Gerbil

For other uses, see Gerbil (disambiguation).

Gerbil Temporal range: Late Miocene - Recent
Pachyuromys duprasi
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Rodentia
Superfamily:	Muroidea
Family:	Muridae
Subfamily:	Gerbillinae Gray, 1825
Genera
Gerbillus Microdillus Meriones Rhombomys Psammomys Sekeetamys Brachiones Desmodilliscus Pachyuromys Tatera Taterillus Desmodillus Gerbillurus Ammodillus

A gerbil is a small mammal of the order Rodentia. Once known simply as "desert rats", the gerbil subfamily includes about 110 species of African, Indian, and Asian rodents, including sand rats and jirds, all of which are adapted to arid habitats. Most are primarily diurnal (though some, including the common household pet, do exhibit crepuscular behavior), and almost all are omnivorous.

Gerbil skull

The word "gerbil" is a diminutive form of "jerboa", though the jerboas are an unrelated group of rodents occupying a similar ecological niche.

One Mongolian species, Meriones unguiculatus, also known as the Clawed Jird, is a gentle and hardy animal that has become a popular pet. It was first brought to the United States in 1954 by Dr. Victor Schwentker for use in research.

Gerbils are typically between six and twelve inches (150 to 300 mm) long, including the tail which makes up approximately one half of their total length. One species however, the Great Gerbil, or Rhombomys opimus, originally native to Turkmenistan, can grow to more than 16 inches (400 mm) in length. The average adult gerbil weighs approximately 2 1/2 ounces. As of August 19, 2003, officials in western China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region began releasing eagles to combat the damage they say the great gerbils have done to eleven million acres (46,000 km²) of grassland.[1]

Pet gerbils have an average lifespan of 2 to 4 years. Some have been known to live five or six years

Gerbils as Pets

Gerbils were first introduced to the pet industry in 1964. These were the Mongolian gerbils. Their value as pets was soon appreciated and they are now found in pet shops all over the UK and USA. It is illegal to purchase, import or keep a gerbil as a pet in the U.S. State of California. [2]

Life in the Desert

The typical Mongolian gerbil is a desert species, and lives underground in a network of tunnels. These tunnels include chambers with families. Adults move away and meet others from other chambers, extend the network, create their own chamber and breed. Gerbils come up for food and water. There is no evidence of hoarding food, but gerbil will eat a lot of fatty foods in one go, suggesting supplies in the form of fat reserves rather than food storage. Gerbils do not hibernate and are diurnal. Their long tails help them to balance when they stand up on their hind legs. Gerbil movement is more like hopping than running, and their large back feet are furry on the bottom to protect them from the heat of the sand. Gerbils are fast but overly inquisitive. In their natural environment, they are mostly insectivores, and additionally gain moisture from desert plants that store water in them. A gerbil is furry all over including the tail, as this prevents it from getting sun burned.

Gerbil Housing

Companions

Gerbils are social animals, and prefer to be kept in groups. Often very large groups work well, as long as the living environment is big enough, otherwise the gerbils may become frustrated and attack one another. Smaller groups of three or four gerbils are most likely to disagree, as they become confused over whether they are dominant or submissive. A male and a female can live together without breeding, although do not rely on this. Female groups are much more quarrelsome than males, but if fighting occurs among males it will be much more vicious. Males will very rarely attack females, and it is possible to introduce complete strangers to one another without previous introduction, which you cannot do with adult gerbils of the same sex. It is also possible to introduce new babies in with adult strangers (even of the same sex), and two groups of babies from different cages will go in together without a problem.

Cage type

Gerbils can be put into any secure container which allows air and light in. A fish or reptile tank covered with small-holed chicken wire will suffice, as will any wire cage made for rodent pets. A gerbil can chew its way out of a plastic tank, however. As long as there are no edges for the gerbil to get their teeth around and gnaw at, the cage should stay secure. Make sure lids are fixed down properly, as gerbils are apt at squeezing out through small gaps and escaping. Alternatively, a wire cage may be used. Gerbils may kick their bedding out through the bars, so a moat around the cage to catch the mess is advisable. It may be tempting to get a cage with wire on the bottom, so that the waste falls out the cage and into a tray underneath, but this is not a comfortable living environment for the gerbils, and they also occasionally like to be able to pick up some of their droppings and eat them - This gives them some nutrients they can get no where else.

