 US gallons) and at least 25cm/10 inches of bedding, as well as making sure you've got a pair so they can huddle for warmth, this will go a long way to keeping them comfortable 🙂 but even then, it'd be a good idea to get some little thermometers to keep an eye (these are the ones I use: amzn.eu/gZhL98d ), the ideal ambient temperature is 20-24°C, but above 15°C should be fine for a pair with deep bedding, I'd try not to let it get below 10 if you can 🙂 If it does get really chilly in your room, I'd keep the gerbil tank as far away from the window as possible and maybe consider getting a reptile heating mat to put on one side of their tank just in case they do start to get a bit cold, I think I may have some more cold weather tips in a video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-f0xyx55Vgxo.html , although I may have already covered most of them 😅 For group dynamics, pairs are always the most stable no matter the gender, so unless you come across a trio looking to be re-homed, I'd stick to a pair for safety, less of a risk of declanning that way (although it can still happen). The main difference between males and females is that generally males are considered easier to bond, but I've had two bondings with females that went fine and know someone that's had loads of failed bondings with males, so I think it's probably more down to the personality match than gender personally
@@PetConnectionInternational thanks so much for your elaborated answer. I appreciate it immensely! I will see if I can buy a thermometer so I can keep track of the temperature in my room to see if it doesn't get too cold. But Im glad to hear there is hope😊 Again thanks:)
I don't have one specifically for that (although I will be making one soon), but I do have a video showing how to attach mesh, and it's basically the same process: ru-vid.comJztadddD-Zs?feature=share ☺️ I should note that the tub I used in that video was for bonding, it's much too small for permanent housing, and generally plastic tubs are too small anyway (at least in the UK), my bin cages are only ever intended as temporary homes 🙂
Hey I have a doubt .... My gerbil is not drinking water from the bottle which you have in this video so instead I use bottle caps for water. I’m not an expert since this is the first time I’m having a gerbil. I brought her 3 days ago . So can you suggest me a way to teach her to drink water from the dispenser. 😢
some may not like to drink from bottles, so it may be a good idea to include a suitable bowl (such as the niteangel Fuji one linked in the description), bottle caps won't be suitable as they're plastic and will inevitably be chewed up by the gerbils creating tiny sharp pieces which could be dangerous
Yeah I was considering maybe a livestream Q&A, but I'll put out a post a bit closer to the time and see what everyone wants to see ☺️ I do have an enclosure reaction planned anyway, there'll be a post about it at the weekend if you wanted to submit yours 🙂 And thanks! I'm glad you enjoy the content, I hope it's helpful for you and your gerbs 💚
@@areyouawormonastring ah I see, well it's awesome that you're so on the ball with research, that really commendable, I think your future gerbs will be very lucky indeed to have you 💚
wait, there's cons? *** I've actually bred and kept a bloodline that is more accepting to be keps as groups and who are very accepting to new members for their clan. Only downside? People didn't like white pink eyed gerbils, the main trait of this bloodline :(
That's interesting, it does make sense though, a similar thing has happened with dogs, wild wolves are family living and don't tend to accept strangers, whereas through domestication our pet dogs are extremely social and can live happily with loads of other doggos, similarly cats got more social with domestication too, so it makes sense that selective breeding could bring it out in gerbs too ☺️ I'm VERY curious as to the coat colour linking though, that's super interesting! There are apparently lots of different traits that end up linked to coat colour genes, I guess pink eyed white are where the natural friendly gerb traits are 😆 also, they're adorable! People are wrong 💚
I've had gerbils for multiple decades (50+ over my lifetime) and they are perfectly fine with a 10 gallon tank for a pair if they get enough outside "gerbil time". If they have enough things to chew on, they don't need a topper. They are not expensive pets. Yes, they're more expensive than they used to be, but that's only because everything is more expensive. I have only had to take one gerbil to the vet as it had a stroke and was suffering. And not all gerbils need a friend. That's a misconception. I have 2 single girls and I will not attempt to introduce them, they're perfectly happy by themselves. One of them is super anxious (she can't see well with her albino eyes) but has gotten less skittish since I got her a ceramic tunnel to hide in. I rarely have any trouble providing them with chewing material due to the cardboard boxes that things come in. They adore empty tp rolls. And a box of 100 manilla file folders will keep them entertained for literally months on end. There really aren't any real cons to gerbies.
