Small Pet
Should I buy gerbils from a small or large Pet Shop?
Does it make a difference? There is a small pet shop very near my house and I would rather get it from there instead of making a long journey to those really large ones. But does anyone know if gerbils are treated better at the larger shops than smaller ones? Are they healthier when bought from the large stores?
One other thing, the pets at home website said gerbils can live in hamster cages as long as the cages are big enough. Is this true?
A Small Animal pet shop does tend to care for their animals better than other larger stores but this varies considerably from store to store. Some larger stores will take any animal to the vet if it shows ANY signs of sickness (I do know PetSmart does this) while others won't. Some small pet stores do this as well while others simply let the animal pass away. Ask your pet store what happens to their animals if for example a hamster gets wet tail or a rat gets an upper respiratory infection while in their care. Also ask what their policy is on returning animals. You want at least a two week guarantee on them.
Some smaller pet stores breed their own animals. This can either be a good thing or a bad thing depending on the quality of animal and how often they breed from the animal they have chosen as a breeder. Larger stores tend to get their animals from large breeders that don't really breed for health or temperament.
Your best bet is a local shelter. Try petfinder.com for a list of animals in your area already in need of homes. If there are no shelters nearby with gerbils, the pet store should be your last option if you cannot find a breeder in the area. Also try Craigslist.org for your area to see if anyone is looking for a home for their gerbils. Often times these individuals want to see their gerbil go to a good home so they include a cage.
Gerbils can absolutely NOT live in a Hamster Cage regardless of what others may tell you. You can always try it and pray your gerbil is not a chewer, but 85% of the time they can and will chew through any plastic on the cage. The nice tubes and slides that come with the cages usually are chewed through by the week's end. Many pet parents come into my store and are upset that they purchased a hamster cage from another pet store because that's what the employee told them was fine and then they found out the hard way that the gerbil got right through it. Critter Trails are the worst option for gerbils.
There are some options for you rather than a hamster cage. Martins has a nice line of chew proof cages online. You can also get a twenty gallon long (no smaller) aquarium for your gerbils. This needs to be cleaned at least once a week to keep the ammonia down as tanks have poor ventilation. This is the only animal I'd ever say a tank is proper housing for. They also sell wire tank toppers that provide better ventilation for a tank and more room. The only problem with these are that the ramps and levels are more often than not plastic and those get chewed quickly. The wire ramps and levels need to be covered if they are wire holed ramps and levels or little feet can get caught and could possibly end up with bumble foot.
Please let me know if you need any further information and I'd be happy to help you.
Good luck!
=)
~Yelliez
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