Cage interior

To catch waste products and make the cage easy to clean, a sheet of natural-based ink newspaper covered in a layer of sawdust is a perfect cover for the bottom of the cage. Another store-bought bedding is any shredded aspen bedding. A word of warning: gerbils are very allergic to pine or cedar bedding; DO NOT USE! Gerbils love to chew and dig. It would be a good idea to give them some unwanted cardboard or paper (but not plastic, anything with chemicals, or materials intended for human use. Cardboard food boxes, however, may be used as long as they are not the refrigeratable kind, as those have a plastic lining). They will turn this into finely shredded bedding material in a neat pile for them to sleep in. One can also give gerbils toilet paper. They will shred this also, and carry it into a "nest" area. Ideal cardboard materials are the food boxes mentioned above,paper towel tubes, and toilet paper tubes. They are free and the gerbils love using these to crawl, run, and scurry through.

Additionally, provide some kind of wood block or twig for them to use to keep their teeth short and sharp. Pinecones also work well, but emphatically not conkers - these are poisonous to gerbils. Always check what chemicals or food products are being put into the cage, just in case. As a general rule gerbils can eat anything humans can and have a very good digestive system. Some kind of platform, ornament or house is also fun for the gerbil. A broken cup which has no other use (although check for sharp edges), a coconut husk, a small metal ladder intended for rodent pets would all provide more interest for pet gerbils. A plastic or cardboard piece of furniture would be destroyed within minutes, but hard wood, crockery or metal will last.

Gerbil Eating Habits

Food

Gerbils favorite foods are seeds and nuts, high in fatty oils. Sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and peanuts are favorites of most gerbils, though they have individual preferences. Do not give them too many - you will make them fat, and unhealthy. Gerbils like them so much they will eat huge amount even when they are not hungry, and will even take them from your fingers, often. If a gerbil nips your hand, gently say, "No!" and accompany this sound (in a gerbil's perspective, a deafening, unsuspected noise) with a gentle puff of air from your mouth to the gerbil's face. This can also be used with any other behavior problems you encounter with you gerbil. Just be sure not to over do it, as the gerbil will become extremely annoyed. You can hand-train your gerbils by removing all seeds and nuts from a store-bought food. Store these treats in another container, and only let a gerbil have one when he/she takes it from your hand.

They also enjoy fruit peel such as orange and banana. In fact, gerbils will eat almost anything; dog biscuits and chews; rat food; rabbit food; guinea pig food; oats; various "special" treats from pet shops, which in fact were not appreciated nearly as much as some parsnip cores. Most weeds dubbed as safe for grazing animals like rabbits or guinea pigs are fine for gerbils, although if unsure do not take the risk. They also love veggies. Do not leave fresh fruit or vegetables unattended for more than six hours, as they may spoil or rot and cause respitory infections or other illnesses and diseases.

Drink

Gerbils do enjoy water and it is advisable to have a supply in a bottle. A bowl will have bedding flicked in it, as they are usually digging. They will also step in it, as they are not used to vast quantities of standing water, being desert animals. A bottle should be fixed through bars on the outside of a cage, as if the gerbil gets to it, it will almost certainly attempt to chew the bottle.

Water does not have to be fresh from tap, there is no harm in rainwater. Gerbils metabolise their water from food, like a lot of other desert animals such as Jerboas. Jerboas should never be given water because they have evolved to metabolise the water from food so eficiently that providing a water bottle will over work their kidneys and kill them. Gerbils can go without water for around 2 weeks provided they have plenty of food to produce the water, they will always take water if provided so never deny them of it. Fresh vegetables and fruit can be provided to give moisture. If one is doing this it is wise to not put too much in as too much will simply be buried and left to befoul the bedding.

Cleansing

Gerbils do not need water to get clean - interestingly enough, the thing that makes them clean, smooth, shiny, and cool is a sand bath. When taking gerbils out for exercise, a small basin of cool sand will be much appreciated, and true to instinct, a gerbil will automatically roll over in the sand. The effect is instantaneous - their fur becomes much smoother and shinier. One can buy clean sand at almost any petshop. It is sold as "Chinchilla Sand." Be certain you do not buy the "Dust," as the small particles can become lodged in a gerbil's respitory track.

Exercise

Gerbils like to run in exercise balls, (traditionally made for hamsters) but if allowed to run in the house, they may get stuck under chairs and suchlike. They may also chew the lid to try and escape, and most of them will excrete whilst inside. If the ball can be attached to a rack and placed to box, with the opportunity to get out when they wish, that would be better. However, if the ball or wheel is in their cage, it is always available to chew. A period of 15 - 30 minuets playtime in a separated area is probably best. Gerbils also love to play in sand (see above).

