Post by LilyandDaisy on Jul 9, 2024 15:31:27 GMT -8
After Peanut's friend Twiglet died, I'm currently in the process of reintroducing her to her sister Luna. Peanut and Luna are sisters but they were separated as young pups to join older gerbils (Twiglet and Astra). They are now 5 months old. I had various reasons for opting for this rather than just introducing a new gerbil to Peanut, but basically there aren't about adult females Peanut's age or older available near me right now so I need to get a young pup, and due to Peanut's personality I'm unsure if this is a good option for her. She's very submissive and dependent, also a little on the small side, and I'm concerned about how that might play out if the pup turns out to be a much bossier personality. Also Astra and Luna are both bossy personalities and have been having some minor clashes lately which could easily be nothing at all, and ordinarily I wouldn't have considered separation over minor clashes, but since I am in the predicament of having to get a new gerbil anyway I felt it made sense to split them.
Peanut and Luna have been in the split since Thursday afternoon. All the signs so far are excellent. They are both really calm and relaxed. There was some scent marking from Luna the first couple of days, which seems completely normal for the context (she is now the dominant gerbil in a new environment). Things were looking good enough that this evening I tried an introduction and the only reason I stopped is because I noticed Peanut was in heat. Peanut is an extremely sweet gerbil but I find when she's in heat she can be a bit tactless! The introduction was on the whole looking great, they were being really nonchalant etc. But once or twice Peanut surprised Luna by trying to mount her. Also I felt like Luna was getting a little bit frustrated that she kept trying to interact with Peanut and the only response she got was Peanut presenting her back end to her. There were no real bad signs but I thought it best to call it off and wait for a day when Peanut is more herself, because not-in-heat Peanut is very innocent. She doesn't even try to steal food, let alone try to mount unsuspecting gerbils. This is really part of why I have doubts about making her the dominant gerbil in a clan, I just don't know that she has the mental fortitude to assert dominance. In some ways she seems to still have that pup mentality that just wants an adult to take care of her (maybe we can all relate to that!)
But overall I'm feeling optimistic about them.
Astra will of course be getting a new friend too in due course.
Peanut and Luna have been in the split since Thursday afternoon. All the signs so far are excellent. They are both really calm and relaxed. There was some scent marking from Luna the first couple of days, which seems completely normal for the context (she is now the dominant gerbil in a new environment). Things were looking good enough that this evening I tried an introduction and the only reason I stopped is because I noticed Peanut was in heat. Peanut is an extremely sweet gerbil but I find when she's in heat she can be a bit tactless! The introduction was on the whole looking great, they were being really nonchalant etc. But once or twice Peanut surprised Luna by trying to mount her. Also I felt like Luna was getting a little bit frustrated that she kept trying to interact with Peanut and the only response she got was Peanut presenting her back end to her. There were no real bad signs but I thought it best to call it off and wait for a day when Peanut is more herself, because not-in-heat Peanut is very innocent. She doesn't even try to steal food, let alone try to mount unsuspecting gerbils. This is really part of why I have doubts about making her the dominant gerbil in a clan, I just don't know that she has the mental fortitude to assert dominance. In some ways she seems to still have that pup mentality that just wants an adult to take care of her (maybe we can all relate to that!)
But overall I'm feeling optimistic about them.
Astra will of course be getting a new friend too in due course.
