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Post by khelkhet on Nov 17, 2004 13:26:33 GMT -8
A major storm hit my province and knocked out power for several days. Some people still don't have power. Unfortunately it was more than just an annoyance and inconvenience to some... The petstore lost several of their birds to the cold, and unfortunately, rodents, too. They have a widowed female who should be about a week pregnant, her mate and the other male others she shared her tank with were among those who froze. I have been given the opportunity to take her, either permanently or til after she's had her babies (Chances are I'll keep her  and what I'm wondering is, should I leave her to raise her babies on her own? I have two male gerbils, and I'd rather not split THEM up to keep her company, but as I understand it I could let her raise them on her own and afterward just keep one of her daughters in there to keep her company. Will this work, or should I consider adding her to my existing pair? |
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Post by doomgerbiluk on Nov 17, 2004 13:46:42 GMT -8
I wouldnt want to risk trying to pair her up. Shes been through a lot of stress already and a quiet time before her pups arrive is probably best. Of course to a male gerbil all pups are cute and they dont mind playing dad to another gerbils pups, but since (presumably) you won't want to have more litters and since your males are settled and happy such an upheaval would be unwise. An intro would have to be split cage anyway.
I would leave her alone, give her enough attention to keep her tame and as much peace and quiet as possible and trust her to raise her pups.
Good luck.
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Post by khelkhet on Nov 17, 2004 15:25:52 GMT -8
Thanks :> I picked up her tank and some extra supplies (The power was out where I am, too, so I almost ran out of petfood for dogs, cats, rats, gerbils and people alike)...Hopefully I'll be picking her up on friday or saturday.
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Post by sweetie on Nov 17, 2004 16:48:15 GMT -8
I hope you are faring well. We have lost power for many days both when we were in Maine and here in South Carolina. It is troublesome!! I wish you well.
I agree with Doom. There is no need to pair her up. She can raise the pups herself. Mom's are strong and capable. It may be a bit more difficult but she is totally able to care for them by herself. It may stress her but if you ensure she has a quiet, warm environment with lots of proper nutrition, she will be fine.
I thnk the stress of introductions may be the worse of the two evils at this point after everything she has gone through.
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Post by khelkhet on Nov 20, 2004 3:32:58 GMT -8
Well, I've got her home...
She's exactly six weeks old as of yesterday. Isnt breeding them so young bad? She was in with her two brothers, and both of them are going to the same home.
I haven't named her yet. She's grey, solid, and she wont stand still long enough for me to see her eyes but I think they have a reddish tint to them. One of her brothers was the same color, the other was almost solid beige. Kind of pretty, all of them. They were also really tame til they swiped up the girl to give to me, then they all got skittish for a while.
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Post by doomgerbiluk on Nov 20, 2004 3:36:41 GMT -8
Are you sure shes pregnant?
gerbils dont usually become sexually active till 8 weeks, in fact the advice is to seperate them by 8 weeks to prevent pregnancy!!!!
I'm quite happy to pair up a older male with a 5-8 week female in the knowledge she will probably start breeding younger but won't 'fall' until she's ready.
Females who breed their first pups younger tend to stop breeding earlier to compensate.
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Post by khelkhet on Nov 20, 2004 3:41:09 GMT -8
That was a fast reply, I -just- sent that post and voila, a reply. Hehe. No, I don't know for sure if she is. They told me she was bred, and let me have her for free since so many animals died in the cold, so I wasn't asking a lot of questions *g* btw...Picture of her, although it isn't a great one cause she's sleepy:  |
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Post by doomgerbiluk on Nov 20, 2004 4:29:37 GMT -8
Well if your SURE shes 6 weeks I doubt shes pregnant tbh and as shes a good age for intros it'd be an ideal time to get her a female companion. My inclination is assume shes NOT (it's highly unlikely at 6 weeks) and get a another young female to keep her company, in the 5-8 weeks range. thats a very young looking face but a whole body shot would help  |
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Post by khelkhet on Nov 20, 2004 5:31:05 GMT -8
Well, I put in with the petstores to let me know when they get a female in, but as of last night when I brought her home, they had none. If I can find a companion for her, though, I will snatch her up.
I'll also snap a picture of this one when she wakes up and is active again.
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Post by khelkhet on Nov 20, 2004 6:18:43 GMT -8
Finally. She's managed to sit still for a few seconds at a time so I figured I'd better snap these while I can.   |
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Post by doomgerbiluk on Nov 20, 2004 8:29:41 GMT -8
shes lovely!!!
in moult I think by the looks of her
and between 6 and8 weeks by the size and the head shape
Unlikely to be pregnant and therefore a female/female intro, sooner rather than later, would be ideal. The longer she's alone the harder the intro. IF she did turn out to be pregnant the other female will probably act as 'aunty' although you will need to be aware of any extreme aggressiveness on mums part and seperate if needed. But a pregnancy at this stage is very unlikely.
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Post by khelkhet on Nov 20, 2004 8:47:05 GMT -8
Thanks for all the info!  And in that case, if there happen to be any Gerbilized people in Nova Scotia, somewhere close to Windsor, preferably, who can donate a female Gerbil for my still-as-yet nameless girl, please feel free to contact me privately at khelkhet@win.eastlink.ca so we can discuss it and make arrangements. |
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Post by paws on Nov 20, 2004 8:51:04 GMT -8
Why don't you name her Icy, becasue she was saved from the cold? ! She is such a pretty colour! |
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Post by khelkhet on Nov 20, 2004 9:15:53 GMT -8
Heh, that's kind of cool ;> Icy, or Ice...Or something along those lines. Great idea, Paws :> I think I'll call her Ice, and 'Icy' will be her affectionate name ;> A little sidenote: I'm having So much fun with her right now...My two males don't like to bathe in the chinchilla sand, they poop in it instead...But I just put a small tin of it into Ice's cage and she's having a bath. Very cool to watch, whee! |
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Post by paws on Nov 20, 2004 9:39:31 GMT -8
She kinda has icy colour too! (^_^) |
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and what I'm wondering is, should I leave her to raise her babies on her own? I have two male gerbils, and I'd rather not split THEM up to keep her company, but as I understand it I could let her raise them on her own and afterward just keep one of her daughters in there to keep her company. Will this work, or should I consider adding her to my existing pair?
