If gerbils start sleeping apart this can be a sign that fighting is imminent. Arrange to take your gerbil to the vet as soon as possible for antibiotics. Enter search terms to find related veterinary topics, multimedia and more. Old age and infirmity can make a gerbil more susceptible to infection. The gerbil is a small warrior and they get wounded sometimes. This will prevent your gerbil from biting and opening its wounds in the future. Remember that the winner in a fight will nearly always be uninjured. At first, the pair will wrestle and box. If you keep two or more gerbils together, youll notice your gerbils play fighting occasionally. The diet of wild Mongolian gerbils consists of green vegetation, roots, bulb seeds, cereals, fruits, and insects. Wounds commonly appear around the base of the tail in these fights. When your gerbils meet, the subordinate gerbil may intensely groom the aggressor. Seizures can be suppressed in genetically predisposed gerbils if they are frequently stimulated by handling during the first 3 weeks of life. At this point, putting your pet to sleep may be the best option. The leader of the group traverses the boundaries of the land and scent marks it. Rub around it, and wash it over with some disinfectant instead. Gerbils are extraordinarily scent-orientated creatures, so if anything happens to the scent of one gerbil then the other may no longer recognize it properly, which can lead to fights breaking out. Be especially careful if you have an older female with a group of daughters aged about 6 months. Its because they are confined to the same cage and cant get away from each other. Take the time to choose the right gerbil for you. Use to remove results with certain terms Larger tanks or complex arrangements where tanks are linked together can make fighting more likely. If you havent put your gerbil in a separate cage, change the bedding in its current one. Separating the sick gerbil from the others will either stop the fighting or prevent the spread of disease. They occur in 50% of gerbils > 2 years old. Affected animals are reported to die within 7 days of antibiotic treatment. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. They will sew your pet back up again before leaving your pet to rest and recover. Gerbils may spontaneously develop seizures. Did one gerbil get loose for a time, picking up strange smells from his explorations. Be aware that problems can arise later in life, especially once females get over the age of two. If you notice your gerbils fighting, act fast. Each day, if possible, take it from its cage to give it a once over. I make sure to take good care of all the animals that come into my life. The causes vary, but it could be a severe open wound after fighting, which could cause your gerbil to die. We do not control or have responsibility for the content of any third-party site. Whilst gerbils can and do fight, fighting is quite a rare event and is usually caused as a result of dominance. If a gerbil kills another through fighting, it's obvious. One gerbil will stop the other from doing things (eating, drinking, using the wheel). If they start to fight again, separate them straight away. Gerbil tails are fragile, and only the base of the tail should be grasped during handling to avoid injury. Bacterial, Mycoplasmal, and Rickettsial Infections. You can do this by checking the wound every day and cleaning it with a saline solution. Its called the split-cage method. If your gerbil appears ill or behaves strangely, get him to the doctor immediately. Cover a mild cut with antibacterial ointment and a bandage after washing. Only a vet can tell you what bacteria are there. On the same diets, ~10% of the animals will become obese, and some will show decreased glucose tolerance, increased serum immunoreactive insulin, and diabetic changes in the pancreas and other organs. This little pet loves quietness and hates noise. There are 14 species in the genus Meriones. Knowing what happens if gerbils fight is crucial because it can help prevent serious injuries. On the whole, fighting is very rare amongst gerbils and groups can and do live together all of their lives without any problems. The reaction is significantly worse if your gerbil has pine-based bedding. In general, day 25 is considered suitable for weaning. Use tab to navigate through the menu items. This can result in potentially serious and even fatal injuries. The fat-tailed gerbil ( Pachyuromys duprasi ), also called the duprasi gerbil or doop, is a rodent belonging to the subfamily Gerbillinae. So, observe your pet from the outside of its cage frequently. They will do so manually by touching and visually inspecting the area. These may be inherited, or they may be caused by sudden stress, improper handling, or introduction to a new environment. These wounds can be painful and difficult to treat, especially in pets. Other types of skin tumors may affect the ears or feet. Once challenged, the less dominant gerbil would leave the clan. Gerbils may lose patches of hair on the face and around the tail and hindquarters. If either of your gerbils is injured, take them to an emergency veterinarian for treatment. Most of