Gerbil content, care features

The origin and native land of the rodent, behavior in the wild, breeding of gerbils, advice on keeping, diseases, correct purchase of an animal and its price.

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For many people, pets are not just animals that live with them under the same roof, but full members of their families. Sometimes a person with great responsibility approaches the issue of choosing a friend of his smaller one. If not so long ago, when choosing a pet, people could focus only on those representatives of the world fauna that are not difficult to buy, then in the era of our modernity, everything is much more complicated. These difficulties do not lie in the fact that there is no way to find or acquire this or that little animal, the problem most often lies precisely in the choice.

For the reason that today you can afford to bring into your house the most extraordinary pupil, it all depends on you, your tastes, preferences, and of course your financial situation. After all, not everyone can afford to buy a chimpanzee or a white tiger, firstly, they are very expensive, and secondly, it is necessary to have a fairly large living area for these elite pets to feel cozy and comfortable. But here is a small original rodent, which will not be like all its relatives - almost anyone can easily afford it.

For example, pay your attention to such a miracle of nature as a gerbil - this is a small animal that will become a reliable friend and comrade for you without any problems. In addition, these little animals are very modest and unpretentious, they will never require a large and spacious cage for themselves, they will not run away from you at the first opportunity to the most secluded corners of your apartment, and most importantly, these pretty rodents are very clean. Why not the perfect pet?

If you still opted for a gerbil, then in order to avoid unnecessary problems and unpleasant situations, you should get to know this animal better.

Origin and home territories of the gerbil

The gerbil is an animal that outwardly bears some resemblance to the jerboa and the common mouse. Scientists who studied the pedigree of this nice little representative of the fauna classified it into the class of mammals, the order of rodents, the hamster family, the subfamily of the gerbil and the genus of the fat-tailed gerbil.

If we talk about the native lands of this little animal, then we can say that the area of ​​\u200b\u200bits natural distribution is quite wide. This specimen of a large animal kingdom lives both in Europe and Asia, and is even found on the African continent. Based on the name of this rodent, we can already conclude that it lives where there is sand, namely in desert and semi-desert regions, but if they get to locations with clay or gravelly soil, then this craftsman is able to settle well there, the main thing to have something to eat.

Features of living gerbil in open nature

The period of activity for these animals falls at night, but during the day they prefer to sleep off, carefully hiding in their personal dwellings. These little hard workers spend almost all their free time building their house, it would be more correct to say houses. Usually gerbils dig burrows of complex layout, which are constantly improved and repaired, and sometimes even transferred to the next generations. They always have several temporary apartments, which are located in different locations, they are usually not deep, do not have a nesting chamber and are equipped with only one exit, the little animals almost never spend a lot of time in them. Most often, they need such temporary housing so that the animals can feel calm when they go out in search of food. After all, when any danger approaches, gerbils always run away to the nearest hole and can sit there until they are sure that they have nothing to fear.

A permanent home for rodents is like family mansions, they have a rather complex layout. In a permanent hole, there must necessarily be many passages that connect their house with the surface of the earth, there are also always several burrows, one of them is used by the animal as a latrine, and all the rest, as utility rooms in which food is stored, they store it for winter. The place for winter rest is usually located at the deepest depth, where even the most ferocious cold cannot reach, there gerbils pull off a lot of dry grass and foliage, from which I construct a soft and warm sleeping place for myself.

These little builders are very social and friendly animals, they are used to living in large colonies in their native areas, in which peace and harmony always reign.

Nature did not endow these peace-loving rodents with a large, stocky and strong body, sharp claws or huge fangs, therefore, their means of protection from all kinds of predators who intend to eat miniature animals are their excellent hearing and vision, as well as quick paws that carry away with amazing speed gerbils from approaching danger to a safe place.

In the wild, they are also not very whimsical and are used to getting by with everything that is nearby. So rodents may well live if there is no reservoir near their place of residence, these mammals have enough fluid that they receive when eating succulent plants. As for their diet, these hamsters usually eat plant foods that grow in their territories, these are leaves, flowers, plant shoots, and even berries and rhizomes. In the event that there is a shortage of food products in the area they occupy, then the whole large friendly family of gerbils begins to “pack their bags” and move to more fertile lands. Having found such places, they quickly begin to equip themselves with the necessary conditions for life, build new burrows, or make major repairs in dwellings dug by other animals.

Continuation of the genus of a mammal

The beginning of the mating season in these animals falls at the beginning of spring, then they form small groups, which include one male and several female gerbils, as well as their offspring. Such separate colonies occupy a small area and diligently protect their territory from their other relatives, if suddenly someone else decides to join such a family, then these seemingly very cute animals can resort to aggression and even use force, but such battles are very rare end in bloodshed.

The period of bearing babies in females lasts about a month, at the end of this period, from 3 to 7 cubs are born. The maturation of the boys is quite rapid, at the age of 2-3 months, such "kids" are already becoming sexually mature. After the end of the reproductive season, all representatives of the genus of gerbils again unite into one large social group and all together raise offspring and take care of them, regardless of who their biological parents are.

During one year, an adult and healthy female can get offspring from 4 to 7 times.

Features of the external appearance of the gerbil

The parameters of the body of this rodent are different, the body length of some individuals can reach up to 20 cm, and some specimens do not grow more than 5–6 cm. The tail process is most often equal to the length of the body of the animal. The body weight of these mammals ranges from 50 to 200 grams.

In appearance, these animals are very similar to ordinary mice, the most characteristic distinguishing feature of their appearance is their tail, which is wrapped in fur along its entire length and ends with a beautiful tassel formed by a thick tuft of long hair.

