Weight, food, handling, and enrichment questions
Feb 3, 2022 19:44:46 GMT -8
Markpd and pea like this
Post by plutoeggs on Feb 3, 2022 19:44:46 GMT -8
Hello! I am a newish gerbil owner-I adopted my two male gerbils (Eggs and Pluto) in October, and previously they hadn’t had any human interaction (minus a few times when they had to be grabbed for transportation) for over a year. I’ve only just made an account now, and have some questions. Thank you in advance! They are also approximately 1.5-2 years to our knowledge.
first, weight. What’s the appropriate weight for adult male gerbils? So far I’ve only been able to weigh one of them Eggs, and he was 109 grams. Is this healthy?
Second diet. I’ve been feeding them Higgins sunburst hamster and gerbil (approximately 2 tablespoons every other day) since I got them. I’m close to running out and was planning on getting robins gourmet food, but the shop has been having limited ordering times recently. Are there any better diets in the USA? Is Higgins sunburst alright to use till I can get robins food? For treats, I give them a few (2-4) almonds, pistachios, or Gerber puffs every week. I’ve yet to begin feeding fresh food regularly as I gave them a small piece of grape (I was told it was safe), but then someone else said it was poisonous. I kind of panicked and have been anxious since (this was a while ago)-are grapes safe? How often can/should I feed fresh foods?
Its been kind of difficult to handle/tame them as their quite shy. I read the taming guide, but it’s hard Eggs and Pluto only ever come out to grab water, food or run a little on their wheel before going back to their burrows. So far, I’ve only handled them twice (Pluto once), and all in the past week. Most of the time, even breathing too loud or shifting in bed at night (I may hear them, than move and hear them run away) can scare them, so it’s hard to even go to the cage before their gone. Are there ways to make them more comfortable and/or be able to handle them more? Would it be worth it to try bathtub bonding or a playpen?
I’ve been struggling a little with enrichment. It’s a 75 gallon tank with a low side of 6 inches of bedding and a high side of 12ish inches. On the low side there is a multi chamber hide on stilts with a 10 inch wheel and a water bottle. Aside from that, I just have some boxes and cardboard that they hardly ever interact with. I’m planning on getting a small platform for the other end and adding a sand bath (I ordered sand earlier but it was super dusty and it’s been hard to find a better brand since, but I’ll be ordering reptisand soon). I also added a lot of hay, but what else can I do to enrich the space?
Apologies this is so long, and thank you for reading and helping
first, weight. What’s the appropriate weight for adult male gerbils? So far I’ve only been able to weigh one of them Eggs, and he was 109 grams. Is this healthy?
Second diet. I’ve been feeding them Higgins sunburst hamster and gerbil (approximately 2 tablespoons every other day) since I got them. I’m close to running out and was planning on getting robins gourmet food, but the shop has been having limited ordering times recently. Are there any better diets in the USA? Is Higgins sunburst alright to use till I can get robins food? For treats, I give them a few (2-4) almonds, pistachios, or Gerber puffs every week. I’ve yet to begin feeding fresh food regularly as I gave them a small piece of grape (I was told it was safe), but then someone else said it was poisonous. I kind of panicked and have been anxious since (this was a while ago)-are grapes safe? How often can/should I feed fresh foods?
Its been kind of difficult to handle/tame them as their quite shy. I read the taming guide, but it’s hard Eggs and Pluto only ever come out to grab water, food or run a little on their wheel before going back to their burrows. So far, I’ve only handled them twice (Pluto once), and all in the past week. Most of the time, even breathing too loud or shifting in bed at night (I may hear them, than move and hear them run away) can scare them, so it’s hard to even go to the cage before their gone. Are there ways to make them more comfortable and/or be able to handle them more? Would it be worth it to try bathtub bonding or a playpen?
I’ve been struggling a little with enrichment. It’s a 75 gallon tank with a low side of 6 inches of bedding and a high side of 12ish inches. On the low side there is a multi chamber hide on stilts with a 10 inch wheel and a water bottle. Aside from that, I just have some boxes and cardboard that they hardly ever interact with. I’m planning on getting a small platform for the other end and adding a sand bath (I ordered sand earlier but it was super dusty and it’s been hard to find a better brand since, but I’ll be ordering reptisand soon). I also added a lot of hay, but what else can I do to enrich the space?
Apologies this is so long, and thank you for reading and helping