It would not be wise let your gerbils loose of the floor. They will run away, and hide in the most inaccessible places. Gerbils are used to tunnels, so are likely to find somewhere dark and narrow. Not the most intelligent creatures, they may not be able to get themselves out again. If you place them on a table or any surface without solid, gapless walls, floors and ceilings, they require your full attention.

General Gerbil Behavior

Gerbils love to jump, climb, chew, and dig. There may be a danger to a gerbil jumping and hitting his/her head on the roof, as he/she might break the neck, back, skull when connecting with the roof, or when they land ungracfully. The digging motions are very common: the gerbil screws its face up and move its arms so rapidly they are a blur, making a light scratching noise on the side of their cage. Gerbils cannot do this in a barred cage, but use their powerful back feet to dig holes and tunnels in the bedding. Gerbils are not unhappy in their living environment when they dig - they are merely acting on instinct. Even if you get them out to play, the moment you put them back in they'll start digging. If a gerbil looks as though he/she is frantically trying to escape by tunnelling out the corner, do not be alarmed. They are not trying to escape (and they couldn't if they tried that way), but it its simply responding to what its insticts are telling it: if you cant walk around, over, or under something, tunnel through it!

Gerbils often stand at a high place and keep lookout. If you make a noise, they will often stand up straighter to investigate. Every so often the "lookout" switches. Sometimes gerbils zone out while chewing on the bars, giving them a dazed, half asleep look. Often they will stop moving and just sit there with their teeth clamped firmly over the bars. Do not be concerned, that is perfectly normal behaviour. They are still sensitive to noises and shadows, as the wild gerbils are prey for birds and snakes.

Gerbil Social Behavior

Gerbils much prefer cage mates, and you will often see them having what looks like boxing matches - Most common amongst young gerbils (gerbil "pups"). These are gentle play fights which usually end in the winner pinning down the loser and grooming him. Gerbils like to sleep in a group, often on top of each other. Sometimes they will absentmindedly groom each other when half asleep.

Squeaks can occasionally be heard from the cages - this is nothing to worry about, as if a gerbil is hurt it will remain silent. A squeak is usually an indication of annoyance: When a fellow gerbil steps on another without thinking, he will give a squeak, when a gerbil tries to steal another's food, he will turn into the corner 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.

Gerbils do not make eye contact with each other, as for a gerbil this is an aggressive and threatening pose. The female is dominant to the male, so in a mating situation if she turns round and looks at him, he will usually squint and cower to show her he is not threatening her dominance.

Handling Gerbils

When holding a gerbil, their paws and claws may be a little scratchy. You can hold them on the flat of your hand, but usually they will feel unsupported and accidentally back off your hand and fall. Usually, to cup them in your hands or hand is best, or if they squirm, let them run from one hand to the next. Squeezing them, holding them too long, or fishing them out of their bed may make them cranky, and result in a small nip to one of you fingers.

Never pick a gerbil up by its tail! Their tails are very fragile and can come off easily if you pull too hard. Even though some pet guides claim that gerbils can be handled by grabbing the base of the tail just like with mice, the risk of inadvertently getting hold of just the tip is considerable, especially if the animal is trying to get away.

Escapes

Escaped gerbils are not too easy to catch, but the best way is to put food on the floor. Gerbils are inquisitive, and will come out to explore. It is best to try and trap them in a space, and scoop them up gently. Another idea is to put food into an empty box or garbage can on its side, and tilt it up when the gerbil enters seeking the food. In emergencies, you can also pick a gerbil up by its tail, but only if it is near the base of the tail (the bit nearest the end of the gerbil's spine). Holding the tuft may pluck out their tail fur. It is inadvisable to hold them too long by the tail - if they are in a panic they will either wriggle out of your grip, twist around and try to nibble you, or in extreme cases, shed the end half of the tail.

You are easily alerted to gerbil escapes, as they generally make a loud drumming noise with their back feet. This is a gerbils way of warning others that danger is around, or asking for help. Males also do it when frustrated, if a female will not let him mate her immediately. Gerbils also seem unaware of how much noise they are making when they walk over certain surfaces: if you cannot find a gerbil, put plastic bags on the floor. The gerbil will walk right over them, and alert you to their position.

