Weetabix?

Can gerbils eat this as a snack or not?
Weetabix is just the same as the Australian brand Weet-Bix, just we decided to call it this instead. Your gerbils can eat this and they will probably love the crunch of eating it! Not to be served as the flavoured versions or with milk. This is better for them and they like crunchy dry food, hense their diet of dry food (keeping in mind grains, nuts etc). I give mine a few of the crumbly bits in my hand on nearly every morning, (remember I said crumbly bits). So yes, your gerbil can have Weetabix just not big chunks of it.

Gerbil Shelter Shoutout!

Here is a link to a shelter that really does care about neglected gerbils and some other small animals. They take in so many gerbils and care for them equally and they take them all in. You can tell because their are hybrid mice on there and gerbils with balance issues (there are some normal and healthy small animals on there too!) My point is they don't turn away small animals that are in need like some shelters do.

Here is their website: http://www.gerbilandrodentrescue.co.uk/animals-looking-for-new-homes

Can mice and gerbils breed?

Recently, I have noticed that there have been a lot of gerbils and mice myths about them being able to breed, and more and more are picking up on the so-called "good" idea about them living together. Mice and gerbils cannot breed because you need a very close species link for two different animals to breed. It is very very unlikely that a mouse and a gerbil would breed and then produce a hybrid, even though they are both rodents because as I said earlier, they are not close relatives in terms of breeding. So no, they cannot breed.

Can gerbils live with mice?

This question is asked quite a lot, and the answer is no. Just because they are both small animals does not mean they can live together! You can have mice and gerbils just not together or in the same habitat because they would probably fight and get confused and agressive. They both have very different needs, and are different animals, hence why they cannot live together. Gerbils usually live between 3 and 4 years, whilst mice may live between 1 and 3 years (it goes without saying that of course may die of disease or some may live longer for both of them). Also they both may carry diseases that they themselves are immune to but could be fatal for the others health. Another factor is that if they were to fight, the gerbil would probably do some harm to the mouse being stronger and a little bigger than it (saying that the mouse could be the underdog?)

The conclusion, anyway, is that no, they cannot live together no matter what some people decide to put onto youtube :)

Picking a wheel

Your gerbil may or may not like to run on his/her wheel, but there is such a variety it is quite hard to say that your gerbil dislikes the wheel. Personally, my two gerbils really have no use for the wheel and just poo on it, even if we put treats on the top or peanut butter on the wheel, they just cannot be bothered.

One of the main factors that people overlook about wheels is how big they are and what they are made of. No matter how big your gerbil may look, every gerbil needs a 7 or 7.5 minimum size wheel. The reason behind this is because the tail might get bent over when they are running and can break the back, leaving you are your gerbil in serious trouble. You can get flying saucer wheels or your general 'hamster' wheel but the most important thing is the size and the material. Plastic wheels are a no-go (see here) and so are wheels with metal rungs/stripes that stick out from the wheel for safety reasons and just for the fact of how painful that would be. The best wheels are mesh ones (let me rephrase, mesh wheels with tiny little holes not the ones with gaping holes, a picture will be put down below on a correct wheel).

This is very controversial, as long as you find a safe mesh wheel with little holes that their feet cannot get stuck in. For example here is a good mesh wheel and here is a bad mesh wheel. Notice the price difference too, it is better to spend that extra £5 then to lose your little gerbil. Plastic wheels are ok as long as you put them in for half an hour, let them run around in it and then take it out, watching all the while that they don't start gnawing on it.

Plastic accessories/chewing plastic

This is a very controversial subject as lots of pet stores sell plastic items and toys supposedly for your gerbils, but in reality that pink plastic tube that looks really cool can be fatal for your gerbils health. You see, your gerbil just thinks that it is something to chew and decides to munch on this for as long as it takes before you realise and take it out. Usually by then, its a little late. Your gerbil may just shred the plastic or eat it, but usually its a little of both. Your gerbil will  digest the plastic (that's of course if it doesn't get caught in the cheeks or stuck in the throat on the way down) and then will be very painful in the stomach and may puncture the stomach and can lead to fatal problems. This sounds very morbid (I know) but sometimes the truth hurts. Don't worry though, if your gerbil has swallowed some plastic, there is always the chance. I would advise taking him/her to the vet and see what they say, usually signs occur 2-5 days after they have swallowed it.

The main factor in this though, is established if your gerbil is actually eating it or not. Usually gerbils only eat stuff if it smells nice, and plastic does not. Even if you can't see all the shredding of it, maybe they have hidden it somewhere you won't be able to find it because they've burried it. The best thing you can do is monitor your gerbil, remove any plastic toys/houses etc from the cage immediatley and invest in some wooden toys/houses. These may be a little more expensive but not a lot! They actually even out cheaper in the long run because they last longer and your gerbils can nibble at them all they want and it will grind their teeth down and won't harm them. Instead of plastic tubes to run through, try putting in kitchen and loo roll tubes they love to chew them and run through them and they will cost you 0 pennies from your pocket.

Sunflower Seeds

Yes, your gerbil can eat sunflower seeds, in fact they love them! You have just got to be careful on how many you give them because they are high in fat, but yes you can give them these. Many gerbil owners actually give their gerbils these and they are great for taming your gerbils. You can give them shelled or deshelled, they enjoy them both just as much and it takes them the same time to eat just that it is better for your gerbils teeth if you give them shelled ones.

Welcome to The Living With Gerbils Blog for you! This blog is designed to help you with your gerbils and to help you understand their behaviour. It's still undergoing a little maintenance to help it be smoother and easier for you to navigate yourself around but it is still available for you to read so don't panic! Thank you :-)