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BREEDING GERBILS

First broadcast on www.provet.co.uk  


This information is provided by Provet for educational purposes only.

You should seek the advice of your veterinarian if your pet is ill as only he or she can correctly advise on the diagnosis and recommend the treatment that is most appropriate for your pet.

Gerbils are popular pets and they are relatively easy to breed

Many owners want to breed from their pets but it is irresponsible to breed any pet unless there is a good home for the offspring afterwards - so think twice before you embark on breeding your gerbils.

Gerbils make excellent pets - they are friendly, active, quite easy to look after and interesting to observe. They live for an average of 2-3 years. Putting adult gerbils together can create problems because adults may fight when mixed together, so it is best to mix gerbils when they are young (under 10 weeks of age), and before they are sexually mature. Gerbils are monogamous - which means that they form a lifetime relationship with their mates.

For breeding to be successful the environment that you keep them in must be suitable. Gerbils like to burrow and will build a nest in a tunnel - so a good "home" should :

  • contain clean, damp bedding - eg sand, peat, potting compost, hay. It needs to be damp (but not wet) to retain it's shape when they burrow into it
  • be protected from draughts - a glass tank is an excellent form of housing
  • protected from direct sunlight

Female gerbils are "on season" or "in oestrus" and will accept the male every 6 days all year round if the environment is kept warm. Females start breeding when they are about 100 days of age and they stop breeding at about 18 months of age. They usually  have 4-6 youngsters in each litter and pregnancy lasts for 24-26 days. Remember that females can get pregnant again soon after a litter has been born and they can have a litter every month !!

Unlike some rodents, male gerbils do not usually harm youngsters and they can be left with the female throughout the postnatal period. Gerbils are social animals that are used to living in colonies - but don't disturb the parents with their young until the young gerbils are weaned at 21-28 days of age.

The female needs much more food than usually during the last third of pregnancy, and during the period when she is feeding her young with milk- so make sure enough good quality food and water is present at all times until the youngsters are weaned.

 

Updated October 2013