are there any peat alternatives?

Question
Hi, I have three gerbils and have had two previous 'batches' of gerbils.  The first lived in peat and wood shavings very happily as they were able to dig about and make a mess, really. Since them, I wanted to find a peat alternative which wasn't harmful to the environment or the gerbils.  The second batch I had, I tried using compost from a garden centre and they died within three weeks of me buying them, although I was never sure whether these two incidents were related or whether it was a weak litter (they were the last three in the shop so I didn't have any others to compare them to but seemed fine).  The present three are a lot hardier and have lasted a lot longer, I'm glad to say.  I am a bit reluctant to try compost again though and wondered if you had any thoughts?  They like to dig but dont seem to get anywhere with the wood shavings they already have and I think something soily would be more satisfying for them!

Also, one in particular likes to climb on top of the water bottle and chew through the wire holding it in place (they're in a tank, so pretty much every morning (twice today...) I've woken up to find them water-less (then they shove each other out of the way to be the first to have a drink when I replace the bottle...)  Any thoughts to why they do this or what I can do to deter them?

Any comments you have would be very gratefully received!

thank you,

Lucy Clews

Answer
Hiya Lucy!

Very good questions.  Gerbils do like to to dig.. a lot.  Some people get very fine play sand for them, the kind that you would put a a child's sandbox.  I have also heard of people using bagged topsoil, the kind that hasn't had any fertilisers added.

As for the chewer, you could get a glass water bottle, or you could get a chew deterrent that is safe for use with small animals, and spray that on your water bottle.  He would still have to chew it a few times to realise that it now tastes really disgusting and probably isn't worth chewing.

Thanks for the questions!  :)