Gerbils appear not to care how high up they are when they escape - they will happily drop down about 1.5 meters and just run off, landing on their feet. Sometimes this causes damage to their feet, however.

Fighting

Gerbils, when fighting, may chase each other frantically round the cage, amid small squeaks of protest by the victim. This is usually a case of bullying by one gerbil. If the feeling is mutual, the gerbils will stare each other down, pounce on one another and clamp their teeth around each other's neck, faces or suchlike in an attempt to draw blood. Gerbils can injure each other seriously in this way, but they will most often recover of their own accord if separated and kept in a clean, safe environment with food and water. Gerbil fighting is not difficult to spot - it is very loud and may last a long time.

Gerbils fighting will usually be on top of each other, rolling over and over rapidly, banging hard into the side of the cage and off of side fewer surfaces without separating or even noticing. It is difficult to pull two fighting gerbils apart, and you may be tempted to put your fingers in between them. However, gerbils will accidentally bite you in the fray if you do this, so either use an object to separate them or wear thick gloves, as gerbil bites obtained in this way can be quite deep. If gerbils are left to resolve the dispute, they will most likely fight to the death, so they must be placed in different cages or areas. Attempts to put them back together when they calm down are sometimes successful, but more often than not, it will not work.

A lead up to a fight is also not too hard for an astute person to spot: can include chasing, persistent sniffing and following, and one gerbil forcing another to stay in a set area of the cage, usually in a corner or higher up. Also, one gerbil hunched, ruffled and looking thin due to not being allowed near the food bowl can indicate a disagreement prior to a fight. (However this behavior is also present in illnesses, mostly Tyzzer's Disease - see below.)

If you observe these behaviors, it is best to watch for changes for better or worse for a bit longer. If it appears to be affecting health of one, both or all gerbils, it is best to remove one / separate both gerbils. It is not clear whether it is better to remove the victim or bully, as sometimes the bully turns on another cage mate if there is more than two and he is left with them, sometimes other cage mates attack the victim. Removing both could result in confusion of dominance, breaking out in more fighting. One with an injury other than a shed tail should be removed (shed tails are common and not serious).

Mating

Gerbils will spend a long time mating, it is frequently short bursts followed by frantic chases around the cage. Do not try and intervene: the female is not unhappy, she just likes to make the male work hard. Occasionally, she will squeak and make flick motions to get him off. That's normally when he is a stranger. Males will not attack females except in rare circumstances, which include them having been separated from their original wives, or widowed. A female may attack a male, but he is more than a match for her.

Raising Young

Gerbil parenting

Mothers have been known to commit infanticide and eat their young, which could be for a number of reasons. If females are forced to do nest sharing, for example. They would rather kill and eat each others babies to make room for their own. Groups of one male and several females are not really ideal for gerbils. Some gerbil females attack their young once they are weaned if she is expecting another litter: this is when she feels she doesn't have enough space to rear new young, and wants the older gerbils out. After one month or four weeks the babies can be weaned from their mother. Normally in the desert, the gerbils would dig a new network of tunnels and move away when they felt ready.

Males generally leave the young alone, but they do help wash them and suchlike. Interestingly, usually only the mother returns nestling to the nest if they stumble out. The other gerbils sniff them in order to identify them, but do not pick them up. You may see the mother being rather rough with the babies; picking them up awkwardly in her teeth; kicking the babies out the nest and back in again; stepping on them etc. This is all normal. If a gerbil is eating its young, it will hold the infant in its hands like it would a piece of food, and run around the cage with it. It is inadvisable to intervene in case of injury or more upset being caused.

It's possible both parents leave nestlings to fend for themselves, as nestlings of a week or so old have a remarkable ability to jump very high, even with their underdeveloped back feet.

Baby stages

When first born, gerbil babies are blind, deaf, furless and helpless. They drink their mother's milk. The young squeak softly when feeding and being picked up. Eventually they grow bigger, and within a week, they have began to show skin pigment, indicating their possible fur colour and markings. Soon after this, a thin downy fur will grow on them, and they will begin to make their fast yet unsteady way out of the nest when the bed is disturbed. This survival technique helps the babies get out of harm's way in case of a territory invasion.

