My gerbil always bites

[gerbilbros]

I have 2 gerbils and they're both around the same age which is around a year and a few months. One of them, whenever I hold him for like a minute and he starts biting. It's like when they chew on cardboard and it's very hard. Is there any way to get him to stop? He also scratches my hand

[blanknote]

I believe that is your gerbil's way of telling you that he wants to be let down. Does he bite in any other situation (when you introduce your hand in the cage, etc)?

[nobleandpure]

i have the exact same problem with one of my gerbils. and, by the way gerbilbros, my two gerbils look EXACTLY like the ones on your profile picture, and are the same age.

[GerbilUK]

I have one that does that too. He will tolerate being held a little while, then he wil nip my hand (fairly gently) when he's had enough. His brother on the other hand doesn't bite but hates being held in my hands, he likes running up my arm and onto my shoulder though so we just do that. If you sit in a chair and let him run on your lap, does he bite you then? Might be worth a try.

[gerbilbros]

Sometimes if I stick my hand/finger in the cage he will bite but I think he thinks it's food since we feed them nuts and treats a lot like that. I've also never tried letting him crawl on me since he nervous poops like 8 times in a row (no joke it's gross)

[psychotherapist]

One of mine tries to do that from time to time. If it happens, I just pick him up and reposition him on my arm or hand, before eventually putting him back a few seconds later. This way he won't learn that biting gets what he wants but gets put back just quickly enough before starting to associate you with an unpleasant experience.

Seems to work, as he doesn't do it very often.