Split cage question

[scaradee]

Hello!

After one of my older gerbils passed away I'm currently trying to introduce 2 female youngsters (approx. 8 weeks) to my surviving older female (2 1/2 years). I have previously successfully used the split cage method on 4 occasions (including 1 other instance of pairing an older female with 2 babies). However, this time I encountered something I hadn't seen before.

When I first put them in the split cage on Wednesday, all seemed to be going well. There was no particularly aggressive behaviour's through the mesh wire (on my previously experiences the first day was always the hardest). After the first half hour my older girl mostly changed back and forth between somewhat curious and not interested. One of the little ones was very curious about the older girl and keep trying to sniff her through the mesh. The other youngster was curious at first, then quickly lay down for a snooze, which I took as a good sign.

However, after about 2 hours the 2 little ones, who I got together and who never displayed any aggression towards each other before, started getting into small fights and stand-offs. I thought they were play-fighting at first but it kept going and it kept getting more and more intense (no actual biting or ball of death, but raised fur, prolonged staring at each other, pushing the one on her back and pinning her down). It wasn't constant but it seemed to increase, so I took them out of the split cage and put them back in their previous tank. They displayed a little more (milder) 'fighting' at first, then they quickly calmed down and were best friends again.

I tried again the following day and after a few hours the same thing happened, the 2 bonded girls started becoming slightly aggressive towards each other. Does anyone have any experience with this? Could they be unsettled by suddenyl being in such a small cage with strange smells? Would you suggest I keep going in small increments? Or should I leave them alone for a few days?

Any advice would be much appreciated!

Thanks!

[LilyandDaisy]

Hello,

Sorry to hear your new gerbils are arguing. I think unfortunately that they are probably too old to be introduced as a pair to another gerbil and it's quite unlikely to work out (especially in the long term). The behaviours you describe of raised fur, intense staring are adult behaviours so they indicate these pups are socially and sexually mature. With a two pup introduction, the pups need to still be immature for it to work. The scent of an older gerbil has likely interfered with their relationship and caused disputes.

The behaviours are also quite concerning because they are seen in the early/middle stages of a declan. Fortunately it is still often possible to halt a declan at this stage, especially since there's a likely external cause (the presence of another gerbil). In this case, I would recommend stopping introduction and move the young gerbils to a small tank with not too much in it - just a few inches of bedding, water bottles, scattered food and things to chew such as hay and cardboard. The purpose of a small, simple enclosure is remove most things they can be territorial over to hopefully defuse the conflict and stabilise the pair. After a few days, you can start gradually adding new things and building up the bedding.

I hope this helps and please keep us updated on how it goes.

[scaradee]

Thanks so much for the advice! That makes perfect sense. Since the 2nd aborted split cage attempt on Wednesday the little ones have been in a small tank with just the bare necessities, and they seem to be back to their usual happy selves. I'll keep monitoring them and I'll start adding more toys slowly over the next week or so before moving them to their large forever tank.

And I'll keep looking for another potential friend for my lone adult girl.

Thanks again for the quick help!

[LilyandDaisy]

Jun 30, 2023 5:44:50 GMT -8 scaradee said:

Thanks so much for the advice! That makes perfect sense. Since the 2nd aborted split cage attempt on Wednesday the little ones have been in a small tank with just the bare necessities, and they seem to be back to their usual happy selves. I'll keep monitoring them and I'll start adding more toys slowly over the next week or so before moving them to their large forever tank.

And I'll keep looking for another potential friend for my lone adult girl.

Thanks again for the quick help!

That's great to hear. Let's hope it continues.

[Markpd]

Keep us posted