advice please =(

[jon]

im totally shocked to have to do this, but i've found this forum through a google search. basically i live in the UK and rent one room, currently to 29 soon to be 30 year old girl who on the face of it is a quiet (church going!) type.. but has since decided to make the room into a borderline squat, and is extremely arkward and freaky in a lot of what she says and does. she spends 99% of her life outside of work back at the house shut away in the room, drinking cider and assumedly just watches tv all the time.

anyway, about maybe a year ago.. she asked me if she could get a hamster, i had no problem with it.. and felt so actually sorry for her (being 29, and such a loner) that it seemed a heartless thing to do.. to say no.. so she got a gerbil in the end.. and ive had no reason to ever see it or hear it.. and have on occasion asked her about as a means of conversation and she says its still there and "going well" etc....

so the other day, i have to enter the room to access the light switch for the loft.. what i find really worries me..

the poor thing is in a cage, the cage is the average desk top size id imagine.. 30cm by 20?! it has bedding which incidently appears to be stored in a cupboard (new and old?) and has overflowed and its just totally gross but that's another matter.. =( it then has a small bowl for food.. it then has a water bottle attached to the side...

that, is IT. and i have no reason to believe it's ever been any different or will change. i dont know anythingggg much about rodents, but SURELY you provide it with a house, or something to interact with,climb on?? a wheel for exercise?? and then i read up just now usually u put in card for it to chew?? i realise these animals are hardly dolphins but at the same time surely anything needs some simulation?.. it was just crouched in the corner of the cage, looking up at me as if to say.. what's the point??

im aware she did have a ball, but considering the total squalid state of the room there's no room for any kind of ball to freely roll around on!!

so yeah, i dont know if this is cruel, or just highly unrecommended practice.. it really sickens me that i've essentially led to this creatures existance and would like to maybe raise this with her but i dont want to say anything that isnt accurate.. i've only ever known cats and while i appreciate rodents are usually caged animals surely u have to make their environment something other than what i've descbribed??

i'll likely be asking her to leave in feb, altho that's a couple of months on top of that more to wait for the contract to end. so i almost feel as well as not just turning a blind eye i can show my displeasure and it'll just be one more thing to make my mind up on it.

if anyone can give any thoughts i'll swing by this forum again in a few days.. many thanks... -jon

[belldandy]

maby you caould take the gerbil find it a new home. but it's proble unsocial and mean due to neglect. if its condidtoin bothers you so much say something or do something. and yes it should have wheel and a bigger cage.and toiolet papare tubes are fun for thme to chew on.

[kryspkreme]

I would certainly talk to her about it. Or if you wanted, get a cheap 10 gallon and say it's a housewarming present for the gerbil

It definitely should not be living in that small of a cage, I think it'd be more helpful to the gerbil if you either upgraded the tank yourself, suggested she do so politely, or offer to help her take care of it as well (which could lead you to have a say in its environment).

Just say you were reading up on gerbils and thought it'd be a swell idea to upgrade or that you were wondering if you could help take care of it since you are interested in it as well. Even if you aren't exactly wanting to, at least then you could improve its quality of life.

[jon]

hi, thanks for the replies guys.. its a tricky one, i assume she cares for it.. but my cynical vibe on what a lot of what she is about is that she's one of these people who probably didnt research it at all (at the time i did mention it at work and they advised gerbil over hamster cos the nocturnal thing, but that person has now left..) - and i reckon she soon realised it was more hassle and perhaps expected a pet that would give more affection or something.. and now its just an inconvenience more than anything.. but all that aside.....

guess what, i decided to take a look to see if the room has been tidied up at all yesterday (26th) - it has a bit - but to my real shock the gerbil is in the cage, on a rug on the bed in the middle of the room.. she left some time around midday-3pm on xmas eve (24) and txt me to say she expects to be back on the 29th... i have no idea, again, if this is acceptable and whether you can just stock it up with 5 days of food and it'd be ok, but it'll just sit there with no human interaction and certainly no wheel or anything but water bottle for that time.. so to me that feeeels wrong... the minute i opened the door it ran to hide nearside in the cage.

as the first reply says, i DO care, for any kind of animal cruelty or neglect.. but i simply do not possess any knowledge and therefore would like to gain this knowledge before making any ill-formed judgements.. obviously if a dog is tied up and mistreated, it would whimper and cry, or at least be withdrawn in its general behaviour, but i've no experience ever of rodents and thus don't know what is just "disappointing" versus cruel...

i by no means want to cause any frictions, but i will definitely bring it up if i can say "ive spoke to a friend about it who owns one and their opinion is......" - and i thank you for that help in being that friend.. if i did nothing it'd probably just go on as is.. maybe between us we can do something for it?!!

as for the cage size, that was a guess.. so ive remeasured.. (and checked that it is still alive) 36x26x32cm - red tub base of about 5cm height then the rest is the grill dome. he was crouched in one corner, and his food bowl just appears covered in bedding, some of which is outside the cage now i guess so he's done some burrowing.

so u definitely think i have grounds to at least discuss it? in that case i will .. any more thoughts welcomeeeee, many thanks again for your time....

