Missing My Boys

I've only been away from my two furry boys (well...three if you count C) for three days, and it feels like it's been a MONTH since I've seen them!

The first time I left the gerbils for an extended time was in 2008. When I returned, Pendy and D took turns scent-marking me! I also got many gerbil-kisses as a "welcome home" greeting. I was worried that they might forget about me, or lose interest, but their love for their mama was still apparent, as was my love for them! Plus, it was not as if they were left entirely on their own. Their "grandparents" and their "uncle" J took quite good care of them, and from what I could see, they had been spoiled!

Pendy and Tig will be traveling by car with C to meet up with me in time for Christmas. Pendy is a pro at riding in a vehicle. We put him in his critter-carrier and carry him out to the car (where his tank is already waiting). There, we place him in the tank, and repeat the process with Tig (in his own tank, of course!) We remove the wheel and the water dish from the tank because we don't want the gerbs to get injured, or have to sleep in wet aspen!

Safety first! Buckle up, boys!

C will stop periodically on the drive to give them water, and their wheel for a little entertainment. Of course, the gerbs will have plenty of cardboard tubes to chew on during the drive.

 

C will make sure to take many breaks, as it is quite a long drive. Tig is an adventurous little gerbil, so I imagine he will take to the drive quickly. Forget Christmas - I am counting down the days until I get to cuddle my three boys again!

Tig enjoys a good book. Perhaps he will read on the drive?

Gerbs Enjoy the Holidays, Too!

I especially enjoy the holidays for it gives me an excuse to make little crafts for the boys!

Last year, I pulled some materials together and painted snowflake ornaments: one for Pendy, one for D!

The boys also needed something to set out for "Santa Paws". We set out some yummy gerbil treats, and I put together a couple of stockings in which to receive presents!

Although D has left us in body, he has not left us in spirit :) We hung up his stocking and ornament in his honor!

Tig, alas, had nothing, so today I painted this ornament for him:

I haven't made a stocking for him yet, but if I run out of time I will make sure Santa Paws knows to drop off some gifts for Tig! Next year, my goal is to create a gerbil tree-topper. The holidays are for rodents, too!

Favorite (Store-Bought) Toy for Gerbs

The boys are pretty fussy with new things, especially Pendy! But there is one toy that Pendy and Tig can not get enough of:

The Super Pet Combo Toy Hamburger!

When we introduced Pendy and D to this toy, it took them a few days to begin chewing on the burger. Once they started, they were completely enamored. Tig took to the burger right away, and now we go through two of these twice a month! (One for Pendy, one for Tig) Luckily, the pet stores around here seem to keep them in stock.

 

D'Agosta with his burger!

 

The burger is made up of a combination of small pet-friendly wood and chewable loofah made from dried-out gourds. It keeps our gerbils' teeth healthy and sharp, and also provides them with a challenge: " How can I get to the delicious loofah in the middle?" 

I was a little uneasy when I saw that the loofah was so brightly colored, but the product is dyed with vegetable dye, an animal-friendly coloring method. The boys have had many burgers already in their lives, and they keep coming back for more, so I figure this toy has been safe entertainment for them.

 

D attacking the burger from behind! Sneak attack!

Cardboard tubes will always be their favorite, but our furry guys can't get enough of Super Pet's burger!

 

The New Set-Up

Our options for the little guys were: 1) Buy a HUGE tank, and split it down the middle or 2) Buy another 20-25 gallon tank so each gerb could have his own home. We went with option 2, and the boys couldn't be happier!

We moved my computer desk out of my work-room (which now leaves me desk-less, but I will solve that issue at another time!). It fit perfectly in our bedroom, and I think it makes the room seem smaller and more cozy. The boys have been running around non-stop since we blew their minds with individual tanks. Gerbs may be social, but these little devils are loving their independence!

And now, some gerbil love :)

Splitting the Tank, Day 13 - No Success

Our conclusions from our split-tank experiment are as follows:

• Tig, while he has begun sleeping near the mesh AND greeting Pendy through the mesh in the morning, continues to attempt to bite Pendy's nose off during all supervised play dates (of which there were few, for this reason).