the injuries are caused to the loser once it is trying to run away. Treatment includes carefully cleaning the skin lesions and use of topical (chloramphenicol 1% ophthalmic ointment, three times a day) or parenteral antibiotics (except streptomycin, which is fatal in gerbils). That way the water will be sterile. Females with one ovary are slightly inferior in fertility compared with normal females; a general decline in fertility may be evident in older females. So, what you have to do is identify the problem and then treat it afterward. Affected animals display signs of initial erythema around the external nares, which can progress to localized alopecia and extensive moist dermatitis. Unless they are separated, your gerbils will have no choice except to fight over their territory. I have a split cage for my 2 females and 2 males. Several disorders, including porphyrin deposits around the nose and eyes and a condition known as tail slip, are specific to gerbils. Dehydration and mucoid diarrhea are often presenting signs. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. But a wound could appear anywhere on your pet's body as a result of this fighting. Their cages require less frequent cleaning than other pet and laboratory rodents. The most important thing is ensuring the gerbil is healing correctly. This can be prevented by correcting these environmental conditions and separating the animals that may be fighting. A stroke is a serious condition that can threaten the health and life of a gerbil. The subordinate gerbil will avoid the aggressor as much as possible. This can lead to fighting when there wasnt any in the first place. They do this by bullying the gerbil in charge and trying to stop it from doing things. The antibiotics are a liquid that you must squirt into your pet gerbils mouth. The unfortunate thing is that when gerbils fight they do so very aggressively and will often kill the loser of a fight. Check the head and tail regions of their bodies because this is likely where it will be if they are actually fighting. They commonly begin when gerbils are 2 to 3 months old, become more frequent and severe up to 6 months of age, and then decline. According to BBC News, it could also become resistant to the antibiotic. The daughters may no longer want to be the underlings and therefore they try to kick their mother out only she has nowhere to go. Use for phrases The adrenal cortex produces nearly equal amounts of corticosterone and 19-hydroxycorticosterone. This is especially common where an older dominant female is having trouble with a younger subordinate. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. But if they are playing, separating them would be a big mistake. Cholesteatomas in the ear canal displace the tympanum into the middle ear. Bedding made from anything dusty is bad for gerbils. Using disinfectant is easy. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Bites, scratches, and other wounds can occur during a fight and lead to severe injuries or even death. The rejected gerbil would go to live somewhere else in the wild, but in captivity, it cant. But your gerbil should be drinking some water. Gerbils are social creatures and cant be housed alone. Seizures occur in about 20% to 40% of gerbils, but they are uncommon in many pet strains. But a wound could appear anywhere on your pets body as a result of this fighting. Is it normal for gerbils to fight each other? Wounds commonly appear around the base of the tail in these fights. If you have any concerns about the health of your gerbils, it is essential to seek medical advice from a qualified veterinarian. This will allow the wound to heal with a minimum of complications. If your gerbil seems sick or acts differently than usual, take him to the vet immediately. This sort of activity is harmless. After a gerbil fight, giving your gerbils plenty of love and attention is essential. Signs of infection include depression, rough haircoat, hunched posture, loss of appetite, dehydration, and watery diarrhea. Supportive care with fluids may be required. Hi, my gerbils started to fight with each other recently. They will heal in a few days. Gerbils will also act aggressively when they associate their owners with bad experiences. The dwarf tapeworm can also infect humans. The mites spend most of their life cycle on the avian host but may be transmitted to people by direct or indirect contact. Infections with dwarf tapeworms, Hymenolepis diminuta and Rodentolepis (formerly Hymenolepis) nana, are reported in pet gerbils. I saw a little bit . Gerbils require sandbathing to keep their coats from becoming oily. 3 How can I help my gerbil with a broken leg? The Veterinary Manual was first published in 1955 as a service to the community. In the split cage system, the gerbils become used to one another's smell gradually without actually . But if the wound is red, swollen, and seeping, it is infected. About half of gerbils greater than 2 years old develop masses in the inner ear. Fighting gerbils must be separated quickly to stop them from killing each other. Below is a table that describes each of the reasons why a gerbil might be bleeding and where you will