Excessive foot thumping in split...

[betty]

I am trying to split my old female (just over 2 years) to an even older male (he is a friend's single gerbil who is the last decrepit member of a rescued 4 males clan), and she won't stop thumping her feet.

They are grooming through the bars, sleeping next to the divide and in each other's nests, and he couldn't care less what was happening, but when we swap sides, that is all she does - thump her feet.

I have taken the divide out twice, and both times they stay together for about an hour before fighting. She does act rather wary of him. Thumps her feet for about 5 minutes, before just sculking around.

She has been split to another older male before, which went together very fast, but they went together on a heat and they had regular sex. But this new male doesn't seem interested in the sex.

Would it be fairer on the old man to give up on this split rather than subject him to her hormones? They have been together for 2 weeks now....

[johanne]

Sounds like she's scared of him, and thumps her feet to warn him she's still there and not to be trifled with.

[betty]

Looks that way - I have given up on that split.

I tried again last night, but she was just super thumpy. She was grooming his face while thumping, and he was grooming her face and head throughout the intro, but she just looked on edge (and so was I).

Shows how individual they all are.

I hope she will take to a more 'active' male then, as I don't want to have her on her own and have no other females to put her with.

Women!