A tunneller
In the wild it lives in a network of burrows. A pet gerbil needs bedding deep enough to tunnel in.
Rodents · A little time each day
Mongolian gerbil
Rodent · from the deserts of Mongolia
A slim, sandy-brown rodent with a white belly, large dark eyes and a long furry tail ending in a dark tuft.
- Size
- About 12cm long, plus the tail
- Lives for
- 3 to 5 years
- Suits
- Families who would like to watch them dig
Hops after you, then stands up to look. Move your pointer and see.
Good to know
Six things about the gerbil
It drums its feet
It thumps both back feet on the ground as a warning, and the others join in.
Hardly any smell
As a desert animal it drinks little and produces very little waste, so its home stays clean.
Awake in the day
Unlike a hamster it is active in short bursts by day as well as by night.
A tail that comes off
If it is grabbed by the tail the skin can slip off, so that it escapes. It does not grow back.
A lookout
It often stands upright on its back legs to see what is going on.
The real thing
Photos of the gerbil
.jpg){kind=link}
Photos are from Wikimedia Commons, used under the free licences shown. They have been resized, and cropped where they appear in link previews.
Looking after one
Keep a pair or small group from the same litter in a tank with at least 20cm of bedding, cardboard to shred and a dust bath. They need little cleaning out.
Before you get one
Gerbils are curious, quick and rarely bite. They are livelier than hamsters and easier to watch, though harder to hold.
Keep going