old gerbil

Question
Hi! My gerbil Arnold has been living with us for about two and a half years now (he was 4 weeks when we brought him home) and has been bright-eyed and healthy since. Because of his age, he has obviously been showing signs that he is indeed becoming a senior citezin but he is okay. Any ideas of more careful ways of caring for him now that he's getting older? Oh ya, and yesterday I was watching him eat when my mini- schnauzer Tizzy (they get along great) accidently bumped his paw against his cage. The sound was so loud but Arny just continued eating like nothing happened! Could it be that because of his age, his hearing is getting weaker? He also started to become a heavier sleeper which is also related to the question about his hearing. Thanks for your time (and sorry for the loooong question!)  

Answer
Hearing may be going as well as sight too. The one thing I always recommend to people is to buy vitamin drops for aging pets. It helps give them a boost too. I go to petsmart and buy mine, but petco has some too. They are really great and if you are already using them please continue to do so. When they get older they will sleep a little longer and become a bit lazy but it seems like your gerbils are aging just fine. :-)