Post by Thelodar on Jun 6, 2015 14:05:45 GMT -8
I have had 8 gerbils so far. Honestly I don't remember that much about them all, I was in 2nd grade when I got my first and I'm 23 now, so it was quite a while ago.
1. Oatmeal was my first, a present for my first communion. I didn't even ask for one, I didn't know what gerbils were. My dad asked me if I wanted a gerbil or hamster for my present and I chose a gerbil because hamsters were what everybody had and I wanted to be different. She was a very good, tolerant pet. Not 100% sure what color she was but probably a red fox. I don't have any pictures and my memory of her isn't great but she was at least similar in color to my current boys who are red fox. Unfortunately we didn't know how to properly care for gerbils. She was kept on pine bedding, lived alone in a cage with a thin layer of substrate, that sort of thing. But she got me into gerbils so I'm very glad I got her. She passed away when she was 2 years old, just went to sleep in a tissue box and never woke up.
2&3. My next gerbils were Ruby and Ginger, bought shortly after Oatmeal died. Ruby was black, I think she had some white on her chin, maybe some paws and her chest too. Ginger was the same color as Oatmeal. Late in oatmeal's life she had bitten me (I was harassing her, treating her like a toy) so I had become afraid of handling her and then was still afraid of handling this pair. So I didn't hold them much. But they enjoyed going out in their exercise balls. On holidays I'd feed them special treats. I used a laundry basket as a play pen for them. Later in their life I began holding them and they never even nipped. They were also 2 years old when they died. I don't really remember the circumstances. I think Ginger had a scent gland tumor, not sure what else was going on. They died very close together, a few months at most.
4&5. My next pair was Lilac and Lavender. Lilac was a spotted Siamese, Lavender was a spotted sapphire. I like them a lot, they were very fun and active, loved to play and chew. I was still using a cage but had switched off of pine. They eventually ended up in a tank when my cat bit off both of their tails through the bars. I always feel bad for the animals that we learn on. By the end of their life they were being treated appropriately. They died when they were 3 years old. Lilac had something going on with her ear. We treated her twice for an ear infection and although the symptoms would subside they would come back shortly after finishing the antibiotics. So maybe it was a tumor. Lavender had a tumor or prolapsed uterus or something going on down there which I assume eventually killed her. I lost them while I was in high school and decided not to get more because I would be going to college before they passed on and rodents typically are not allowed in dorms. So I took a break from gerbil keeping.
6,7&8. In my last year of college I lived off campus and decided to get gerbils again. I was volunteering at a local animal shelter and they got in a bunch of gerbils my junior year, right before I went home for the summer. I decided if they were still there when I came back senior year I'd adopt some. They were and I did. I got a trio of males, all red fox, and named them Logan, Theo, and Darwin. I love them. I was worried they wouldn't be very social because I figured they hadn't been handled a lot but they were actually quite tame. I had lots of fun teaching them to jump into my hand for treats. They have quickly rekindled my love of gerbils. They also taught me about declanning as they're my first group to fight. Each gerbil/group has taught me something new. I have had them a year and 8 months now, not sure of their age.
I'm hoping to add gerbil number 9 to the group soon as a friend for the now lonely Logan. So I'll add more info when that happens.
1. Oatmeal was my first, a present for my first communion. I didn't even ask for one, I didn't know what gerbils were. My dad asked me if I wanted a gerbil or hamster for my present and I chose a gerbil because hamsters were what everybody had and I wanted to be different. She was a very good, tolerant pet. Not 100% sure what color she was but probably a red fox. I don't have any pictures and my memory of her isn't great but she was at least similar in color to my current boys who are red fox. Unfortunately we didn't know how to properly care for gerbils. She was kept on pine bedding, lived alone in a cage with a thin layer of substrate, that sort of thing. But she got me into gerbils so I'm very glad I got her. She passed away when she was 2 years old, just went to sleep in a tissue box and never woke up.
2&3. My next gerbils were Ruby and Ginger, bought shortly after Oatmeal died. Ruby was black, I think she had some white on her chin, maybe some paws and her chest too. Ginger was the same color as Oatmeal. Late in oatmeal's life she had bitten me (I was harassing her, treating her like a toy) so I had become afraid of handling her and then was still afraid of handling this pair. So I didn't hold them much. But they enjoyed going out in their exercise balls. On holidays I'd feed them special treats. I used a laundry basket as a play pen for them. Later in their life I began holding them and they never even nipped. They were also 2 years old when they died. I don't really remember the circumstances. I think Ginger had a scent gland tumor, not sure what else was going on. They died very close together, a few months at most.
4&5. My next pair was Lilac and Lavender. Lilac was a spotted Siamese, Lavender was a spotted sapphire. I like them a lot, they were very fun and active, loved to play and chew. I was still using a cage but had switched off of pine. They eventually ended up in a tank when my cat bit off both of their tails through the bars. I always feel bad for the animals that we learn on. By the end of their life they were being treated appropriately. They died when they were 3 years old. Lilac had something going on with her ear. We treated her twice for an ear infection and although the symptoms would subside they would come back shortly after finishing the antibiotics. So maybe it was a tumor. Lavender had a tumor or prolapsed uterus or something going on down there which I assume eventually killed her. I lost them while I was in high school and decided not to get more because I would be going to college before they passed on and rodents typically are not allowed in dorms. So I took a break from gerbil keeping.
6,7&8. In my last year of college I lived off campus and decided to get gerbils again. I was volunteering at a local animal shelter and they got in a bunch of gerbils my junior year, right before I went home for the summer. I decided if they were still there when I came back senior year I'd adopt some. They were and I did. I got a trio of males, all red fox, and named them Logan, Theo, and Darwin. I love them. I was worried they wouldn't be very social because I figured they hadn't been handled a lot but they were actually quite tame. I had lots of fun teaching them to jump into my hand for treats. They have quickly rekindled my love of gerbils. They also taught me about declanning as they're my first group to fight. Each gerbil/group has taught me something new. I have had them a year and 8 months now, not sure of their age.
I'm hoping to add gerbil number 9 to the group soon as a friend for the now lonely Logan. So I'll add more info when that happens.