Ask The Gerbils

Hallie and Smurf are happy to answer your questions about taking care of, playing with, taming, or getting to know your gerbils. However, if you have questions about breeding or gerbil babies, you should ask an experienced breeder, not Hallie and Smurf. For breeding questions, please see the American Gerbil Society or a site such as the Gerbil Breeding & Development page.

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Dear Herman,

I do not have a gerbil, but I want one. Is it the right pet for me? Are they pretty easy to take care of? Do they bite hard and/or often?

From,

Laura





Dear Laura,

Gerbils make great pets, but you do need to promise to take care of them for the rest of their lives before you adopt gerbils.

You will need to clean their tank by scooping out their old bedding and pouring new bedding into their tank. Most people clean their gerbils’ tanks once every two weeks.

You will also need to give them a small handful of food each day and check their water bottle every day. You should also give them a toilet paper tube or other cardboard to chew every day. Gerbils love to shred cardboard into tiny pieces!

You should also plan to spend some time playing with your gerbils every day. You might do this by putting your hand in their tank and letting them crawl on it, or by giving them hand-fed treats (sunflower seeds, Puffed Kashi cereal, plain Cheerios, etc.), or by taking them out of the tank to play in a bathtub or other safe area.

Most gerbils do not sit still in your hands. Instead, they will want to crawl from one hand to the other. Gerbils are very busy and very curious, and they don’t sit still for long. :)

Most gerbils do not bite. Especially if you handle them the right way.

I hope that helps! Thank you for writing to me!

From your buddy,

Herman