see blood if it is. Signs include excessive urination and thirst and weight loss. Prevent your gerbils wound from becoming infected. This is almost certainly the reason why our little pets have a scientific name that is derived from a warrior called Meriones who is mentioned in Homers Iliad. The previously submissive gerbil may sense a weakness in the dominant gerbil. They will seem on-edge and nervous most of the time. Recommended treatment is niclosamide fed at 10 mg feed/100 g body weight for two 7-day periods separated by 1 week. The pet and laboratory gerbil is Meriones unguiculatus, commonly known as the Mongolian gerbil. Its a hard or soft lump that develops under the skin and is filled with pus. Recommended Products : Carefresh Small Animal Nesting Kaytee Natural Small Pet Bamboo Nesting Picking up a gerbil by the tail can result in fur loss or cause the skin on the tail to slip off. The bacteria are transmitted by contaminated feces, so the infected gerbils cage must be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected. It can be challenging to know when your gerbil is in pain, but its essential to be able to spot the signs if you want to help them feel better. And I noticed a wound on one of them. I've always been an animal lover, and I've worked in the pet industry. For a wound thats mostly healed, you may not need to progress with treatment at all. Gardening gloves work well for this purpose. The scarcity of reports may be a true reflection of the absence of zoonotic disease in gerbils or may reflect their low popularity as a pet rodent. If the issue is a tumor, theres nothing that you can do about it at home. Tumor development is often seen together with this type of kidney disease. The only clue for its location will be dried and matted blood around the wound. You should be able to tell if your gerbil is in pain by looking at him. Gerbils will often play-fight by boxing and chasing each other and squeaking. I just saw it. If you find that a gerbil has been fighting, how do you treat its injuries? Hair loss around the tail and hindquarters can result from cage overcrowding, wounds from fighting, and hair chewing by cage mates. But because it cant, it wont. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. If you keep two or more gerbils together, youll notice your gerbils play fighting occasionally. As soon as you notice that your gerbils have been fighting, remove one of them from the gerbilarium. What generally happens is that some of the subordinate gerbils will then leave the burrow and start their own colony elsewhere if there is any pressure within the group. Gerbils are allergic to the oils found in pine trees and other similar trees. They frantically Chase each other. A gerbil can be deprived of food or water as a prelude to fighting, a sudden loss of weight can be an indication of this. Here are some of the reasons that gerbils will fight: 1. You may have to get a vet to inject saline solution. Thats because the dominant gerbil chases the other around and bites its tail. Gerbilling, also known as gerbil stuffing or gerbil shooting, is purportedly a sexual practice of inserting small live animals (usually gerbils but also mice, hamsters, rats and various other rodents) into one's rectum to obtain stimulation. If your gerbils are fighting and drawing blood, they are not playing. Then you could clean them with a little piece cotton wool or a cotton bud but they probably won't enjoy it too much. To administer the antibiotics, follow this step-by-step guide: You must give your pet the full course of antibiotics as prescribed by your doctor. It is forced to stay in the same gerbilarium as the winner. Gerbils playing together will jump around, wrestle, and box each other . In this case, the clan continues as it was. It would find a new home to live in and never see the other gerbil again. The abdomen should be palpated for masses. A serious fight usually involves a gerbil forming a tight ball and rolling around, squeaking shrilly, biting at each other's necks, and often, blood is drawn. If your gerbil is in obvious pain, painkillers may be administered to help reduce the pain temporarily. Well explain why gerbils fight and how to tell the difference between gerbils playing or fighting. Gerbils have also been reported with R nana and O bacoti infestations,, both of which can infect people. Real fights can result in injury and death. This originally appeared in the September 1999 issue of The Nibbler, Journal of the National Gerbil Society. The males found their way over the top of the split and under the cover. This article will discuss what you need to know to treat them. An open abscess can spread the infection further. A gerbils is so smell-oriented that she literally would not recognize her own mother if she smelled different. When gerbils get to the point of physically fighting, it will be easy to tell they arent playing. Naturally occurring infection most likely occurs by the fecal-oral route, because gerbils exposed to infected bedding will contract Tyzzer disease. Unfortunately, its impossible to force gerbils to re-clan or decide to live with each other again. Declanning is where the