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Question
I have a group of five male gerbils. Four of them were litter mates and the other was the father. None have never been separated since the birth of the litter mates. We just recently saw chasing going on in the cage by the same gerbil to only one specific gerbil. So, we took the one being chased out and inspected him for wounds. We found some on his stomach and near his genitals. They didn't look extremely bad, from in my own experience I have seen worse. We immediately removed him from the tank and cleaned them with saline solution with a q-tip. I know this is probably a dominance issue since they are getting older now, but what I wanted to know is if I should either (a) remove the bully and put him in a cage by himself and put the one that was chased back, (b)Remove the chased wounded one and place him in a cage alone, or (c) Remove wounded gerbil and place in new tank with another non-bully member from his group so he is not alone. Since, gerbils alone don't live as well or as long.
Submitted: 27 days and 15 hours ago.
Category: Pet
Value: $9
Status: CLOSED
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Optional Information
Pet's Gender: Male
Pet's Age: 1
Type of Animal: Gerbil
Already Tried:
Cleaning wound and removing chased gerbil to new cage about 45 mins ago.
Accepted Answer
Thanks for the question XXXXXXXXXX.
I have kept gerbils and other rodents in the past myself and if I was in this position I would establish two colonies :
1. I would remove the bullied gerbil and place it in new tank with another non-bully member or two from his group so he is not alone, as you say these rodents do better in groups. This may change the dynamics of the original group and solve the problem.
2. I would then observe the bully gerbil and see if this behaviour has stopped, at the end of the day if it continues he will have to be kept alone. While it is not good to keep him on his own there is no reason why the others should suffer.
If I have not covered your question fully enough or you would like to ask more I will be online for the next hour or so and I will be at your disposal.
Scott Nimmo BVMS MRCVS
Expert:
Scott Nimmo BVMS, MRCVS
Pos. Feedback:
99.0 %
Accepts:
Answered:
10/27/2009
Veterinarian
I have 28 years experience in all aspects of small animal medicine and surgery.
27 days and 15 hours ago.
Reply
Okay, thank you so much. We are going to place another non-bully one with the wounded one in the new tank. Also, should I try and clean the wounds with something else, or is the saline solution good enough. I just don't want the wounds to get infected. Should I as well place a heating pad on low under half the tank to keep him warm to recover well?
Posted by
Scott Nimmo BVMS, MRCVS
27 days and 15 hours ago.
Answer
Hello again,
1. Gently wash the wounds with luke warm salt water using a cotton bud, when they appear dry apply a small amount of the likes of Neosporin again using the cotton bud. This should work Ok but if the wounds do obviously get infected your vet can supply antibiotics.
2. Low heat under the tank would be a great idea, also supply lots of comfortable bedding.
Good luck,
Scott
27 days and 14 hours ago.
Reply
Just replying to get an actual expert with gerbils opinion.
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