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Friends and Companions
Gerbils love company! A gerbil should never be keep single! Not only are gerbils are great family pet but they love to live in families themselves as well! So thus it is a great idea to provide them with members of their own species! But please remember the more gerbils the more space in the cage you will need! There should ALWAYS be ALEAST two gerbils in a cage. Littermates are better than strangers, and brothers get along better that sisters. Males are better at living in larger groups unlike a female who should never live in a group larger than two gerbils! Even only three females will end up fighting and have to be separated (but their are some exceptions)! If you want to breed get a male and female pair. Please don't get a 2 female and 1 male pair or a 2 male and 1 female pair, they will just end up fighting and have to be separated! Male-Female pairs are also prolific breeders and require a lot of work to handle all the pups when they grow older and to house and feed everyone. So if you don't want to go through all that please get a "pet pair" or a 2 gerbil same sex pair.
The reason a gerbil shouldn't be kept alone is because a single gerbil will get lonely and depressed! Sure you can try to handle and treat it more and better but you can never replace the company of another gerbil. Unless in the case of a lone gerbil, or gerbil that refuses any new cage mates, because you have no choice but to have them kept single. Just give the lone gerbil a lot I mean a lot of extra attention and bond with it so that it will not become depressed! Companions are also important for sleeping and grooming. Gerbils naturally sleep in piles to keep warm and feel safe. Without a companion a gerbil might get cold or never feel safe and have seizures commonly! As for grooming without a friend to reach the hard to reach spots their coats will become dull and messy! Believe me you could never help it out by grooming it either! Yuuuuck! So please take my advice and NEVER keep a gerbil SINGLE because gerbils just LOVE company!
Email: babykates927@hotmail.com
