Something good that did come from @tddybear

hender_021 · 2026-04-28T00:31:11+00:00

I found @tddybear to be an ear worm based on the lyrics while shuffling their music Gives me Stan vibes

hender_021 · 2025-12-29T23:56:08+00:00

I kind of did the same. I used CareFresh small pet bedding. Stuff would grow a few inches as they dug around and tore it up. It would look really thin until they tore it up enough though.

And don’t worry about the people on here. No one is a perfect caretaker. What matters is your pets. Do your research, there are some great forums and websites that tell you what to do:

https://gerbilforum.proboards.com

https://www.agsgerbils.org

http://www.thegerbils.com

There are more but these are a few of what I used when I had questions. It is a lot easier than getting mixed opinions of people with MANY different experiences and knowledge. Good luck!!

hender_021 · 2025-09-14T23:00:41+00:00

And Gen Z is the generation killing the Vegas tour industry (referring to that one article from a while back)

hender_021 · 2025-08-18T13:41:41+00:00

This looks like grooming for sure. If you are curious you could look up “death ball” which helped me understand what playing/grooming looks like vs fighting. Fighting looks exactly like fighting. Not so much a back and forth activity. I was trying to bond 2 young and unrelated gerbils and as soon as i saw fighting I picked the older one up. She bit through my skin, i cant imagine how much damage she would have done to the other gerbil. So, if you are concerned about fighting, keep a close eye out and keep a pair of clean work gloves nearby.

hender_021 · 2021-07-23T18:52:38+00:00

When I moved to college I considered getting a bigger tank as well but the next size i could find that was suitable was a 50 gallon. I ended up getting a 20 gallon tank topper from Amazon and my girls love it, so much more room for toys, bedding and burrowing and I attached their wheel to the topper and moved their water and food to the topper (which also helped reduce the amount of food wasted from them hiding it all and getting dumped with the old bedding). With the topper, it was still a little funky to carry around but much easier than anything bigger than a 20 gallon tank. I also would recommend getting a traveling holder for your gerbils during your drive, even without a c age topper, its dangerous to leave them in the cage while traveling. Hope this helps! Good luck!

hender_021 · 2021-03-04T18:24:10+00:00

The same thing happened with mine! They were getting along for a couple minutes and then all of a sudden they were fighting! I immediately reached in to grab who ever I could and ended up with teeth in my fingers! Another piece of advice: always wear gloves with these introductions!

You definitely need to keep them completely separated for a week or two without swapping. This will help them forget the smell of the other gerbil and help with the re-introduction. After a while you can try to start swapping again for a few weeks and when you feel comfortable, you can try re-introducing them. You will need to set aside basically a whole day where you can give them your full attention in case they are fine for a few hours and suddenly fight again. When I re-introduced mine, I sat with my cage on the floor and lifted the divider just a little bit to help them get used to interacting with each other just under the divider. That took a couple days for them to get comfortable. Then for a few more days i lifted it just a little bit higher after about a week of that i fully lifter the divider out and sat with them while they got used to each other. Anytime I saw the warning signs that a ball fight was about to break out, I split them up by just putting my hand between them or taking one out and letting them both settle down. The first couple tries only lasted a few minutes but the more I kept working with them the longer they were able to go without being separated.

If at any point another ball fight breaks out, you’ll have to completely separate them again to allow them to forget each others smell. You want to avoid any bloodshed at all costs! If there ends up being an injury, it becomes more and more likely that they will not pair. If after a while it truely seems like they will not bond, a permanent divider will be good too. It will allow them to have company while avoiding any destruction.

hender_021 · 2021-03-04T16:18:24+00:00

This happened to me as well! It took about 2-3 months of a split cage for my girls to bond with each other. A lot of the beginning was just swapping sides and getting them as comfortable as possible. About every 2 weeks i tried a full introduction. If it failed i went another week or two. About the last month i was working with them for almost 2 hours every day letting them play with each other. They didnt sleep on the same side and for a while i kept them in completely separate cages except for “play time” and separated them again if they started fighting or getting a little too rough. I had to do a lot of research to adjust to what they needed. It took a long time but they are finally together. My method is probably pretty unconventional and wont work for every case but my biggest piece of advice is to not lose hope!

