Gerbils to chew on?

[imjessiegee]

I'm running low on cardboard tubes and boxes etc. I do have a tree out back but I read there can be parasites etc on the branches that could be harmful so that's not good. What else do you let your gerbils chew on? Mines keeps chewing on the houses I get them.


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[crittercrazy]

You can buy chew toys, there's all sorts of them. As for the tree/parasites, I read somewhere you can wash the branch in hot water, then freeze it over night to take care of any parasites.
Basically, they will chew on anything wooden.

[unrealgeforce]

- Wooden ladders from Petsmart that are meant for birds. Just make sure any wooden item you get has no nails or hazardous paint/coating.

- Ball up plain printer paper, they enjoy shredding that.

- I get cardboard tubes from my work's mailroom, that come from rolls of really big bubble wrap.

- Ask friends/family members to save all paper towel & toilet paper rolls for you... Although those rolls last about 5 minutes with my two gerbs, it's as if they wont allow a full roll to be in their enclosure; it MUST be shredded lol.

- They also like shredding timothy hay, which I put in about twice a week.

- Lava or pumice stones, which can be found at any pet store. They like burying these and gnawing on them. It's nice too because they're really dense and help wear down their ever-growing teeth.

- Ecotrition "Snak Shack" which is an edible hut/tube that is really hard and they can chew on



p.s. If you'd like to use a branch from outside, cut a small enough portion that will fit in your oven. Remove all of the bark, rinse it with warm water and a scrubbing brush if necessary, dry it, then bake it at 200 degrees for at least 2 hours. Obviously make sure to check on it often during this time, to be safe. After it's finished baking, let it cool before putting in your gerbils cage. These steps will ensure no bacteria/bugs are passed to your gerbils.


Hope this helps !

[supergerbil]

If you know the wood from the tree is safe, then the best way to sanitize it would be to boil it for a couple minutes.

[blockhead]

I know most wood from most trees is safe to use (as long as it is not rotting or obviously diseased) I would bake it in the oven on low heat, and then freeze it for a while (>2 hrs). I also found a list of safe and unsafe woods to use here.