GERBIL WEEK: Gerbilarium

Today is the third day of the WEEK OF THE GERBIL!

Gerbilarium:
A gerbilarium is a cage where a gerbil lives. A simple meaning for a big word!

So what kind of gerbilarium is best? That's a hard thing to say. It depends on your's and your gerbils' preferences. There are many types to choose from, but keep in mind, you should never use a hamster or mouse cage.

What Should My Gerbilarium Have?
Your gerbilarium will need the following:

• To be escape proof and chew proof.
• High walls to hold a lot of bedding.
• Multiple levels
• A water bottle
• A food bowl
• A running wheel
• Bedding
• Food and chew treats

You can add little houses and other things, but they are not necessary as you should have a lot of bedding in the cage for your gerbils to nest in.

Aquarium With High Rise: In my opinion, this is probably the best gerbil set up you can have. This is a 10 gallon aquarium with a high rise. The tank is inexpensive and the high rises can range in price from $30 and up. For this set up, I would recommend filling the tank about 2/3 the way with bedding. Their food bowl, water bottle and running wheel can go in the high rise at the top. In this particular model, the platforms can be moved, so if you wanted, you could make one large platform and take out the smaller ramp. This set up is also very easy to clean, and because all of the bedding in held in the bottom tank, they won't be able to kick a lot of it out and get your floor all messy. Since gerbils love to both burrow and climb, this is an ideal gerbilarium. I highly recommend it, as my friend has one and his gerbils seem happy and healthy.

Gerbilarium High Rise: Gerbilariums such as these are becoming more popular lately. They are still a bit hard to find, but you can order them online.These habitats are designed with gerbils in mind. They are actually very similar to the tank/high rise set up previously mentioned. As you can see, these cages are fairly large and lave a bottom for holding large amounts of bedding. the ramp leads to the top area where there are platforms and a bridge. Their food, water bottle, and running wheel can be placed up here. The ramp and platforms are made of wire so they are chew proof. This set up is easy to clean, though they may be a bit on the expensive side. Multiple same sex gerbils can be house together and this set up is highly recommended.

Home Made Gerbilarium: People make home made gerbils cages all the time! They are often very cheap to make and can be built however the owner wants. People often add shelves to aquariums or add high rises to them using parts from other small animal cages, bird cages, chicken wire and untreated wood. These cages are great for the builder on a budget as they are typically inexpensive, but ease of cleaning is up to the builder and how he/she builds it.  If you build your own gerbilarium make sure it is escape proof and chew proof and no harm can come to the gerbil from living in it.

Aquarium With High Rise: This gerbilarium is more or less the same thing as the very first one i talked about except for one, very important detail: It is plastic instead of all wire. Gerbils are chewing machines! They will chew anything and everything. This is a very nice set up, but I honestly think a pair of gerbils would chew through the plastic ramps, platforms, house, and water bottle in a matter of months if not weeks. I've seen some very rise high rises with tubes instead of ramps, but they too are plastic, and can be chewed very easily. I've witnessed first hand how fast a pair of gerbils can chew through a cage with plastic ramps and platforms. Honestly, I wouldn't recommend this set up, unless you have the money to replace it every few months.

There are so many choices! It can be hard to choose, but hopefully this helps! Until tomorrow guys!

-Tracy