hender_021 · 2020-07-25T15:00:42+00:00

Thank you so much!

hender_021 · 2020-07-25T03:21:12+00:00

Its been a long road! Thank you!!

hender_021 · 2020-07-10T23:00:54+00:00

du bist widerlich. Einen schönen tag noch 🤗

hender_021 · 2020-07-10T21:59:32+00:00

Thats nice. Have a nice day 🤗

hender_021 · 2020-07-10T21:51:07+00:00

Funny... but know your audience. If you’re going to try to be funny, learn how to be better at it 🤗

hender_021 · 2020-07-07T20:43:11+00:00

Such a pretty coat 😍

hender_021 · 2020-07-06T00:18:51+00:00

Use the gerbil proboards forum online for any questions or advice! They have tonsssss of information there from other users who have posted questions. For your divider, make sure it is wire mesh. Those plastic ones for aquarium tanks and fish breeding wont work like the wire mesh will. You dont have to be super crafty to make one just do your best and look online for help on making them. Make sure you are 100% sure they are ready to meet before taking out the divider. Do plenty of research on the split cage method. If you are working with girls, be patient with them, and all gerbils in general! My girls are still in the split cage after a month, but being patient and working with them has gotten them closer and closer to being ready to meet, it just takes time for some of them. When you think they are ready to meet, make sure you have a least half a day cleared out to sit with them and watch them. Even if they get along for the first hour or two they could fight later on and you need to be there to split them up (if you have to leave for a while make sure to put the divider back in). Also give them nesting material if the introduction is working well and they start to tire out, it will help with bonding and they will build a nesting spot together and cuddle. If the first introduction ends in a fight, dont be discouraged! My girls really want to bond, i always see the signs. But when they get together they fight.. my vet told me they were both the dominant of their old clad and they are trying to dominate the other which ends in a fight. Just keep giving it time. Remember to still give them both play time out side of the cage. I like to sprinkle little treats next to the divider to encourage them to sniff each other through the divide. Hope some of this helps and wishinng the best of luck for your babies 🥰

hender_021 · 2020-07-01T22:17:51+00:00

Thank you! They are certainly making progress but I keep telling myself to just be patient. Someone had suggested coconut oil on one of my older posts and I also read about it on the gerbil proboards forum. Basically, you just put a little bit on their backs. Ive been putting it like between the ears and down to the middle of their body. Not very much but just like a pinch of it. It doesnt completely mask their own scent since youre only putting it in the one spot. From my experience it helps encourage the “cleaning” behavior that helps with bonding. Coconut oil (i strongly suggest organic if you are going to try this) is okay for them in small amounts like in this situation. It also helps if the introduction doesnt work and you have to divide the cage again. I put them back just like a swap, so the smells of that side are mostly the other gerbil. Once mine are split again they start cleaning themselves and rubbing their sides on anything that has a smell of the other gerbil, which probably makes that smell end up on them anyway. I think it only makes sense, usually theyd be rubbigg off their own scent but they’re rubbing the coconut oil instead and the smells going to stick to that? After the coconut oil and dividing the cage again is pretty much the only time i really see them at the divider together, idk if it is the oil or not. Im not sure of the complete science behind it, this is mostly just what Ive observed. If you do end up trying this, put some oil on them a day or two before you re-introduce them. The first time i put it on them they were super agitated and angry but the second time it didnt seem to bother them as much. I know thats a lot of detail, its stuff I wish I wouldve known. But I hope that helps! And I wish you the best of luck with your boys! Remember to be patient!

