I have a few requirements you need to fulfill before taking one of these little fuzzballs home, I just want to make sure they're going to good homes or there's no point rescuing them in the first place! These are as follows;
- Gerbils to be house in a tank, or similar (gerbilarium, converted storage box etc) of suitable size (15 gal for the first gerbil and an additional 5gal for every gerbil thereafter). This gives them the room they need to burrow and is the best measure you can take to ensure your gerbils a happy future, and avoid territorial disputes.
- 7-8 inches of bedding to be supplied for the gerbils. More if possible. Gerbils live in huge burrows in the wild and spend most of their time digging new tunnels. Lack of substrate can lead to stereotypical behaviours, such as endless scratching in corners, bar chewing and swinging.
- Gerbils are not to be given plastic toys, as gerbils love to chew and they could ingest this and cause digestive problems and possibly even death. Wooden and cardboard toys only.
- Gerbils are highly social creatures and for that reason gerbils will be rehomed in pairs or larger groups. Single gerbils will be adopted out if they are already alone (a group will never be split without good cause) and are to be bonded with another gerbil via the split cage method. For a small fee I can bond the animals for you, though please be aware the process can take days for some or a month for others and is never 100% chance that they will definitely bond.
- Gerbils must be fed a gerbil specific pet food, not one aimed at hamsters too. We recommend Supreme’s Gerri Gerbil, or Burgess Excel Supa Gerbil.
- We must be happy that you have done your research/ are willing to follow our advice. I recommend any new gerbil owner looks at www.egerbil.com both the website and the forum are fantastic sources of information and advice.
- We
must have seen the accommodation you are providing and be 100% happy
with it. This is normally done via home checks but you can also provide
us with pictures of your set-up. (especially useful if rehoming far away)
- Remember that the gerbil comes with a life-time support guarantee. We love nothing more than updates and are happy to answer any queries you may have. If your circumstances do change, we ask that the gerbils are returned to us so another suitable home can be found for them.
- Our gerbils are not suitable for breeding. We do not know their backgrounds and most have been allowed to interbreed before coming to us. Therefore they are suitable as pets only. Gerbil breeding should only be undertaken by very experience gerbil owners, who know the lines of both gerbils. Any pups we rehome were conceived or born before coming into our care.
- As long as you meet these requirements adoption should be a quick and easy process. Simply fill out a form then send it back to us. We will aim to contact you within 24 hours maximum.
