Introducing GerbilsSometimes you may want to or need to introduce Gerbils to eachother, it may be that you had a pair and one suddenly died; you bought a single gerbil without knowing that Gerbils prefer to live in pairs; or you even decided you'd like to breed.
Caution needs to be taken when introducing two gerbils, you can not just pop them in together and expect them to get on like a house on fire. It is more likely that they will end up as a flying ball of fur - should this happen then you have to seperate immediately as the gerbils are in the midst of fighting to the death. Should there be any fights then use gloves or something else to divide, as they will bite you, it is not that they don't like you, they are just terrified and will bite anything - it is an automatic responce.
Males are usually more easy to pair up with another gerbil, especially a youngster (between 5 and 10 weeks old, the younger the better) as they take on the pup as their own son and are quite happy to father them. Males can also be more easy to pair with another mature male, but it is best to be cautious, take your time and use the split-tank method.
Females are generally said as being more difficult to pair and more likely to fight and declan when they are older. So if you want to pair a lone female up, be very cautious and use the split-tank method to be sure.
Pups between 5 and 10 weeks old are generally easy to introduce together, the younger the better and the closer they get to 10 weeks old the more likely you are to experience fighting. With 5 week old pups you can simply put them in a tank together with no problems at all, they will sniff at eachother and then carry on as if nothing happened.Attempting to add another gerbil into an already established group is generally a bad idea, even with using the split-tank, unless you split them all up into their own space. It is difficult to get a bonded pair to accept any newcomer to the colony, and should be avoided. I have heard of people using vanilla essence, talcuum powder and other things to 'mask' the smell of the other gerbil, the idea is to put the vanilla on all gerbils, so they all smell the same and therefore accept eachother. This to me seems too risky and I personally wouldn't attempt it, but for some it has worked - was this due to having very calm gerbils or was it because of the essence?? We will never know.
In my own experience I have never had any fights from both sexes and so for me I would say they are both fine together, it all depends on the gerbils you have and where they came from. If they have come from a long line of gerbils bred for their temperament, then they are more likely to be more calm, friendly and less likely to fight. I have also never had any deaths that leave me with a lone gerbil and so I don't have that experience yet even after keeping gerbils for 4 1/2 years.
If one gerbil dies, you may be left with the decision of trying to pair it up with a new mate, it comes down to what you want to do, if you feel the lone gerbil is depressed and lonely then perhaps it would be best to pair them, but if the lone gerbil is doing fine on its own, perhaps it is best not to cause uncessessary stress, especially if the gerbil is over 2 years.
Split-tank method
Whenever introducing two strange gerbils to eachother, always use the split-tank method. This way you can guarantee no fights between your two little fuzzies. The method may take, days or weeks to successfully introduce two gerbils, it all depends on their own personailities, some will accept eachother straight away, whilst others may take weeks to do so.
The Split-tank works on allowing your gerbils to smell, see and to some extent touch eachother without being able to do any damage or harm to one another. As gerbils are highly terratorial, if you were to simply put them in a tank together the likliness of them fighting is extrmemly high, and they will most likely fight to the death.
You need a tank of some sort, a glass aquarium is best. This needs to be divided somehow using wiremesh, you can glue wooden batons to the side of the glass using sicilone aquarium sealant - this is non-toxic for the fish and so it is perfectly safe for gerbils and then sliding the mesh between them. A double layer of mesh is best, otherwise you could end up with gerbils missing a toe on a paw or having a bite to their nose.
Try to leave the tank as empty as possible, the idea is to get the gerbils to interact as much as possible with eachother, and not to have any distractions from the other gerbil. So keep the tank dressing as a minimum, with waterbottle, bedding, food and perhaps some cardboard to chew at. Keep switching the gerbils over, so that they spend time in both sides of the tank.
Signs that your gerbils are ready for the mesh to be removed are:No aggression, being relaxed when switching their sides
Sleeping in the nest of the other gerbil and/or both sleeping next to the divide.
Trying to groom through the mesh
Once they are showing these signs, then perhaps try removing one of the sheets of mesh, so that there is only one layer dividing the two, see how they both react to this and if all the above signs are being met then remove the final divide. They should get along fine, be sure to watch them carefully until they are asleep together in the same nest. When they are asleep together you can be pretty certain that the introduction has worked. You can try putting them both in a freshly cleaned tank, where there is no scent, a know a lot of site advise this, but infact this is going against the whole idea of the split-cage. The point of the split-cage is to get the two gerbils USED to the scent of the other, by removing the scent of both you are rendering the method completely redundant.
When removing the divide be sure to keep the tank rather bare, this way you'll have no fights over terratory - if there's nothing in there except a water bottle and tissue then there's no cause for arguments.
Making the split-tank
To make the split-tank you will need:
A Glass Aquarium (10 gallon, 20 Gallon etc)
Metal Mire mesh - can be bought from any hardware/DIY store.
Wire cutters
Pencil
Saw
Wood strips, 1cm squared, length of wood needs to be able to produce 9 lengths for the split.
Aquarium Sealant.
Tape measure/ruler
Sanding paper
We used a UK 10 Gallon tank, the tank being 18'' x 12'' x 12''. As we are doing a double split, we need 9 lengths all 12''. These are cut to length, sanded down if needed and then glued in using the aquarium sealer - this needs leaving for 24-38 hours. N.B you may need to remove the glass lips on the tank first, you can do this by using Acetone or by cutting it with something like a cheese cutter.
The wood is left to dry, and on the bottom pieces a heavy object was placed to keep them under pressure and glued nice and tight, and the side pieces were held using some cellotape, this helped keep them in place whilst drying. The next day we were able to begin cutting the mesh and put the gerbils in as the glue was dried.
Next you will need to cut the mesh, two lengths 12'' x 12'' square. Be careful not to leave any of the sharp edges that you get, so you may end up with a small gap at the top, as long as it isn't over 5 millimetres you should be fine. For example:
These little bits need cutting off and then the metal filing down after as the metal can be pretty sharp!
Once you have done that, your split-tank is finished! Now you need a lid, which too can be made out of the wire mesh, and you're ready to go.