we had a gerbil problem-Fighting

**cali** · 08-12-2005, 01:44 PM

well my youngest male, Cinder, has lived just fine with the older male brothers, scribbles and doodles, for over 2 years now, but last night as I was delivering water to the piggies I cought Cinder and Doodles fighting like mad, I broke it up and grabed the gerbils food dishes, and when I deliver the food Cinder suddently flew accross the cage at doodles and they started fight again, once again I broke it up and I looked them over, doddles is fine, he just has a small nick on his tail, but Cinder has a cut up nose and neck, since he started the fighting and is the most injured I removed him and put him in a cage in my room. the problem is I have an odd number of gerbils, 2 girls and 3 boys, and gerbils do NOT do well alone, actually Cinders sister Cinnimon passed away when she was an only gerbil in the vary cage that Cinder is in right now. I can try to give him as much human company as possable, but he is not as human orinated as scribbles and doodles are. I am afraid that he will have the same fate as his sister did and I dont want that to happen to him, but there is no way my mom will let me get another gerbil to keep him company. anyone have any ideas on what I can do to prevent him from sharing his sisters fate?

**Suki Wingy** · 08-12-2005, 03:00 PM

Oh no! Maybe if you put the cages right next to eachother they can see eachother and not fight? I really don't know! My sister is getting two females thjis fall. I hope Cinder is ok!

**cali** · 08-12-2005, 07:35 PM

well I have started getting him used to more human interaction, I just locked the door open and placed my hand on the cage and thats was it, just rested my hand there for now. I also figered out that he LOVES breezes, I turned the fan on near his cage and he loved that, he would stay near the side with the most breeze and stand up tall and just let the breeze waft over him, it was so cute lol

**IRescue452** · 08-12-2005, 10:44 PM

Was one out of the cage for a while and just reintroduced? Its almost impossible to reintroduce gerbils once they have been apart for more than a day. I've had tons of gerbils in my lifetime. Some did much better living on their own. Your solitary gerbil did not die of lonliness. I had two that were born together and never seperated but started fighting suddenly and tore each other up bad, I had to keep them seperated for the rest of their time. This might be your only option as you certainly can't let them alone with each other.

**nsweezie** · 08-13-2005, 10:59 AM

I had a similar problem, we had 2 male gerbils who lived together in peace for nearly 1 1/2 years. Then one day, one of the boys escaped, and was out of his cage for about 18 hours. We found him, but when he was reintroduced to his cage mate, a furious, and bloody fight broke out. No matter what we did they would attack each other.
We tried something called a split cage, where there was chicken wire dividing the cage in half, and we would let each gerbil spend a day on one side, then switch and go to the other side. After about a week the two boys were ok.
I've used the 'split cage' several times since, on gerbils that were complete strangers. It can take some time, up to 14 days but it has always worked.
Gerbils do indeed fare better together, but if your little guys are violently fighting I would say that an execption should be made as you don't want them to kill each other, which, unfortunatly can happen.
Good luck,
Louise

**cali** · 08-13-2005, 03:35 PM

nobody had been seperated from eachother for any length of time, I have owned and bred gerbils for going on 10 years, so I know practicly everything there is to know about them, obviously I am not putting them back together, I was just seeing if anyone had ideas for keeping Cinder company since he is not as big a people lover as scribbles and doodles are(doodles got out once a long time ago, I sat down held out my hand and he walked into my lap lol)

as for cinnimon she had been loose roam my house for 3 weeks before we finally caught her, but by then there was no introducing her back to her sisters, they would have non of it so she went to her own cage, but as she had been loose for so long and had no gerbil companions and would not come near people she died alone. I do not want this to happen to Cinder, thankfully is a little friendlier to start with then his sister was, so hopefully he will come around with time, but I doubt he will ever be as tame as scribbles and doodles.

the reason I wont seperate scribbles and doodles is because they are 5 years old and have been together their whole lives, while doodles is strong and healthy Scribbles is blind, doodles protects him, I definatly dont want to leave scribbles in the care of a fighting gerbil, that would be disaster waiting to happen!

**IRescue452** · 08-13-2005, 10:53 PM

Hmm strange. One thing I don't recommend anymore for introductions I chicken wire or anything with broad spaces. I'd use strongly reinfoced wire mesh because my fueding females had chicken wire seperation and one's tail stuck through the wire while she was on her side and the other gerbil bit it off. She lived a full life with a stub tail and I learned to use wire mesh.

**cali** · 08-14-2005, 12:46 AM

lol well seeing as a gerbils tail is a defence mechanism and the end slides right off(sometimes messier then others) its no suprise she did fine with a stub of a tail, I have had it happen before myself, my first gerbils tail came off and at the time we had no idea that this was not a horrable thing so we freaked out, but now I know its normal and the reason you are supposed to pick them up by the base of their tail lol one of my females acually came to me with a stubby tail, her name? Stubby..