Gerbil care

Question
Hello,

We received two gerbils for my daughter from a friend of hers. They were 4 weeks old when we got them and are now 8 weeks old. It was not known what sex they are and we still aren't sure but think we have a male and a female. We were hoping for two of the same sex because we were not planning on breeding.

My first question is: these gerbils seem to poop everywhere! Especially on their wheel. It is as if they consider the wheel their toilet. They are fed a gerbil food mix called Fiesta. Once in a while we'll give them a little bit of carrot or lettuce. Are we feeding them correctly? Do gerbils just poop a lot normally? Should we remove the wheel because it gets rather disgusting and they still run in it?

My second question is: should they have babies, what do I do with the father? I've read so many conflicting opinions. Some say take the father out, others say leave the father to help the mother because father gerbils are good caregivers. Some say the father will eat the babies and some say the mother will. This is very confusing and I would like to protect the gerbils and my daughter from any potential tragedy.

One more question: should we having babies, we would like to just have a pair of the same sex. Should we just keep the mom and one of the girls? Or the dad and one of the boys? The rest we would give to a pet store.

Thank you for any advice you can give.

Answer
Hi Vicky,

Yes they do poo a lot, but don't wee all that much. They shouldn't really have a wheel anyway as it can do damage to their tails, and spine so i would probably take it away from them!! They tend to just pick an area that they will use as their toilet, and it seems the wheel is where they have choosen, so it will seem there is more poo than there actually is!

Don't give them lettuce/cabbage, they tend to be washed in a lot of bad chemicals, but carrot is fine. Things like cucumber, cheese, banana, apple, dandelion, grape, is all fine!!

If you find out they have babies you need to take the  father away for good, as the chances are these gerbils will be brother and sister, so you don't really want them to inbreed!!
Generally in captivity you should take the father out just before she gives birth, as they mate the night of the birth and so the mother will never go for more than a few days without babies to look after, which will exhaust her and could kill her. By taking the father out just before the birth it prevents her becoming pregnant straight away and allows her a break. You can allow the father in for short periods each day when you can supervise, so he gets used to the babies. Fathers are good at raising at the babies too, but the mother is fine doing it on her own!!!

If she is pregnant you won't notice until the last few days before birth, when she will become very fat. If you realise she is pregnant try and offer her extra protein, such as dried mealworms, or human baby food (ask again if she is pregnant and i can advise you further).

Mothers will eat their babies if they die or if they feel very stressed. Don't interfere with the mother and babies for the first 2weeks, except to put in fresh food and water. Don't clean the cage out for the first 2 weeks either. This minimises the stress for her. If one of the babies dies (it is common for a couple to die in the first few days) she will eat them to keep the nest tidy! So don't panic!

There is not really much difference in behaviour between the sexes, so keep whichever you want!!

I hope all this helps you,
Please ask anytime you need anything,
Thank you,
Charlie.