[SilverGerbil]

Hiya,

Sounds like the little chappy could do with a bit of help. Hmm.. Have a look on sites such as Freecycle and ebay. or have a look in local petshops, ask if they have any cracked fish tanks . Freecycle you can find things for FREE, have a search and see if you can find a 1ft - 2ft glass aquarium, it doesnt need to be water tight (as you wont have water in there). The tank will give the gerbil space to dig in and there wont be a draft coming in to the gerbils tank.

What you can do is give the gerbil cardboard, things like toilet paper rolls, or cereal boxes, things that havent had direct contact with food. You can also give egg boxes, but give them a quick zap in the microwave for 20-30 seconds or so (dependant on the power of the microwave) it will just make sure there is no bacteria, plus gerbils like the warmth of the card .

Food wise aslong as the gerbil is eating and drinking and looks a healthy weight, then it should be fine in that retrospect. Make sure its not all boney and thin, then if it is you deffinately need to do a bit of intervention. How is his/her coat looking? is it greasy? If so get a little saucer or a empty clean jam jar with a bit of cornflour or chinchilla sand in just to give it a bath (they roll around in it and enjoy it).

Gerbils dont always need a wheel, it depends if they have a lot of outside time, if they are out and about getting run around time then they are fine without a wheel. But some do enjoy wheels, you can pick them up fairly cheeply, avoid the ones with bars though aim for a thick plastic one such as a Silent Spinner or a mesh wheel (looks like REALLY tiny chicken wire).

You've got to be careful with leaving them for too long on their own, a few days is fine. Its usually better to have someone pop their head in and check on them though (just incase).

Is the gerbils cage totally in the cupboard? Does it have any sunlight atall? They shouldnt really be stored locked away in the dark all the time, if you think about people who never get any natural lights they get very unhealthy, that may happen if its locked permamently in the dark.

Keep an eye on him/her and just make sure shes eating and drinking, chuck in some cardboard (im sure your squatter wont mind) and just make sure its ok.

You can always say to her 'A friend of mines got gerbils and was telling me you can do .. .blah blah blah with them doesnt it sound fun?!' and tell her the things youve read on here and the advice youve gotten . It does sound like she seems to be looking after him/her so perhaps she will appreciate the help.



x

[kryspkreme]

SilverGerbil is right-- this gerbil could definitely use a little help. 4-5 days without any interaction, exercise or anything stimulating is just plain boring for the poor thing, so i'm sure it's probably feeling a bit lonely and depressed. As SG suggested, if you can afford or find a tank that is larger than whatever it is in, that would be a HUGE improvement in this little gerb's life. A ton of cardboard, unscented toilet paper, etc... would probably entertain the little one until you figure out how to approach this situation with the roommate.

Food bowls are often covered with bedding, it's their natural instinct to hide their food from predators/other gerbils, just make sure that there is enough in there for the little one to eat and that the water is clean and fresh. Just keep checking on it, and if you can, try to interact with it for a little bit throughout the days by talking to it and trying to make things more interesting.

Kudos to you for looking out for this little one. Let us know what you do

[lupi]

Awww the poor little gerb I really want to know what happens. I guess if all else fails you can threaten her with the RSPCA or just adopt the gerbil out to a caring environment with an owner who will give it the space and fun it deserves. After all your house = your rules.

I'm guessing though if she doesn't do much with it, she'd probably welcome some of your assistance and input good luck.

(If you are anywhere near Portsmouth too I could donate you a wheel and a running ball that mine don't use!)

[cakemix]

See if were me... I would take the little guy and keep him or re home him. I find people who are like the romm mate only get worse with caring for an animal. They could care or less what happens.

I have rescued many animals and some from Drug houses. I do know this type of person.

Take him and love him and give him a good home! That's what the little guy needs! And deserves!

[catnut]

Hope this gerbil will be okay,i would ask her if she is caring for this pet and still wants it in a nice way? That he needs fresh water daily,interaction,as well as food and fresh bedding. Did she come back? I would've taken him out and looked after him while she was gone,make sure he was okay and put him back before she arrived home,if he hadn't been okay,i would've had a talk with her.

hope all turns out well,

Tammy