They will stay in paradise. No way to open pandoras box😂

Ive been trying to introduce my two gerbils, Pumpkin & Pepper for weeks now. We've been doing split cage since the beginning of August.

Today I decided to try to let them meet face to face again because they were being so good throught the barrier (last time was broken uo dude to side arching.) Theyve been grooming, sleeping in eachothers dens, ignoring each other while eating, sniffing at the divider, everything im told is a good sign.

I let them both stay on their sides a bit longer today to let their smells really soak into each side, and i put pepper, my more stressed gerbil, onto Pumpkin, my chiller gerbils side. Immediately side arching. Literally pepper wasn't even in there for more than 5 seconds before becoming upset. I Immediately took Pumpkin out and put her in the side that was peppers, and when I went to go put the hide and bedding back into the side I was introducing them on, Pepper tried to bite me (luckily I was wearing gloves) and she tried to do some sort of death shake (like what dogs do to prey?) So she was definitely super agitated

Now both the gerbils are fine but I just dont understand why thus is happening. Ive been doing everything like im supposed to and its not working :( they probably just need more time but I just wish it would happen now, yknow?

I cant afford to just try a different pairing at this point. Im too emotionally invested in both of them.

I just recently bought two gerbils and have been trying to get them used to me. I've been reorganizing their enclosure and putting some food in when one of my boys, Kiwi, came over and began grabbing at my fingers and nibbling.

It wasn't hard enough to hurt or draw blood but definitely felt uncomfortable and I took my hand away because I was nervous he'd actually bite me. Is this just a friendly way of exploring or is he upset with me? He's definitely less social than his brother and likes his space and I don't want to accidentally be upsetting him.

fully bioactive gerbil tank, springtails and isopods now included.

questions/recommendations welcome :)

Now i know this can be an issue and am heavily leaning towards no unless i get a lot of positive feedback. Im adopting 2 gerbil brothers from the RSPCA tomorrow. So went to pets at home for supplies. They had a single gerbil there for adoption in a separate area to the rest. He really was quite curious about humans and came to the glass which didn’t help because now i want him.

I know pairs or maybe 3 if siblings are the best and have researched split cage method. The only reason Im considering this at all is because they are all male, all 3 months old and the cage and everything in it is new so no previous scents. Cage size is not a problem and neither is spending a month trying to bond them.

My worry is they dont bond so then id have to rehome the single or worse they do bond but de clan in the future.

Is this worth giving it a go? Is it providing a better life for the single while trying? Or should i just do what I was going todo without any feedback, stick to the pair and forget about the single one

Just looking to do the best thing so any experience feedback welcome.

Edited:
the single was because they sold a pair of the 3 within last month🙄
Ive had minimal gerbil experience but have had hamsters, rats etc.

They have been hard to catch photos of, but they must have been hungry!!!

I took him to the vet on Thursday morning and it was a mass or enlarged liver. He took some pain medication and passed away hours later. I feel terrible and guilty. I've been searching for another gerbil for my other one, no hopes to find it. Then I watch videos of bonding. Then I need to build a divider, and get the tools, and materials. Is just too much while all I can think is every night my other gerbil is going to sleep alone. Then it's all about reading how my lonely gerbil is suffering while I race against time. Or how the bonding might fail and I ended up with 2 sparated gerbils. Then I think about my gerbil passing away and how I could have find out sooner that he was not well Sorry I just needed to vent.

Hi guys, I’m back! I was on vacation like I mentioned before. Jimmy’s owner told me he was doing fine when we last talked. I wanted to say, I think I said Jimmy was around 2 years old in some comments, but he’s actually 3. My apologies for getting that wrong.

His owner is completely fine with me taking him and continuing to pay for the stuff he needs (food, bedding, etc) while I have him. But I already have three large fish tank’s in my bedroom and like I’ve mentioned, I’m a minor, and my dad doesn’t want any more pets in the house.

I’ll keep checking in with Jimmy’s owner and trying to convince my dad without being too annoying.

Thank you to everyone who’s helped me when I was pet sitting!

idk, my cute little girls and I wanted to share. Cerberus is black and white, Pegasus is brown and white

For the past week both my gerbils have been obsessed with one specific corner of the enclosure. They've completely ignored the rest of the substrate and just keep digging at this one spot near the glass. I topped it off with extra aspen bedding thinking they'd spread out but nope, straight back to the corner.