Their muzzle is usually slightly blunt. The hind limbs are much longer than the front, which helps gerbils to move very quickly.

The color of these animals does not always correspond to their name, mammals that live in the wild are usually painted in sandy-brown shades or in a solid brown color, only the abdominal area is noticeably lighter. Due to the fact that now these rodents are increasingly being brought in as pets, people have learned to earn good money on them. Namely, they began to artificially breed animals with a wide variety of body colors, so if you don’t like sandy tones, then you can easily pick up a pet in the color that you like best.

Gerbils are, I'm not afraid of this word, the most ideal pets of all rodents, they are happy to make contact with a person, they are very playful. It will not be difficult to tame this comrade, he will not be afraid of you anyway and will begin to play and go into your arms, and if you treat him with some yummy from your hands several times, then the adaptation process will be much faster and more pleasant for your pet.

The only thing that sometimes scares people when buying such an exotic is its nighttime activity, but you should not worry about this. Gerbil is an animal that can be easily accustomed to your daily routine, the first time you live with this friend under the same roof you will notice that he never sleeps all day, most likely he rests from time to time, he also does at night - he will play a little and runs and goes to recuperate. But if you want him to sleep all night, then you should put his house in some kind of dark room, where, most likely, he will sleep all night.

As a personal home for such a pet, you can, of course, purchase a cage, but due to the fact that this rodent is used to sharpening its teeth, the bars of the cage will be destroyed very quickly. For this reason, it is best to house your lodger in a spacious aquarium with a tight-fitting lid, but with good ventilation. The lid is needed so that this jumper simply does not jump over the side of her house and does not run away for a walk around your apartment. Unlike hamsters, these little animals will not climb into the most unexpected places where they are not only impossible to find, but also difficult to get out of there.

But the fact that they can do various pranks is another matter. They can easily gnaw on furniture, wallpaper and even wires.

You can use sawdust, hay, special rodent litter, and even ordinary napkins or paper as flooring for your new buddy. It is not necessary to change it very often, as these little animals emit very little liquid, so cleaning in an aquarium with a gerbil should be done as the filler gets wet, as they do not tolerate a humid environment very well.

The thickness of the filler layer in the personal dwelling of a rodent should be at least 10-15 cm so that this worker can dig at least a small mink for himself.

You can think of a place to sleep for your pupil yourself, but it would be better to bring him some hay, dry leaves, napkins or plain toilet paper and he will do everything with his “crazy” paws and to his liking.

In order for your pet's living conditions to be comfortable for him, it is necessary to equip his house with a variety of entertainment, such as a running wheel, walking balls and other interesting things for rodents. Not only will this keep your gerbil from getting bored when you are not around, but it will also keep her small body in constant shape.

In addition, always bring her some twigs or snags as a gift, as she has something to gnaw at the level of instinct, and if the animal does not have suitable attributes, it will begin to sharpen its teeth on everything that is in its house.

Be sure this funny rodent should have a private pool, but only it needs to be filled not with water, but with sand, where your friend will relax, take his sand baths and clean his beautiful coat.

The fact that your pet has even the most comfortable living conditions in a cage or aquarium does not mean that he should be there all the time. When you return home, try to let this active friend out for a walk. During these trips around your home, keep a close eye on your gerbil to make sure it doesn't mess things up. If this cunning creature climbed under the sofa or hid behind the closet, do not panic, she will skip to you at the first call, and if the rodent does not respond, beckon him with some kind of treat, then he certainly will not resist.

And of course, if a cat lives in your house, make sure that your exotic hamster does not become a delicious dinner for her.

Feeding a gerbil at home is not difficult at all. It is impossible to single out any favorite dish of this mammal; at home, it is usually fed with germinated grain, green grass, plant shoots, sometimes they can afford to eat some sunflower seeds. In addition, they are happy to eat bread, legumes, various berries, carrots, apples, beets and even cabbage.

From time to time, you can spoil your furry friend with delicacies such as small insects, such as locusts or mealworms. With pleasure they eat cottage cheese. Sometimes kind owners treat gerbils to food from their dining table, they certainly will not refuse sausages or some other similar goodies, but it is still not recommended to do this, since eating such unusual food for them can adversely affect your health. pet.

Do not forget about the vitamins and minerals that you need to feed your friend, his body will thank you very much for the extra calcium, which is contained, for example, in an eggshell or a piece of chalk.

Common Gerbil Diseases

Like all living creatures, these mammals are subject to a number of pathological conditions.

1. Tizzer's disease (cryptosporidium). This disease in these cute little rodents is manifested by liver necrosis, enteritis, the first sign of the disease is that the animal increases in size, due to the accumulation of fluid in the abdominal cavity. The onset of this pathology is acute and usually ends in the death of the animal. Young individuals and pregnant females are especially susceptible to cryptosporidium. The onset of the disease is associated with eating contaminated food. The best prevention is regular cleaning of cages, feeding the rodent with proven products.
2. Epilepsy. A fairly common pathology among these animals, most often is hereditary. Manifested by periodic seizures. Treatment and use of anticonvulsants is not required.
3. Injuries. Very often, gerbils injure their limbs or tear off their tail, so the best prevention for such conditions is careful care and proper housing for your friend.

Purchase and price of a gerbil

If you buy a rodent from breeders, do not hesitate to ask them to provide you with all the documents, since an animal brought from the wild and not examined by a doctor can be deadly for you and your family, since these animals are carriers of plague and tularemia. The average price for one individual of this little animal ranges from 1,500 to 2,500 rubles.

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