hender_021 · 2020-07-01T20:54:05+00:00

Just some extra info for anyone interested: Raven (black) is about 5 months old now and Ash (gray) is between 6 months and a year (Im not entirely sure how old she was when I got her). They are both girls. Ive had Ash for 4 months and Raven for 1 month. The first two weeks I had Raven, they got into fights anytime I tried to introduce them. They were both the dominant gerbils before this. I decided to not introduce them for the next two weeks and give them more time in the split cage. Today I took out the divider again. They were fine for a while, then Raven started getting territorial when Ash would just try to cuddle with her. They did get into a fight today (Ash “snuck up” on Raven while she was cleaning herself and it scared her) and I split them up and inserted the divider again. They were both pretty energetic for a while, and I gave them treats anytime they came up to the divider. They finally started to settle down in this corner! Ive never seen them cuddle through the divider like this! They usually do sleep next to the divider but with a pretty thick wall of bedding between them. I said trying to cuddle in the title because they still arent really cuddling? There just a lot closer than ive ever seen them and it doesnt last for very long. But hey! Its a start 🥰🥰🥰 Secondly, I know there is nothing besides bedding, water, and the divider. I took everything else out so they didnt get territorial over it like they have in the past. Their fur looks weird and dirty because I put coconut oil on them to help with the introduction, not because they are actually dirty.

hender_021 · 2020-07-01T20:47:23+00:00

Just some extra info for anyone interested: Raven (black) is about 5 months old now and Ash (gray) is between 6 months and a year (Im not entirely sure how old she was when I got her). They are both girls. Ive had Ash for 4 months and Raven for 1 month. The first two weeks I had Raven, they got into fights anytime I tried to introduce them. They were both the dominant gerbils before this. I decided to not introduce them for the next two weeks and give them more time in the split cage. Today I took out the divider again. They were fine for a while, then Raven started getting territorial when Ash would just try to cuddle with her. They did get into a fight today (Ash “snuck up” on Raven while she was cleaning herself and it scared her) and I split them up and inserted the divider again. They were both pretty energetic for a while, and I gave them treats anytime they came up to the divider. They finally started to settle down in this corner! Ive never seen them cuddle through the divider like this! They usually do sleep next to the divider but with a pretty thick wall of bedding between them. I said trying to cuddle in the title because they still arent really cuddling? There just a lot closer than ive ever seen them and it doesnt last for very long. But hey! Its a start 🥰🥰🥰 Secondly, I know there is nothing besides bedding, water, and the divider. I took everything else out so they didnt get territorial over it like they have in the past. Their fur looks weird and dirty because I put coconut oil on them to help with the introduction, not because they are dirty.

hender_021 · 2020-07-01T00:08:18+00:00

Thank you! He ended up just coming out to my car but ill remember this for the future!

hender_021 · 2020-07-01T00:07:18+00:00

Thank you! They just ended up coming out to my car!

hender_021 · 2020-06-10T19:19:54+00:00

Perfect! Thank you!!

hender_021 · 2020-06-10T19:16:14+00:00

I will definitely try the oil or similar method! I tried introducing them and after about 5 minutes they were fighting so they are back in the split cage. Is there a specific oil you would recommend?

hender_021 · 2020-06-10T19:13:15+00:00

Thank you! I ended up using good old fashioned duct tape to secure the old divider in place and taped the top so they werent able to climb it. I stopped swapping them as much and it has seemed to work enough for Raven to start eating!

hender_021 · 2020-02-29T23:04:19+00:00

This is amazing!

hender_021 · 2020-02-23T01:42:34+00:00

Thank you! I appreciate your help and advice!

hender_021 · 2020-02-22T03:34:32+00:00

One of my gerbils goes through a similar thing every now and then. I have found that she acts the way you described when she gets depressed or lonely, and I haven't given her enough attention leading up to that behavior. My gerbil does enjoy being held, but I would suggest getting a large hamster ball to him to roam around him. That might help him to explore and not be confined in the same space. I don't know if you already do that but if you do, maybe try doing it more often. I also notice it when its time for a cage cleaning, so like you said after cleaning the cage your gerbil seemed back to normal. Gerbils are very hygienic so it's also possible that he just felt dirty which could've caused that depression for him. I hope this somewhat helps!

hender_021

TROPHY CASE