Help! Introducing a new gerbil to my pair

[desertravenwy]

I've had a pair of males now for a little over a year... My friend had a single male for a few months, he is moving and has asked if I can take his gerbil for him. Being the helping soul I am, and a gerbil lover, I of course said yes - not really thinking about the introduction process.

I simply assumed that the split tank would work... Which is the situation I'm in now. It's been one day, the pair on one side and the newbie on another. I've swapped sides a few times as the usual routine goes. However, after doing a little more reading I've seen sites say 'never introduce an adult male to an established group.'

All pets are different, and I'm sure in the history of gerbil keeping, SOMEONE has had to have done this on more than one occasion successfully... Giving the gerbil up isn't really an option, I suppose I can give him up to a pet store, but I'd like to keep that as an ABSOLUTE last resort.

Does anybody here have any tips to ease this process? I know that introducing him to an old group isn't recommended, and I'd like to avoid just having a thread of people telling me I'm stupid or whatever. On other pet forums, trying anything out of the 'standard' usually just results in constant name-calling... this being my first post here, I hope this forum isn't the same...

[pepandmax]

desertravenwy said:

Does anybody here have any tips to ease this process? I know that introducing him to an old group isn't recommended, and I'd like to avoid just having a thread of people telling me I'm stupid or whatever. On other pet forums, trying anything out of the 'standard' usually just results in constant name-calling... this being my first post here, I hope this forum isn't the same...

Hardly You'll find that everyone here is friendly and supportive.

First of all, it's really great that you decided to adopt the lone gerbil--just having a human guardian who cares and pays attention will do wonders for the loner.

As you know, it's generally not recommended to introduce an adult to an established group, BUT there's no reason that you can't try, IF you proceed with caution and realistic expectations. That is:
--you should construct a very durable split, where there is little chance of a gerbil chewing or squeezing through the divider;
--you should have patience and realize that this could take weeks to months;
--you should be willing to accept the fact that this might not work out.

There is always the possibility that the gerbils will never be friendly enough to live in a tank together, but they could stay in a permanent split, so there is some interaction between them without the possibility of a fight.

Of course, if the presence of a strange gerbil is clearly upsetting to the established pair, it might be wise to forget about the split for a while. The last thing you'd want is for the established pair to declan!

If you proceed with the gerbils' best interests in mind, you can't go wrong. Good luck, and I hope everything goes well for you!

[desertravenwy]

the pair doesn't seem to mind the new guy, in fact they seem pretty interested in him, so I'm not to worried about upsetting their balance...

I have tried placing one of the pair in with the new guy, but they seem to scuffle (I break it up before it turns into a fight). It's only been one day, so I'm not too concerned... But I'm worried that the new guy may accept one of the pair and not the other.

On another note, the new guy seems interested in meeting one of my old gerbils - until he finds out it's a guy, then the scuffle breaks out. He checks out the plumbing downstairs, then bam, i have to break it up.

The new guy is also quite a bit bulkier than my two.... I can't tell if he's just built bigger or if he's fatter or what... just that he is in fact larger.


Are there any other tips as to what to try? Introducing one at a time, breaking the pair up, putting a muzzle on the new guy (joke)....

[delusional]

Well I'm certainly no expert, but I'd say that it's not that the new gerbil is checking the gender of your other gerbils, but is sniffing the scent gland (the small bare spot underneath the gerbil). Once he's realised he doesn't recognise the scent, that's when the fight breaks out.

Keep swapping them over in the tank several times a day, and I've heard it said that when it does finally come to the introduction then it can be best to do it on neutral territory (like in a playpen, washing basket, bathtub etc, somewhere that doesn't smell of either gerbil), and of course have a pair of thick gloves on and somewhere to put the lone gerbil if a fight breaks out.

I'm sure people with more experience will be able to help you further. =)

[lizzy]

It's definitely not what would have recommended, but introducing to a pair is easier I would have thought, than to a bigger group. Plus males, are generally easier to introduce than females. Don't give up. Some split cages can take just a few hours, others take weeks.

However, I have to say that I thought it was a miracle when my friend's group of 4 gerbils took to 2 newcomers with no problem at all, and lived together fine... for a little while, until they started fighting later on. Yes they were females and a bigger group but just as a forewarning, if your split cage does work (I hope it does) that it's still a good idea to keep an eye on them afterwards.

[desertravenwy]

I have a rather scary update.

I had been showing the single to my pair every now and then with bad results, the new guy drew blood from me twice. I was pretty much prepared to take him to a pet store and say forget it. I had them in the split cage with a wire mesh dividing them... It went all the way to the top - because early on one of my pair decided to climb up and over, so I had to build a new one. So with the divider going all the way to the top, I didn't see how either of them could exchange sides.

My girlfriend wakes me up this morning and asks me when I put the gerbils together, because all three of them are on one side sleeping together... Needless to say my adrenaline woke me up pretty fast... My first thought was that at least one gerbil was dead.... But nope, all are alive, and as far as I can tell, none are injured. The new guy had gotten over to the other side somehow... and that may remain a mystery to me forever. Because it would have been just as easy, if not easier, for him to just escape the cage entirely than get over to the other side.

Last night I saw him scratching and wanting to get over, but he had been doing that since day one with violent results. I'm pretty happy - I haven't been watching them long enough to tell where he fits in on the social scale though. All three seem to be pretty happy though.

[caz]

Hmmmmm..... I'd be cautiously optomistic there, but really hope you've already got a good result!!!

Suppose you'll have to wait until they all wake up to see what happens! - fingers crossed........

Keep us posted

Caroline

[gaplastina]

Sounds like the gerbs took care of the introduction themselves. Glad it went well.. I'm jealous.. having major issues with my intro right now. Keep an eye on the dominance. I've got 3 boys... one of them is a pushover, but the other two are constantly boxing and playing to establish alpha gerbil.

Good luck!

[desertravenwy]

caz said:

Hmmmmm..... I'd be cautiously optomistic there, but really hope you've already got a good result!!!

Suppose you'll have to wait until they all wake up to see what happens! - fingers crossed........

Keep us posted

Caroline

they've all been awake for about 2-3 hours now and I haven't noticed anything to be alarmed about...

[caz]

That's great news!!! ;D But still keep an eager eye on them!

Caroline