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Post by Yasmine80313087 on Jan 15, 2022 14:03:30 GMT -8
Hi, I have 2 gerbils and I think something is wrong with them. They have around a 40-50 gallon top tanker cage, and have 8 or 9 inches of bedding. What I've noticed is that they're both really fat and they've been pooping alot and there is poop everwhere in their cage. They poop in their food bowl (I think pee too). And everytime I turn on the lights they always stand up and look at everythink and the cage. They also chew on their cage too (its a wooden tank topper diy cage). Also, today one of my family members fed them food (without my permisson ) and I dont know how much food they fed them, and then when I looked they knocked down their food bowl so all their food is on the floor.. I am so upset and angry and I am crying and im so sad.
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Post by LilyandDaisy on Jan 15, 2022 14:51:51 GMT -8
Hello, This all sounds like normal gerbil behaviour! Gerbils do poo a lot, especially all over their platforms and shelves. If you have a sand bath that can help to concentrate it to some extent as they prefer to use sand, and then you can just sieve the sand as needed. They're not very respectful or tidy (by our standards) animals and they will knock their bowls over and use them as toilets etc. There's not much we can or should do, just accept them for what they are. It doesn't matter if their food is all over the bedding. Some people even scatter it there intentionally so they have to forage for it. They will look around when the lights are turned on, just like we do when someone enters the room we're in. It's nothing to worry about, just healthy alertness and curiosity. It's quite unlikely they will come to any harm from being fed some human food even though it might not be very healthy for them, but make sure your family are aware that gerbils have different dietary needs to us and should only be fed gerbil-safe foods. Gerbils can get overweight sometimes and you could post some photos of yours if they think they might be. However they can also fluff up their coats which makes them look quite fat even if they aren't. Also many gerbils are just naturally large and chunky, especially as they get older. This is my gerbil Daisy fluffing her coat up so she looks bigger than she really is:
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Post by Yasmine80313087 on Jan 15, 2022 22:05:27 GMT -8
Hi! Thank you so much for replying! But, I have one question. How much food do i feed my gerbils now because i dont know how much they ate and i dont want to overfeed the or underfeed them.
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Post by barryozzy on Jan 16, 2022 8:39:27 GMT -8
I feed mine always 1 tablespoon per gerbil every day. They will not eat until they are sick, like dogs will
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Post by Markpd on Jan 16, 2022 15:56:21 GMT -8
I feed mine 7g/day each, which is about 1/2 a soup spoon (I don't want to use my tablespoons lol). They weigh 98 and 100g atm.
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