The first thing you will need for your new pet is a cage.
It is always best to buy the largest cage your budget can stretch to, as it will give your gerbil more room to explore and play.
When deciding on accommodation for your gerbils it would be wise to remember that in the wild, Gerbils are burrowers and live in complex burrow systems that may stretch for several metres. They are not solitary creatures but live in fairly large communities so do need quite a bit of space.
You then need to think about furnishing the inside of the cage to make it an enjoyable place for your gerbil to live. Some of the most important items are:
• Chewing toys – with teeth that continually grow and require wearing down it is very important to ensure your gerbil has a constant supply of wooden toys or chews to gnaw on.
• Bowls & Bottles – feeding dishes should be cleaned daily to ensure that the food is fresh. When buying a bottle don’t think that bigger is better – get one that gives your gerbil just over enough water for a day and make sure the bottle is cleaned and refreshed daily. There is an urban myth that gerbils don’t need water as they come from the desert – this isn’t true as whilst they don’t drink much they do require a constant supply of clean drinking water.
• Activity toys – it is vital that your gerbil has plenty of exercise each day. A wheel in the cage and plenty of exciting gerbil toys like wooden play tunnels can give your pet lots to do.
What sort of cage did you pick for your gerbil? Have you got any pictures of your cage setup you would like to share with other gerbil owners? Let us know via our facebook or twitter pages.
