Advice of the Gerbil kind!

nomnomnom

That's great news!! Wow, what a little fighter :T

Jenny_Wren_3

I'm pleased that it was a happy ending for you. Not so happy for my son, one of his gerbils died a few days ago of pnuemonia. The other one is fine but they were only 3 months old. He (the remaining gerbil, not my son!) is now in a split cage with a new baby boy in the other half. It takes about a week and lots of being careful but I've read that it is possible to pair bond a new pair. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

picklepick

Thanks for the replies guys. I'm not looking forward to leaving her overnight. She still looks very fragile and isnt moving much except to have the odd nibble of food. I'll refresh her water bottle before bed time and hope that she makes it through the night.

Good luck with integrating a new friend for your gerbil Jenny Wren!

Jenny_Wren_3

I hope that she's ok tonight, let us all know tomorrow ok!

YorkiePud_3

I think gerbils can have little mini-strokes .. that might account for it, or something could have happened that sent her into shock (could she have fallen, or something scare her?) ... best thing is to keep her calm and quiet (and warm!) ... fingers crossed!

calmspirit

sounds like a sleepless night ahead for you !

So pleased that she is ok !

picklepick

Morning guys, well shes still with us.

She had a new hot water bottle last night and i covered her cage with a fleece blanket. She looks a bit more chirpier this morning. I was a bit worried as she was curled up tight in her nest but she came out to see me when i gave her some fresh food. I've put another hot water bottle in and shes having a lovely cuddle with it at the minute.Fingers crossed it was just a shock reaction and she'll make a full recovery. I'm thinking about making a vets appointment but im worried that as shes so frail the shock of the journey itself might kill her. I think ill wait and see how she is this evening.

SnowyOwl_2

picklepick, it might be worth having a telephone conversation with the vet. OK it won't be as good as an actual consultation, but s/he should be able to give you some advice to help you and your gerbil over the phone.

zaksmum

A similar thing happened with one of my guinea pigs some years ago. I thought he had died but then noticed a flicker of a breath from him. Took him to the vet (by then he was breathing steadily but still seemed groggy) and the vet said he'd gone into a sort of false hibernation mode.

This is apparently uncommon but the vet had heard of a few cases of it...the guinea pig was stiff and cold just like your gerbil.

I was told to just keep him warm and quiet with plenty of water in his drinks bottle, and the next day he was fine.

He lived another 18 months and even fathered a litter of babies...so just as well I didn't bury him in the garden.

I hope your gerbil will be ok. Please let us know how you get on.

dubb

Morning all, few weeks ago the wife and I purchased two gerbils, Kevin and Russell (don't ask ) a gerbilarium and all the related gubbins.

After a few days I realised that the gerbilarium appears to be just a tad too small. Sourced a second-hand tank off of a friend which I'm picking up soon.

The question in the back of my head is, how do you hang/affix a water bottle to the inside of the tank? Not a fan of a dish of water 'cos that can be turned over easy, any suggestions people?

Thanks for looking!

Alan