• Pendy seems to have developed a little bit of  "gerbil depression" from having gone from a full-sized 20-25 gallon gerbilarium to half that. The fact that he is sharing this space with his arch-nemesis is not helping, either.

• Both gerbils seem their happiest when they are out (separately) on free runs, supervised by myself and C. Gerbils are generally social creatures, but these little guys seem very happy with their respective independence.

So what are we going to do?

We've decided to buy another tank, and allow our boys to live peacefully side-by-side...in separate tanks. It's not fair to Pendy to have to wait so long in such a small space, when he is used to a pretty large tank. Poor Tig has always lived in a small space, so hopefully it will make his day when he gets his very own gerbilarium with a wheel, and toys, and places to burrow!

Plus, it is Christmas, so we wrote a letter to Santa Paws asking him to grant this little gerbil wish. It will make holiday transportation of the boys very difficult! But it will be worth it in the end.

Most of the split-tank stories I researched ended up being tales (or "tails", hehe) of success. We followed the recommendations pretty closely, but we still ended up unsuccessful. But just like people, I guess some gerbils will just never get along!

Fail-Whale, Rodent Style

Troublesome Teeth

In June 2009, D'Agosta stopped chewing on cardboard tubes.

I knew instantly that something was the matter, since D'Agosta and Pendy would never refuse a toilet paper tube! The little guy would sniff the tube and then ignore it. I also noticed that he was yawning frequently, and his paws were constantly at his mouth.

After phoning several veterinary offices, looking for a doctor who was familiar with gerbils,  we took D to the Maritime Animal Hospital. The staff was beyond friendly and helpful, and I would recommend their services to any gerbil owners in the area. Upon investigation, it seemed as though D's teeth front teeth were too long, and were preventing his back teeth from touching. A quick tooth trim, and D was sent home, no worse for the wear.

A few days later, D was back to pawing at his mouth. When I looked into his mouth (which is a little challenging with a squirmy gerbil) I saw that one of his front teeth was hanging a little crooked. We went back to the doctor's to have it checked out. When the doctor trimmed his crooked tooth - surprise! - the tooth fell out! D apparently had a loose tooth, which was what had been bothering him all this time.

D's behavior improved quickly after that. His tooth grew back, and he was eating again (although he was very spoiled from having Mama shell all of his seeds for him when he couldn't chew!) And most importantly to D'Agosta, he could chew on his beloved cardboard tubes once more!

Little did I know then, but this situation prepared me for what happened to Tig in the first few days we had him home. Tig was not eating, and did not seem to be interested in chewing on anything. I first chalked it up to him being in a new environment, and I wondered whether he favored a different brand of food. After some observation, I then noticed the same yawning/pawing-at-the-mouth behavior that I had seen in D'Agosta.

Upon inspection, Tig was missing one tooth, and the other tooth appeared to be loose. We spent the next day feeding him through a syringe, softening up his food with water, and watching his mouth to make sure it did not show signs of infection. Luckily, Tig's teeth grew in quickly, and he has already put on a few healthy pounds with all the food he's been eating :) I feel like I could be a gerbil dentist!

Detective C Is On the Case!

Last night, during his evening run, Tig had a wee accident on the bed! C took this as a sign to put on his aviators and investigate the incident, Lt. Horatio Caine-style...

Splitting the Tank

To ensure that Pendy and Tig did not fight to the death on their first night together, we divided the "gerbilarium" in two with wire mesh and wood. We chose a mesh small enough so that the gerbs would be able to smell each other without being able to stick their paws through to scratch each other.

We then created a wooden border around the mesh, to ensure that the gerbs would not injure themselves on the edges of the wire mesh.

Once finished, we wedged the new tank-splitter into the "gerbilarium", and made sure that a full-grown gerbil would not be able to move it (or climb up over it). Pendy was our test subject! Of course, being a curious gerbil, Pendy immediately made a beeline for the top of the tank.

To prevent Pendy and Tig from escaping, we placed pieces of wood over top of the tank-splitter. The wood was wide enough to prevent the boys from reaching over and pulling themselves up to the top of the tank.