It's great that you've had such a long experience with them 🙂 But 10 gallons is not big enough for any rodent to live in, I strongly disagree with even the 20 gallon suggestion that floats around online. Wild gerbils have burrows that can span 4/5 meters in each direction and be well over a metre deep so a tiny 10 gallon is never going to be enough for them, even if they seem happy to you, gerbils are very good at hiding their feelings so they could easily be unhappy without you realising it. And just because that's the way you've done it for many years, doesn't mean it's appropriate, we used asbestos in buildings for years thinking it was fine. I really do think your gerbils would benefit from more space, I think it's extremely unfair to keep them in such a small space There are some incidences when gerbils may need to live alone yes, but we should do everything in our power to try and make sure they have friends, just because a gerbil seems skittish, that is definitely not a reason to force them to live in isolation, in fact often skittish gerbils will relax more when they find a friend However, if you have already tried multiple times to bond them and it failed, even with a neutered member of the opposite sex, then in that situation everything has been done to try and get them a friend, and I think it's acceptable to keep them alone with sufficient enrichment (and burrow space) Another solo situation would be my Pumbaa, who has health issues, and although I did attempt to bond her, it would have taken too long, which wouldn't be fair on her with her limited remaining time, so we split them and kept them as neighbours, which I think is a fine backup option if a gerbil can't or won't be bonded But I hope you're able to give your gerbs the best life possible, upgrading their space will definitely help give them what they need to be proper gerbils ☺️
the only downside in my opinion is that they don't love human contact, my gerbil i've had for over 3 years now and he still doesn't climb onto my hand voluntarily, i usually just sit at my desk whilst he's running round on it 😂😂
Yeah, they're not super cuddly are they 😅 the best I've gotten is Misty likes to use my hand as an elevator and run around in my sleeves, and Luna will sit still for like a minute in my hand while she eats a worm 😆
@@sarahgreiner2694 Allow me to disagree. They are not that easy, in my opinion. A responsable and knowledgable owner would need to invest in a _really- big enclosure, wheel(s), toys, bedding, varied and well-balanced food (not the one from the petshops), being proactive over healthcare issues or attitute/disputes between members of the clan, provide them with outside stimuli, and read many topics on Internet to identify wrong behavioural patterns or products that one should avoid. I am sure that I didn't remember to mention all the aspects, but you get the idea. The point is, I am not sure at all that it is a pet for everyone, specially for the majority of kids. Thinking one's is doing a good job with a pet is not the same as doing a good job in practice. But I respect your point of view, of course.