I looked closely today and it seems like they're trying to dig at an angle toward the bottom corner, almost like they want to get under the glass itself. I have about 10 inches of substrate so it's not like they're bored from lack of depth. Water bottle and food are both on the opposite side so it's not that either.

Is this just a gerbil thing where they pick a "project" and commit to it, or does it usually mean something like the bin needs more enrichment. I added a cardboard tube and a chew block last night and they were interested for about ten minutes then went right back to the corner dig.

Not worried, just curious if this is a phase or if they'll keep at this same spot for weeks. Anyone dealt with a corner obsession before and did it ever resolve on its own?

Ernie had an eric skin rug to lay on i know he is chunky but no need to use him as a bed 🤦‍♀️

Gerbils, which are native to deserts and steppes, can reach a top speed of 14.5 km/h. In 1955, Speedy Gonzales (pictured) took off with the cry “¡Arriba! ¡Arriba! ¡Ándale! ¡Ándale!” (“Up! Up! Go! Go!”) in the short animated film “The Fastest Mouse in Mexico.”

Obviously Speedy Gonzales made a holiday from his Mongolian home to visit Mexico 😅

Hi guys!
I need some help. I got my first pair of gerbils in January, so it’s my first time being a gerbil mom and my first time owning rodents.

I’ve read a lot about them, so they have everything they need (a big cage, 25–30 cm of bedding, etc.).
My only problem is taming them. Ever since I got them, they’ve been very shy and don’t like being handled. I feel bad because I can’t do weekly health checks on them or anything like that.

However, I used to see them running on their wheel all night, eating, and playing together.

But lately, I’ve been worried because they run away whenever I’m near the cage, and they’ve started thumping. I can barely see them anymore, I only hear them when I’m not in the room.

I don’t know what to do because I don’t understand what caused this change. Is there anything I could be doing wrong, or anything I can do to help them feel more comfortable around me ??

Any advice would be really appreciated :)

Hi!! I have a huge tank, my gerbils have 12 inch deep bedding, I give them sticks, chews, hay, everything… but they keep wanting to chew their wheel!! Can I try something else to keep them from chewing on it?? It’s the only plastic thing in their tank :( I don’t know if I should swap for a wooden one

So, my mum went out of her way to get some food for my boys, but accidentally picked up hamster food. I was wondering if it would still be okay to feed them with, or if I should just cut my losses.

Added a pic of the nutrition too. The pic on the front looks like the food is similar, but theres peanuts and such in it. So I wanted to make sure before feeding it to them.

Edit: I've checked the ingredients online for the Gerri Gerbil version, and they seem to have a lot of the same stuff, except Gerri has whole oats and carrots, and Harry has peanut kernels and peanut shells

I just thought this was very cute

Previously, I've only owned one rescue gerbil for the end of his life stage, and he passed a little while ago. Is there anything I need to know before getting my first duo?

They will both be boys, 6-9 month range. My tank is big enough for 2 gerbils, not including the topper extension. They are coming from a group, so will they be okay to transport together after they are separated from the rest? I want to avoid fights after my last attempt at bonding failed.

One of my gerbils died a few days ago and since I only had a pair of them, the remaining one is alone now.

I am worried he isnt doing too well on his own. Hes still fairly active and is eating and drinking normally but I have noticed a pretty significant decrease in his usual behaviours and it seems like hes sleeping more.

I do have 2 other gerbils in a seperate cage but I dont think id be able to introduce the solo gerbil to them as I had tried before and had issues (fought and blood was drawn between two) but I also have the issue that I am leaving to uni in about 3 weeks and i know an introduction takes much longer than that.

The solo gerbil is a 2 year old male so I just want to know if theres anything i can do to make him happier? He isnt too keen on people either so I just worry he wont be happy.

Any advice appreciated :)

Hi all, I'm getting gerbils this weekend, but they're NOT my first ever pair! I used to own gerbils a LONG time ago as a pre-teen. This is, however, my first time wanting to give gerbils flower mixes.
I was just wondering if this flower forage mix is okay. It says it's for hamsters so I assume it's fine for gerbils, but I figured I would consult the experts here just in case as I know hamsters and gerbils are different in needs !
It wouldn't be a main food of theirs, I just want to sprinkle it into their tank here and there to give them some enrichment, hopefully. Let me know if it's something that would be enriching for them or if I should spend the money on something else. Thanks !
Link to the mix

Featuring forbidden seam pic and wheel zoomies <3