Weight Fluctuations among My Gerbils

[nycgerbillover]

Hi, everyone. I am very thankful for my gerbils' health. All four females are extremely active and appear very healthy: shiny fur, bright eyes, bonded dynamics, no aberrations. However, I weigh my gerbils once a week and I've noticed some extreme fluctuations. One week two gerbils lost five grams each. One gerbil's weight climbed to 99 grams but within a month she is at 89 grams. I always give my gerbils an abundance of food so they are never without. Why would my gerbils' weight fluctuate so much when I am not changing anything and each one appears otherwise unchanged? Thank you very much in advance for any insight you can provide.

[betty]

There are many reasons why a gerbils weight could fluctuate short term - and it is really great that so many people are now recording more closely thir gerbils' weights as it really opens up a whole new world of caring for them (like I say you can't assume something is 'different' if you have never actually set a base line for what 'normal' is).

I find weight fluctuations quite common particularly in groups as I think the stress of the clans' stability can affect weight in clan members (stress can burn off calories faster) I also think that sometimes the more bossy gerbils get more of the best food too - so in a non-complete food clan situation, the less bossy gerbils are getting less of the good stuff in the first place, so a smaller portion; a less mixed-up handful; or a really greedy bossy one can all impact their weight.

My doops however regularly sway up and down in weight for absolutely a different reason as they all live alone? Nothing in their enclosures changes noticably to me anyway - but their weight can go 20g up or down thorugh the seasons.

As long as one doesn't start to look bony, start sleeping or sitting alone up top or loses more than half their body weight in a short time, with normal gerbils I think you would be fine.

[sandybadlands]

I weigh mine once a week and I see the same thing sometimes. I guess my short answer is: I don't know why it happens, but I don't think a change of 10 grams over a month or even 5 grams in a week is anything to worry about, as long as they seem active and healthy.

I have some guesses about why this happens: Certain ingredients in their food are heavier and gravitate to the bottom of the container, which could change the day-to-day nutrient levels in their food. Sometimes they get more/less playtime one week, or they do lots of jumping and digging after a tank clean, so they get more exercise that day. Two of my girls have been going through a bit of a power struggle, and their weights have been getting closer together.

I wouldn't be too concerned unless there's persistent weight loss or gain over a period of weeks. But I'd love to hear other people's perspectives, too.

[nycgerbillover]

Thanks, Betty and sandybadlands. I'm glad to hear there is no real reason for concern. My girls seem to get on very well together and they are all very active. I know gerbils are good at keeping secrets but mine seem like happy little darlings. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something critical.

[betty]

Always good to keep a close eye on clans of females - as the more you watch them the more you know when something has changed. It is amazing how sometimes people spot all sorts of 'new' things with their clans once one of them gets ill or whatever - we tend to watch them more and so see more. Some of it can be very eye-opening but most of it just fun!

I love gerbil TV.

[nycgerbillover]

Hahaha. Me too. I am completely obsessed with my gerbils. They bring me so much joy. I just want to keep them as healthy as possible.