|
Post by betty on Dec 8, 2021 14:58:58 GMT -8
So sad for your daughter - it must have been a very upsetting first gerbil experience for both of you.
There was a study however (I will try to find it for the FAQ section), saying that dips as low as 5C wasn't an issue for gerbils - and they actually digested their food better at that low temperature? And I have often had my gerbil rooms down to 12C with no issues inside their enclosures. That is why I said earlier that if they were indoors with decent substrate - even in an unheated room overnight - this most likely wouldn't have been an issue. I have been keeping records of room temperatures for several years now and they do just fine at lower than 15 degrees.
Similarly to LilyandDaisy, I use a variety of different size and shape heat mats, when needed, for elderly or poorly animals - which they actively gravitate to. They are more heat and cost efficient and give targeted warmth. We have plenty of them all over the house for various tropical animals that we own and our bills aren't much higher than a standard house.
In one house that was literally stone cold - even during the day it didn't really heat up to anything and I would often wear a coat indoors - I had these heat mats permanently running underneath along the back of all my enclosures - turned on every night. We had old ones, nests of pups and poorly ones all make it through the winter we were there with no ill effects. Some of my oldest living gerbils were with me at that house.
|
|
|
Post by phantomslayer on Dec 9, 2021 13:00:16 GMT -8
I haven't become a gerbil owner yet however I have some questions and an idea that may or may not relate?
Idea: Do you have any perfumes or wax warmers/oil diffusers in that room or another room? When I was fish keeping and my family have had dogs as far as I can remember I learned that specific scents can have dangerous results if their in that specific room or in a room that could coat clothing thus make animals sick or worse. (That goes for chemicals used around the house anything scent or chemical based should be looked at incase of a chance it could have been transfered to their area whether air, clothes or an item they played with outside their enclosure)
Question: You say all your objects from the enclosure were marketed for gerbils correct aside from the little planters? Can you perhaps give specifics? There was this issue when fish keeping where there was "aquarium safe" stuff marketed however alot of people found issues that caused deaths in their tank because it was leaching chemicals or changing their ph which it was said to not do but it did anyways. I know gerbils cannot have plastic in their enclosures because they chew alot. Anything plastic or any sign of something being chewed that shouldn't have been?
Question: Could your daughter have washed their food bowl or water bottle with something such as a soap?
I know I'm comparing it to fishkeeping but when it comes to small creatures I have learned that sometimes it can be something thats not even within the tank itself that causes death. If you fine tooth it with a few extra pairs of eyes(More experienced people) you may learn in fact you have done nothing wrong. It was more than likely genetics. If that's the case and you rule out every other possibility then I'm sure you can reassure your daughter that it wasn't her fault at all. It was something hidden that no one could have seen. It may reassure her that she didn't do something wrong and she may want to try again.
|
|
|
Post by tams on Dec 11, 2021 17:18:10 GMT -8
I have a reptile heating mat at one corner of my tank, so they always have a warm corner to retreat to if they want. I think that's probably more energy-efficient than heaters. This is interesting, What reptile mat do you have? What are the recommended types or brands?
|
|