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Post by mewsuicide on Mar 28, 2016 15:45:33 GMT -8
I got two gerbils back in October. Both are female. One seems to be perfectly healthy but the other one was fat when i got her. I tried anything to get her to loose weight but she just won't loose weight. I'm taking her to a vet soon to see if he can tell me what might be causing it. I fed them both the same. They're both vivid and play with eacother a lot. The fat one is shy though. I'm still trying to get her to be comfortable with being held/petted. Does anyone have any advice on what else could i try to get my little fatty to loose weight? I tried putting a wheel in their cage, changeing the brand of food i feed them, limiting snacks etc. Does anyone know what could be causing it? She seems to be healthy so far but i'm worried she might develope soe health problems because of it.
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Post by blanknote on Mar 29, 2016 12:59:45 GMT -8
Have you actually weighted them? My one gerbil has always been the chubby one, but I doubt it has anything to do with weight. (I haven't weighted them myself, although probably should buy a scale for them.)
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Post by mewsuicide on Apr 3, 2016 10:01:55 GMT -8
I haven't cuz the fat one rns away if she figures out you're trying to pick her up. But she's much bigger than her sister. She barely fits in my hand.
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Post by blanknote on Apr 3, 2016 12:25:25 GMT -8
I haven't cuz the fat one rns away if she figures out you're trying to pick her up. But she's much bigger than her sister. She barely fits in my hand. Pick her up in a jar. Gerbils very rarely can resist the temptation of exploring a new thing in the cage. Did you call a vet yet? |
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Post by mewsuicide on Jul 2, 2016 13:32:14 GMT -8
I forgot to reply, sorry >.< Well, i did take them to the vet. Rio is indeed fat. I took him back again about 13 days ago because i noticed some discharge on his nose. It looked like blood but i figured it's not blood because one of my old gerbils had something similar but on his eyes when he got a tumor. Turns out my poor little Rio managed to get pneumonia. I was given antibiotics for him. I had to take him back three days ago and he's much better already. There's not clicking sound in his breathing but he still has discharge from his nose. Ihave to take him back for another checkup in a week. As for the weight i was told to stop giving them so much gerbil food. I have to limit it to one table spoon per gerbil and give them a lot of vegetables. But the thing is, they don't eat the vegetables and they have food left over. I alreay figured it's probably because they eat hay. I often see them nibbling on some hay. Does anyone know what vegetables i could try to feed them? I already tried bell peppers and cucumbers. The vet said no fruit because of Rios weight. Glili doesn't eat them anyway so Rio always ate his share too.
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Post by mewsuicide on Jul 2, 2016 13:40:17 GMT -8
Oh, also, the gerbils are male, not female. I found that out when i took them to the vet too.
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Post by betty on Jul 3, 2016 7:22:46 GMT -8
Most veggies really you could try; brocolli, carrot, cabbage, kale, corn, courgette, pumpkin, squash, peas, and they can eat soft fruit leaves like strawberry and raspberry leaves, hazel and hawthorn - but do check the safe food list on here before trying anything I haven't listed - it is a great place to get treat ideas from too.
Hays isn't bad for them anyway - and nor are a lot of grasses and grains that you might find out in the countryside. Mine love some variety from the outside world.
Hope you find something healthy that they like.
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Post by mewsuicide on Jul 13, 2016 15:50:59 GMT -8
So far they love broccoli. They ignored it when i left it in the cage but then ate it over night. Now they eat as much of it as i leave out in their cage. I'll definetely try other vegetables too.
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Post by betty on Jul 13, 2016 23:52:03 GMT -8
That's great news - it is always fun trying to find something new that they like. But not too much 'wet' vegetables at a time as they can sometimes drag it off underground to store it for later and if it is remotely moist it can go mouldy down there...
Did you ever get around to weighing your gerbils as well, as it is worth keeping an eye on it so you can make sure he doesn't gain too much again - and you were right with your earlier comment - an overweight gerbil will be more prone to health issues as they age so it is worth keeping a check on it if he is already topping the scales...
Males can range from 70g to 120g - but anything over 100g is bordering on too heavy - especially if they get a neck hump!
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Post by mewsuicide on Aug 22, 2016 11:45:20 GMT -8
I can't get them to sit still and not crawl away on a scale for long enough xD Rio lost some weight but not too much and he's not loosing any more from what it seems but he's pretty active now that he got better. The discharge from his nose turned out to be a pneumonia/bronhitis. I was given antibiotics and he's fine now. The vet told me the ocasional discharge could be caused by high humidity in the room (gets up to 60-65% where i live, maximum humidity being a bit over 70% but it never gets to that in my living room) because Rio is a sensitive boy. I got a dehumidifyer and it helped so far.
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