Gerbil: Animal behaviour and problems.

General information

The 15 genuses of gerbils (Gerbillinae) form the largest group of rodents. With regard to the own water balance, they have excellently adapted their habitat to the dry steppes of Asia and Africa. They live in large groups and occupy cave systems. Thanks to their big dark eyes and their active behaviour, gerbils have very quickly found enthusiastic friends. If the Mongolian gerbils are kept in enclosures or big cages where they can satisfy their natural needs like movement, digging and living in underground tunnels, they are most interesting animals for pet ownership and to be preferred to the closely related golden hamsters.

Social behaviour

As far as feral hamsters are concerned, parents and two offsprings live as a rule peacefully together in a cave. Older cubs later found own families. But also hamsters living in a cage can lead a gregarious social life. Once in a while it comes to fights, for instance in front of the drinking dispenser. After sniffing each other, there might be fights of social ranking among grown-up males. Gerbils always seek the contact to fellow species. They need each other in order to feel well. For the nest-building they create practical divisions of labour. They always sleep together in their nest, closely cuddled up to each other. Sniffing the nose, the fur and the anus region is their first reaction when they meet fellow species in order to discern if these are members of the tribe. Often the social contact starts with the invitation to take care of the fur. Injured animals are being "comforted". Drumming with the hindlimbs means warning each other about danger.

Behavioural disturbances

The robust and gregarious gerbils are really ideal pets, if one is able to fulfil their needs with regard to varied movement possibilities, digging possibilities and if they can have a bath in the sand. Behaviour disorder is, therefore, almost in most cases the result of an inappropriate behaviour of the pet owners. The gnawing at gratings for instance can mostly be attributed to insufficient possibilities for activity or to the lack of tribe members (major sin!). Also lethargy and lack of enthusiasm is part of this chapter. Wasted feed often originates in too light or inappropriate feeding bowls. Very much dirt outside the cage means that the wall of the enclosure is too low. .

Man-Animal communication

The better you get to know your gerbils, the more you will enjoy them. The best way to get to know them and to understand them is to study their natural behaviour in the open countryside, that is to say in their Asian steppe habitat. So one can learn everything about the meaning of a certain body posture, a certain vocalization, a certain behaviour. One can also feel when the gerbils want to have their peace, when they are ready for games, when they do not feel well. The group will very quickly get used to the smell, the appearance, the feeding methods or the voice of a human being. And you should absolutely talk to your pets! It is also possible to get them used to a certain whistle or the like which tells them for instance that it is time to eat. The animals should be allowed to crawl around on you!

Undesirable behaviour

Gerbils happily accept every possibility to take some exercise outside the cage. That is why the space to move about in a closed room is very important. Being rodents they will then, of course, gnaw at everything and damage furniture, wallpaper, wooden battens, carpets. Gnawing at electrical wires, of course, may lead to accidents. A bother might also be the fact that they defaecate everywhere and micturate in order to mark the expanded area. A good supervision can prevent a lot. Gnawing at the grating of the cage means that the gerbils have nothing to do.

Mood barometer

Since the human being cannot perceive neither the odour nor the vocalization of the gerbils, the body language becomes very important for the interpretation of their mood. Continuous gnawing at gratings indicates lack of activity possibilities and boredom. The way how the animals behave among themselves shows if they want to avoid any contact, if they want to attack or if they are in a mood for reproduction.

Psychology of animals

Many animal lovers judge the small and flexible gerbil to be the almost ideal pet. Although the gerbils kept at home are of a more gentle and shy nature, they still have maintained the behaviour patterns of the Mongolian gerbil. Everyone who understands the herd and tribe behaviour of the gerbil and thus gains an insight to the psyche of these interesing animals, will become a happy gerbil owner and will very much like to take care of his pet..