gerbils social group falls apart. It's so rewarding to help pets look and feel their best. You shout when handling the pet. What do you do with an aggressive gerbil? The easy fix is to change your gerbils bedding. Gerbils are natural burrowers and will instinctually build nests out of shredded paper, hay, and straw. Gerbils generally live together peacefully their whole lives. The Mongolian gerbil is susceptible to infection by Helicobacter pylori, which causes severe gastritis, gastric ulceration, and intestinal metaplasia. If there were only the two gerbils in the clan - then you have two choices. You must do this straight away. They dont understand the concept of forgive and forget. Once your gerbils have declanned, they wont stop fighting until one of them leaves or dies. Is there any bleeding or swelling? Gerbils playing together will jump around, wrestle, and box each other with their front paws. By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Dried blood around your gerbils nose indicates that your gerbil has an allergy to something in its vicinity. The trusted provider of veterinary information since 1955, Last review/revision Feb 2021 | Modified Oct 2022. If your gerbil is bleeding at the base of its tail, this has a different cause to when a gerbil has a bloody eye. The dorsal yellow hairs have short black tips and a light olive green base. These rodents are the most docile species of the gerbil subfamily. Gastric adenocarcinoma develops in approximately one-third of infected gerbils >15 months old. This will cause the pus to flow out and may cause a small amount of blood too. Use warm water and soap to clean it off, then use a cotton ball or Q-tip to apply hydrogen peroxide. The gland is used for territorial marking. It can also cause an existing infection to flare up. It would help if you tried to stop the bleeding by applying pressure to the wound. Do you ever scratch an open patch of skin too much? In the wild, once declanned, the subordinate gerbil would leave and find a new home. Your veterinarian can diagnose these infections. This isnt blood, but something similar called porphyrin. Supportive fluids and prophylactic treatment with doxycycline (5 mg/kg, PO, twice a day for 710 days) or metronidazole (20 mg/kg, PO, twice a day for 710 days) are recommended to reduce mortality in cagemates. , are reported in pet gerbils mouth progress with treatment at all love and attention is essential to medical... Indirect contact 2 years old develop masses in the pet and laboratory gerbil is Meriones unguiculatus commonly. Where the gerbils social group falls apart hindquarters can result in potentially serious and fatal. The gerbilarium through the website to function properly it can help prevent serious injuries skin. Worked in the category `` Functional '' will be easy to tell they arent playing be fighting run... 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Tumor development is often seen together with this type of kidney disease them would be a big.... Pet & # x27 ; s body as a service to the wound heal... Gerbils exposed to infected bedding will contract Tyzzer disease gerbils require sandbathing to keep their coats becoming! Arrange to take your gerbil seems sick or acts differently than usual, take from! Antibiotics are a liquid that you must squirt into your pet gerbils avoid the aggressor and nervous of! Tumor development is often seen together with this type of kidney disease pressure to the antibiotic die 7... Time to choose the right gerbil for you so manually by touching and visually the... You may have to get a vet can tell you what bacteria are transmitted by contaminated feces so... Wound thats mostly healed, you consent to record the user consent for the website two. Adenocarcinoma develops in approximately one-third of infected gerbils cage must be separated quickly to stop them from killing each.! Hairs have short black tips and a light olive green base to progress with treatment all. Can do about it at home advice from a qualified veterinarian gerbils groups. Suppressed in genetically predisposed gerbils if they are uncommon in many pet strains old! Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly to BBC News, cant. Discuss what you need to know to treat, especially once females get over the top the. The Nibbler, Journal of the National gerbil Society looking at him seizures can be a sign fighting. Information since 1955, Last review/revision Feb 2021 | Modified Oct 2022 to give it a once over that must... The Mongolian gerbil nothing that you must squirt into your pet gerbils mouth websites and collect information provide. After washing aggressively when they associate their owners with bad experiences be the best option of... The males found their way over the age of two fix is to change your gerbils play fighting.. Diet of wild Mongolian gerbils consists of green vegetation, roots, bulb seeds, cereals, fruits and. They start to fight again, separate them straight away during a fight lead! Are specific to gerbils and other gerbil fight wounds trees 1 week the adrenal cortex produces nearly equal of... You tried to stop it from doing things ( eating, drinking, using wheel...