As a gerbil "Mom", the most difficult part of making the split-tank was taking Pendy's toys away from him. Since a split-tank has to be "nothing but the basics" (food, water, cardboard tubes), we had to remove Pendy's favorite toy - his wheel! I think this was more upsetting to him than the idea of a new tank-mate.

Even placing the "basics" around the tank was a challenge. We had to find a safe place for the food and water dishes. Pendy and Tig spent much of their first night climbing up the mesh and jumping off, and we did not want them to fall and hurt themselves on the dishes.

On the first night, Tig managed to reach over and take a swipe at Pendy! Tig's arms were so small that he was able to fit through the mesh. The next time we create a split tank, we will likely create a double layer of mesh to prevent injuries like this from occurring.

This was challenging in many ways. D'Agosta had just passed away that week, and we were both still devastated over his loss. Pendy was stressed because he had not only lost a partner, but half of his tank as well! Tig was stressed due to his brand-new surroundings, and the fact that he now shared a tank with a strange gerbil. WE were stressed because we wanted the boys to like each other, we wanted Tig to feel at home, and we were worried about something happening to either one. It didn't help that Tig was having tooth problems, and was skin-and-bones, but that is a story for another post.

I think it'll be worth it. Pendy was very lonely without a gerbil buddy, and it may take a while, but I have a feeling he and Tig will be close pals eventually.

Twin Squeaks is my favorite resource for everything gerbil! Visit the site for more split-tank "tails" and advice.

My Gerbils, Past & Present

Al, George, and Scratchy: I adopted these little guys from my Grade 11 Biology classroom. I named Al and George after Al Gore and George W. Bush, as the 2000 US Presidential Election was happening at the time. My brother gave Scratchy his name after his favorite habit - to dig and scratch! They lived (happily, I hope) for about 3 years. I wish I had taken pictures of them!

Pendergast - Pendy is a wild little 1.5 year old guy! He and his brother D'Agosta were a Valentines gift from my fiance. Instead of buying each other gifts, we decided to invest in two furry creatures. Pendy is adventurous and brave. He catches on to things very quickly, and is very observant! He has made several escape attempts during free-run time outside of the tank. We love him for his ability to make us laugh, and how excited he gets to see us every morning!

D'Agosta - D is Pendy's quieter, chubbier, blonder brother. They are both named after characters from the novels of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. What a sweet little guy! D was always cuddling into us, and he loved grooming us and giving us kisses. He never turned down a treat! We also think he was training for the Olympics. See the video evidence here! We were devastated when D fell ill with liver complications. We tried two different types of antibiotics, but to no avail. We were with him, cuddling and holding him up until his death. He passed away at 1.5 years in the arms of his Mama and Daddy, and I hope this gave him some comfort. We miss him so much, and his brother Pendy does, too!

Tig -  Tig is named after the character of the same name in the television series "Sons of Anarchy"! Tig is short for "Trigger", and that suits Tig just fine. Tig came home to us at around 6-7 weeks with one tooth missing and the other tooth loose. The first few days were spent nursing him with a syringe and making sure he had enough nutrients. He seems to be loving our home, especially the areas where he can have a free run! He is pretty focused on removing Pendy from the picture, but he may just be trying to prove himself as the "alpha male". Whatever the case, Tig is a riot to watch, and we are hoping that he and Pendy eventually become the best of friends.

Day 6 of Our Split-Tank Adventures

When our beloved gerbil, D'Agosta, passed away, my fiance and I decided to find another tank-mate for our lonely gerbil, Pendergast. We found Tig, and brought him home to meet his new brother-from-another-mother. This is our first foray into using a split-tank!

Pendy seems to be getting used to Tig, which is a surprise because we had thought Pendy would be the difficult one. Pendy is very territorial and jealous when it comes to his tank, and to us! However, Pendy has made the first move towards friendship by attempting to groom Tig through the mesh divider.

Unfortunately, Tig is still in "attack" mode, and there have been several attempted assassinations during supervised play time! Tig was abused by his litter mates before he came home to us, so this may be influencing his current behavior.

Whatever the reason, it seems as though the boys will be in their split tank for a while longer. We are also going to have them switch sides more often. This allows Pendy and Tig to get used to each others scent, and helps prevent them from becoming too territorial. Fingers crossed that this works!