Lucky for you, pet gerbils quickly bond with their owners. Gerbils are social critters that are active and ready to entertain. Here are some ways you can bond with your pet gerbil, and some activities that build your relationship.
Bond With Your Gerbil
Put your gerbil’s cage in an area of the house with lots of human activity. Libby Hanna, gerbil judge for the American Gerbil Society and gerbil breeder at Shawsheen River Gerbils in Bedford, Mass., said housing them in an active environment makes them more interested in human activity and more willing to play.
Make their gerbil cages fun and exciting. Put boxes, tubes, tissues and cardboard in their cage and watch them play. “Enriching your gerbil’s environment is just as important as when you take it out to play,” said Hanna. Simply watching your gerbil’s activity helps you bond with it.
Build Your Relationship With Activities
“Gerbils are not a sitting still kind of pet,” said Hanna. Your pet gerbil wants to move around and be active, so let it. When you do your routine cage maintenance, take your gerbil with you. If you are filling-up its water bottle, bring your gerbil with you to the bathroom and put it in the empty bathtub to run around. Hanna said that she climbs into the tub with her gerbil and lets it climb on her body. “Gerbils are ritualistic creatures,” Hanna said, so make playtime a daily habit.