@Mario Torrecilla I definitely agree with you, a lot of work goes in to setting them up and learning about their care, then continuing to learn and improve as we go, it can take a lot, but they're definitely worth the effort 🥰
I LOVE hearing my girls digging and chewing. The split cage method works better the younger the gerbils are, or an adult and a baby. I use the split cage method to socialize the 3 individual gerbils I have that don't have partners, to make sure they stay as happy as I can have them be. They really are great animals to have if you have chronic health issues, which I do, and they honestly help my mental health quite a bit with all their habits and things that make them individuals
Not generally, no. They may nip on occasion if hands smell like food, or to try and tell you something. Occasionally some do have behavioural issues where they become biters (like dogs), but this isn't super common, most gerbils will very rarely bite or even nip people
Gerbils are one of the few animals that bring me true joy. So, if I may, here are MY pros and cons of owning gerbils: PRO: They live. ❤️ CON: They die. 💀 To lots of people gerbils seem the same as the next, but as one spends so much time with them, they figure out things like individual temperaments and habits, whether they like to play solo, with others or with their humans, the ones who - for some reason - prefer solo life while others prefer social life. But the cutest thing (other than running through their paper rolls over and over again before reducing them) is their scratching at the glass. Hands down best rodents. 💖
Awh I agree with most of your sentiment, but scratching the glass for prolonged periods of time is a stereotypic behaviour caused by stress due to lack of a suitable burrow structure, so it's the total opposite of cute to me, it just makes me really sad whenever I see it 😔
Um, I think you missed a BIG point. Throughout this video, you show a PLASTIC enclosure, but from what I've heard, GLASS, as in an aquarium tank, is necessary. If there's a way to chew through it, gerbils will find it and PLASTIC is definitely chewable. I had four female sister gerbils and they declanned and I had to find another tank for one and then another gerbil, which actually worked out well for the declanned gerbil and her sister in this second, smaller tank. When the declanned, smaller gerbil got her strength back and some months had passed, it seemed that one of the evil blonde twins wanted to get at the declanned gerbil again, so I let them meet and they pretty much immediately fought. I don't know how long they fought, but I tell myself it was about eight seconds before I pulled them apart by their tails. The evil blonde twin seemed to no longer have any advantage because Scorch, the declanned gerbil, was just as big if not bigger now, probably because she'd been prevented from eating food in the bigger tank and now had no problems. Also, her new tankmate was probably intimidated by the evil blonde twins, too, but more submissive, and she (I named her Agouti) had gotten her confidence and strength back and was no longer submissive. Anyone reading this should know that declanning is very natural, especially for females. There's a structure to them staying together where the younger gerbils will help until they get big enough to move on, at which time they're declanned. At least, this is the case for females. Males can stay together if there's no clan to kick them out of, and without the females and the need to reproduce and start a new clan, there's not a strong need to declan anyone. Not that I know this from experience, but given what little experience I've had with female sisters just old enough to be taken home as pets and what I've read online, I've realized that they were always destined to declan. Also, I've heard that cutting holes in hides and ensuring there's more than one exit and entrance may helf prevent declanning because one gerbil won't be able to fully block another. Maybe they could have stayed together a little longer, but females should probably only be kept in pairs and any greater group is best composed of males. Siblings, preferably.
For future gerbil owners: 1. Don’t be shy with bedding 2. Don’t put gerbils in those rodent balls. 3. Don’t overfeed and don’t give them too much fruit. 4. Meal worm and vitamin chew every morning for a healthy routine. 5. Give your gerbils some obstacles. They don’t just like to burrow. My boys will climb skyscrapers for food and it’s amazing to watch them in action. One of my musty men is a ninja 😅 6. Show them genuine love and you will get it right back, I promise. I have a bridge that connects from bed to tank. They bang on the tank to let them out and they will “marathon” with us for hours. It’s the best time. 8. They don’t definitely don’t like to be held..for more than a couple seconds but as they age they don’t run away from us anymore. Hope this helps any future gerbil owners!
Sorry to hear that, unfortunately gerbils will tend to "clean up" the deceased to avoid attracting predators, so it's a pretty natural behaviour for them, although it's very unpleasant for us humans, I'm sorry you had to go through that 💚
What is the chance of gerbils falling out? And if their fall out, what to do? I wanted to adopt a new Hamster from my local animal shelter, since my last one passed away, but they don't have any right now. They suggested I could adopt their pair of gerbils, if I am interested since my set-up meets their requirements. (they control your set-up first, before allowing you to adopt rodents). But I am a little afraid of adopting animals, I have no clue about.
There isn't really a set chance that we know of, it can depend on the gerbils. If there's a good match they may be fine their whole lives, but it's always worth making sure there's a spare tank on hand to separate them if needed, then they'll each need to be bonded with new friends. But generally if they've got plenty of space and enrichment it's not super common to have declannings, but it does happen so it's worth being prepared for
Sorry, I just realized you were talking about Pumbaa and Luna in separate cages 🤦♀️ after Timon passed we got Luna as a new friend for Pumbaa, they're currently neighbours for a bit before we start the split tank process 🙂 Pumbaa's the black one, Timon was golden, and Luna's lilac ☺️
