loss of tail fur

Question
Hi Charlie, You were so helpful last time I asked a question so was wondering if you could help me again. My Daddy gerbil is losing the fur from his tail. He is in a large 'gerbilarium' with 2 of his offspring - both boys. They don't fight and he has no other health problems. He's also quite smelly! Can you suggest what may be causing the hairloss? It is very slow - hasn't got very much worse in the last few weeks - and does not appear to be itchy and certainly isn't sore. It just looks odd - like an earthworm!
Thanks again for being such a help last time

Emma x

Answer
Hi Emma,

Sounds as though you have exacly the same problem as me!!! My dad has got no hair at all on his tail at the moment, and neither has one of the sons, although the 3rd son has a normal tail. Is this the same with yours? Do the others have better looking tails. If so this is called 'barbering' and basically the younger more dominant gerbil is pulling hair out of their tails to prove himself. This may mean your gerbils don't have enough space and so i have got a bigger home and also started putting in glass jars and more houses for them to hide in, so they can have private space. It is also a good idea to put more than one food bowl in so they cant fight!!

Hope this helps,
Let me know,
Charlie