The fur will grow thicker and longer, and by two weeks some of them may have one of their eyes open. Around this point, they begin to be weaned - Eat hard food and not rely so much on milk. At this point, it would help to provide a soft food like an oat and milk mixture for them. After this, the gerbils will become more active, their tails will lengthen and give them more balance so they can stand upright, their ears will open and their mother will stop attempting to put them back into the nest. When fully weaned and beginning to play fight with one another, they will soon be ready to move away, if required.

A mother will often be stern with how quickly the babies are weaned if she is expecting a new litter. A less fertile mother may let her litter suckle for longer. Older mothers often have not as a good a milk supply, and need plentiful water available to replenish it.

A litter will be of about 4-6 gerbils on average, although losses due to runts, defects and infanticide or occasional, unexplainable persecution from other gerbils sometimes make the eventual litter one or two short.

Sexing

The most common ways of checking the sex of a young gerbil is to either; 1) Turn the gerbil over and check the gap size between the genital organs of the gerbil. Female gerbils have a small gap between the two areas: Males have a much larger gap. 2) Although this is not always clear in childhood and adolescence, male gerbils have a fur covered bulge at the base of their tails, on their underside. This is their scrotal pouch. Females have smooth, round back ends.

Males are generally larger than females in adulthood, in length, height and width. You can also sex a gerbil by looking at its underside when it is a blind, deaf baby. Look at his/her underside, and you will see either a thick line in the middle of the stomach (the scent marker) if it is a boy, or eight dots (four on the left side, four on the right), soon to be teats, if it is a girl. The only trouble with this method is that it is difficult to remember which gerbil it was that you identified as a male / female in infancy.

Reasons for popularity

There are several reasons for the popularity of gerbils as household pets. The animals are typically non-aggressive, and they rarely bite unprovoked or without stress. They are small and easy to handle, since they are sociable creatures that enjoy the company of humans and other gerbils. Gerbils also have adapted their kidneys to produce a minimum of waste to conserve body fluids which makes them very clean with little odor.

The pets are incredibly industrious and will explore new environments, and they will build, construct, and enjoy elaborate networks of tunnels if given an environment that allows for it. This is easily observable as gerbils are active during all hours of the day, as opposed to the more nocturnal rodent pets. They can "recycle" everyday paper-based items, such as cardboard products and brown paper bags, into toys and nesting material.

Health concerns

Teeth problems

Misalignment of incisors due to injury or malnutrition may result in overgrowth, which can cause injury to the roof of the mouth. Symptoms include a dropped or loss of appetite, drooling, weight loss, or foul breath. The only cure is for a veterinarian to regularly trim the overgrown incisors and prescribe antibiotics. It is better to avoid the problem by supplying wood or another hard material for the gerbils to trim their teeth on.

Trauma

Common injuries are caused by gerbils being dropped or falling, usually while inside of an "exercise ball", which can cause broken limbs or a fractured spine, for which there is no cure. Injured gerbils should be immediately examined by a veterinarian to determine the best course of action in each situation. To best avoid this problem, supervise exersize time and make sure the ball is safe - i.e. has no metal spoke for the tail to get caught or suchlike.

Neglect

A common problem for all small rodents is neglect, which can cause the gerbils to not get adequate food and water, causing serious health concerns, including serious dehydration, starvation, stomach ulcers, eating of bedding material, and cannibalism. It is important to regularly check water bottles, as they often become clogged or contact bedding, draining the bottles.

Wet tail

The most serious intestinal disease of small rodents is "wet tail", or Proliferative Ileitis, which is most common among weaning gerbils (3-6 weeks). Symptoms include lethargy, increased irritability, hunched posture, fluid or bloody diarrhea, a wet, soiled anal area and tail, and, sometimes, rectal prolapse. A veterinarian is needed to immediately examine and evaluate the situation and will usually treat the problem with fluid replacement.

Epilepsy

Between 20 percent and 50 percent of all pet gerbils have the seizure disorder epilepsy. The seizures are caused by fright, handling, or a new environment. The attacks can be mild to severe but do not typically appear to have any long-term effects, except for rare cases where death results from very severe seizures. If a gerbil is genetically predisposed, the owner can prevent future seizures by frequently handling the gerbils while they're young, keeping their environment stable, and providing them with a complete, balanced diet. Often leaving the gerbil in a quiet, dimly lit room with its cage mates for a while will allow the gerbil to recover from its seizure.

