Gerbil social behavior

Gerbils often have what looks like boxing matches; this is most common amongst young gerbils (gerbil "pups"). These are gentle play fights which usually end in the winner pinning down the loser and grooming it. However, if a pair of gerbils are fighting closely in a ball shape, with both gerbils biting deeply and drawing blood, careful but swift intervention is in order by the pet owner, using a jar or oven mitts to avoid getting bitten.

Gerbils like to sleep in a group, often on top of each other. Sometimes they will absentmindedly groom each other when half asleep. Gerbils have a form of purring called "bruxing" which they do when they are being groomed or while they enjoy being stroked in the hand by their owner.

Squeaks can occasionally be heard from them, and a squeak is usually an indication of annoyance. When another gerbil steps on another without thinking, it will give a squeak, or when a gerbil tries to steal another's food, it will turn with a squeak, and when a male tries to mate an unsuspecting female, she may well turn around sharply to face him and squeak at him. Gerbil pups will squeak more often when very young, sometimes when feeding or if they have strayed from the nest.

Gerbils will raise their hackles and arch their backs to show aggression, often turned to the side and leaning against the other gerbil's body. Usually this is a warning that a fight is about to occur, and if this behavior is observed it is wise to quickly intervene.

Gerbils will also alert each other to danger by thumping on their hind legs, usually triple thumps repeated in a steady sequence. Gerbils will also thump when sexually excited. Younger gerbils are more likely to start thumping than older ones.

Playing & Handling

Playing & Handling:
When picking your rabbit up you will want to hold it with one hand on its bottom and one hand on its chest area, be careful not to move to fast when your rabbit is in your hands or on you. Never place a rabbit on something high that it could fall off, as a rabbit may not notice the edge. For playing your rabbit should have many toys such as a paper bag, Plastic toys, and stuff to chew on. You may also take your rabbit out of his or her cage and place it in an enclosed area that a rabbit couldn’t get far from, and play games with it.

Exercise & Health care

Exercise:
Ferrets love exercise (playtime) they need lots of stuff like toys to keep them entertained, they also need supervised playtime out of there cage to keep them happy, but make sure they are never left alone outside of there cage because they can escape through just about anything. Some very good ferret toys are found around the house:

-Paper Bags

-Tennis Balls or Baseballs

-String

-Pop Bottles

-Tubes

There are so many things a ferret would love to play with but before you allow your ferret to play with something ask yourself is this safe? do i care if this gets destroyed? And can this hurt my ferret in anyway?



Healthcare:

Like on the Guinea pigs page if you think your ferret has a problem then go see a vet.