Gerbils

When children have to enumerate animals in an animal puzzle, they usually say “dog, cat – mouse!” Like a shot from a pistol. The mouse as a pet has therefore found its place in German households for a long time – but rarely the simple house mouse. Therefore gerbils, which you can get to know a little better today in an animal portrait, are much more exotic and at the same time cute.

Origin and History

The gerbil – Meriones unguiculatus – or Mongolian gerbil, originally comes from the vast steppes of Mongolia and China. Mountainous landscapes with sparse vegetation are her home and with her gray-brown fur, the little gerbil from the burrowing genus is well camouflaged from predators. As early as 1935, the first 20 pairs of wild gerbils were caught in Mongolia and used for breeding in Japan. All gerbils available for breeding still descend from this initial population.

The Appearance of Gerbils

From sand-colored to medium brown, the gerbil can still be seen today in the steppes of Mongolia. The underside is significantly lighter – from dark white to cream in color. In breeding, however, other color variants are available, so that there are also gold-colored, silver, black, or even spotted gerbils. The adult gerbil reaches a cute body length of 8 to 13 cm, whereby it is more of a male. The females are even more delicate and are about 6 to 11 cm tall. The small size also matches the weight: With a maximum of 140 g, the gerbils are featherweights and very nimble on the move.

Posture and Life Expectancy

In nature, the gerbil lives in families. This makes them extremely social animals, for whom the touch of nose-mouth is very important for recognition and exchange. Therefore the gerbil should at least be kept as a pair. Only then can she pursue her social instinct. If you want to get yourself a gerbil, you are not making a commitment that is too long. The average life expectancy is 3 years. Gerbils rarely get significantly older.

Lots of Space to Dig and Hide

As you have already learned, the gerbil comes from sandy-stony areas and has to hide there regularly from predators in long tunnel systems. The gerbil does not have the feeding enemies with you, but it still wants to hide. We, therefore, recommend a large enclosure (at least 100 cm x 50 cm x 50 cm) for sufficient exercise and enough space to dig. Therefore, standard rodent cages are often too small. A conversion or a do-it-yourself construction is recommended so that you can enable your new roommate to be kept in a species-appropriate manner. Please avoid sharp corners or edges made of wire or small holes that gerbils are only too happy to squeeze through to get more space. Thanks to the high speed of the mouse, capturing is no longer child’s play.

Your mouse also needs a litter depth of at least 20 cm to dig holes. A commercially available small animal litter with a layer of cozy hay is sufficient for this. Of course, the gerbils are also happy to have sand to bury them. Bowls with chinchilla sand are real playgrounds for them. Otherwise, you can let your imagination run wild when designing it. Small caves in trunks or branches to climb will bring your gerbils great joy. A running bike can also provide a lot of fun and variety, especially for the active mice.

Cost of Keeping

As a small animal with a relatively short lifespan, the cost of a gerbil is limited. Purchasing a mouse from a pet shop costs around 10 euros. The design of the enclosure is then certainly the most expensive. If you have manual skills and build the dream enclosure yourself, 50 to 100 euros should certainly be enough. The house, tree trunks and branches cost another 25 euros.

The monthly costs for the gerbil are adapted to their small body size. Litter, hay, and sand for around 15 euros and fodder for another 5 to 10 euros per month are enough. Green fodder can then be diverted from your daily food and is no longer financially significant.

A Family Sticks Together

As mentioned earlier, it is important to get gerbils at least as a pair. Because buying a gerbil will be difficult. The new gerbil then lacks the “clan smell”. It is expelled and injuries can quickly occur in the narrow enclosure. But there can also be friction within the family. Standing up and drumming with your feet is more of a harmless territory behavior.
Speaking of the territory: don’t be surprised if your gerbils spend hours walking around every corner after cleaning and/or moving their enclosure. They re-mark the area so that they can find their way around blindly at any time, even at night.

Get Out of the Enclosure Into the Open Air

The little gerbil is fast, nimble, and agile. Nevertheless, she can get used to the people and the surroundings outside the enclosure. Then the mouse is tame, stays seated, and likes to be petted. Of course, there should be no electrical cables, unsightly plants, or other dangers lurking in the area when the gerbil is allowed to jump freely. Please also remember: the gerbil that has been bred has no natural height perception. If you pick up the animal and it is not used to the altitude, it can jump and injure itself. Therefore, you need to be extra careful when you let the animal out of the cage for the first time.

Conclusion on the Gerbil

The little gerbil is an exotic species that brings a lot of joy. If you spend a lot of time with the social animal, it will quickly get used to its owner and you, as the proud owner of your gerbil pair, will have a lot of fun with the steppe animal from Mongolia.