Tumors

Tumors, both benign and malignant, are fairly common in pet gerbils, and are most common in females over the age of 2. Usually, the tumors involve the ovaries, causing an extended abdomen, or the skin cancer, with tumors most often developing around the ears, feet, mid-abdomen, and base of the tail, appearing as a lump or abscess. If it is an external tumor, a veterinarian can often perform surgery, but internal tumors are much more difficult to remove, since the animal is so small in size, so the owners typically elect not to operate, but, rather, elect to euthanize the pet.

Tail sloughing

Gerbils can lose their tails due to improper handling. The first sign is a loss of fur from the tip of the tail, then, the skinless tail dies off and sloughs, with the stump usually healing without complications. However, in some cases, the tail may need to be amputated.

Tyzzer's disease

The most common infectious disease in gerbils is Tyzzer's Disease, which is often caused by either stress or bacteria, and produces symptoms such as ruffled fur, lethargy, hunched posture, poor appetite, diarrhea, and, often death. It quickly spreads between gerbils in the same cage, so, for this reason, it is recommended that a new pet be isolated until you are sure he is free of disease.

Deafness / Inner ear problems

A problem with the inner ear can be spotted by a gerbil leaning to one side quite obviously. The fluids in the ears affect balance. However, this does not appear to affect the gerbils too much, whom have an aptitude of just getting on with things, and getting used to their conditions.

Extremes of Temperature

As desert animals, it is easy to make the mistake that as gerbils are used to bitter cold in the night and boiling heat in the day, they can be left in direct sunlight or in subzero temperatures: This can cause damage to a gerbil. The reason they survive in the desert is because they take frequent shelter in their tunnels. Having many gerbils in one cage and plenty of bedding helps gerbils stay warm. In heat, they will trample their bedding flat. Heat can make gerbils noticeably lethargic, so the choice of shade is important, especially in a clear cage which can act like a greenhouse. They do sweat when very hot, and become thirsty more often than usual.

Respiratory Problems

Forgetting to clean a cage for weeks can be a problem. Ammonia will build up, and gerbils may have trouble breathing. In the wild, gerbils will dig more burrows when their current one is filthy, but in cages this cannot happen. Symptoms of a Respiratory Infection may include: Exhaustion, apathy, and a strange clicking or wheezing noise. They will not want to be picked up and will look like they're dying. A veterinarian can prescribe an antibioticto treat the condition.

Birth Defects

Gerbils are quite hardy, and it is rare for them to get sick. Seizures are common, but usually a gerbil recovers best if left alone. Direct inbreeding can be done without too much harm, but if you want the most healthy young, do not try it. It can produce blind or deaf young with short life expenctancies, and missing limbs.

Captive-bred gerbil colors

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A Burmese colored gerbil

A Pied Burmese gerbil

There are many colour varieties of gerbil available in pet shops today generally the result of years of selective breeding.

There are over 20 different coat colors in the Mongolian gerbil, which has been captive-bred the longest.

Another species of gerbil has also been recently introduced to the pet industry: the fat-tailed gerbil, or duprasi. They’re smaller than the common Mongolian gerbils and have long soft coats and a short, fat tail, appearing more like a hamster. There is a variation on the normal duprasi coat which is more gray in color, which may be a mutation, or it may be the result of hybrids between the Egyptian and Algerian subspecies of duprasi.

White spotting has been reported in not only the Mongolian Gerbil, but also the Pallid Gerbil and possibly Sundervall's Jird.

A long-haired mutation, a grey agouti or chinchilla mutation, white spotting, and possibly a dilute mutation have also appeared in Shaw's Jirds, and white spotting and a dilute mutation have shown up in Bushy-Tailed Jirds.#

When attempting to choose the colour of the gerbil dominant genes and recessive genes must be taken into account, the most comman agouti (brown) colour being on the dominant gene, the recessive albino (white) colour being on the recessive gene, and therefore present in all agouti gerbils.

References

Resources

• McKenna, M. C. and S. K. Bell. 1997. Classification of Mammals above the Species Level. Columbia University Press, New York.
• Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 1993. Family Muridae. Pp. 501-755 in Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington D.C.
• Nowak, R. M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World, Vol. 2. Johns Hopkins University Press, London.
• Pavlinov, I. Ya., Yu. A. Dubrovskiy, O. L. Rossolimo, E. G. Potapova. 1990. Gerbils of the world. Nauka, Moscow.
• http://www.research.usf.edu/cm/CMDC/C111_Normative_Biology_Diseases_Gerbils_7_03.pdf

External link

• The UK's National Gerbil Society