Even sold-sided plastic cages are at risk as somehow gerbils still manage to gnaw through. This makes all sorts of cages inappropriate for them. You can offer vegetables, small amounts of fruits, nuts, and low sugar cereals as treats. The final part of the puzzle is that gerbils are capable of gnawing through even the most solid plastic and wood. There are many varieties of gerbil food mixes which will generally have a blend of fruits, vegetables and seeds and grains and these can be offered as a small part of the diet. Gerbils should be fed a complete pellet and many companies such as Oxbow and Selective Diets make them. Time outside of the cage to explore a safe area is great enrichment. A solid sided exercise wheel in the cage should be available for exercise. Periodically check the corners and edges of the cage to ensure that they have not started chewing any holes that may lead to escape. Make sure to remove any toys that your gerbil is chewing pieces from as these may be ingested and. Make sure that fresh water is available at all times. wood and hard plastic toys found at your local pet store. Water bowls and water bottles attached to the side of the cage should be used. They will chew wood and plastic so only ceramic or metal dishes should be used. Cardboard, wooden chews, grass hay, newspaper, and other destructible toys (avoid plastic) provide good chewing opportunities. Toilet paper rolls offer great hiding places and gerbils enjoy destroying them as well. Gerbils will nest in the bedding and will shred paper if offered to line their nest. Carefresh (recycled shredded paper) bedding is the best option to use at the bottom of the cage at least 1-2” deep. Gerbils urinate and defecate a lot so their cage should be cleaned frequently (at least 1-2 times weekly) to reduce waste odor and contamination.
Aquarium style cages are not appropriate due to poor ventilation. The cage must be escape proof as gerbils are master escape artists! The plastic bottomed cages with wire tops work very well. Gerbils will naturally dig underground tunnels. While it may be tempting to select a plastic gerbil cage, gerbils can and will chew through most plastics in short order Digging and tunneling. Gerbils need a solid bottom cage with a lot of ventilation. The best gerbil cage setup will always be a metal or glass gerbil cage.
Use caution when picking up gerbils because if you hold the end of the tail the skin may come off! Housing Malesshould not be kept with females unless they are neutered because they breed readily and have large amounts of babies. Gerbils can sometimes be kept together if they were raised together and the same gender, however some will still fight and will need to be separated. Gerbils are friendly and generally docile pets and come in a variety of colors.