I've had both gerbils and hybrid dwarfs so I can take a shot at that question:
- Gerbils live longer and suffer from fewer health issues.
- With gerbils vs a single dwarf hamster you obviously have the potential for a declan, however that would be rare with a pair.
- Gerbils are more erratic in their schedules and might be active at any time of day or night, and that might change from day to day. On the other hand, most hamsters tend to have a reasonably fixed schedule and they don't particularly like being woken up outside of active hours. I don't really recommend waking gerbils up either (just because it isn't very nice) but after the first two minutes they aren't going to care if you do.
- Gerbils are much more destructive and toys/cage items will need to be replaced more regularly than with a hamster, although you shouldn't need to be buying things constantly. I haven't had to give my gerbils any new things for months. Gerbils are also quite messy and will turn their tanks upside down overnight, although some hamsters do that as well.
- Male dwarfs smell a bit more than gerbils. Female dwarfs are about on a par with gerbils.
- Most gerbils are quite outgoing, and easy to tame, but they are skittish. This is probably largely due to their good eyesight. They see every little movement and make a dash just in case it's something dangerous. I've never met a gerbil who was truly afraid of humans though. Many hamsters are quite afraid of people when you first bring them home and they need a longer settling in period, and usually a more patient approach to taming.
Robin's food looks good to me. Based on your current options in the US when it comes to gerbil food I think it's probably the best one to try first. I recommend feeding liberal quantities of safe leaves, forage and fresh herbs in addition, plus vegetables and the occasional berries. Although gerbils are omnivorous they lean more towards the herbivorous side of the diet spectrum than hamsters or mice or rats. I feed raspberry leaves, lemon balm, strawberry leaves, sunflower leaves & petals, wheat grass etc. There are many more safe options. I also recommend making a good quality hay available at all times because some gerbils may eat it in small amounts and in any case, they love shredding it and it's good for their teeth.
An 11 inch wheel is the minimum I would suggest for males, although if you can go for a 12 inch, or even bigger (if they even exist in the US?) absolutely do, because gerbils do better with bigger wheels. One wheel for two gerbils is generally fine but if they both love using it, it might be worth getting a second. If it becomes a point of contention and causes arguments, it should be removed, at least for a little while. A lot of gerbils avoid chewing their wheels so you might get away with a plastic one.
The primary feature of a gerbil tank should be the deep bedding - absolute minimum of 8 inches and ideally 10+ inches with 12 inches being the gold standard. Embedded in the bedding should be structures that will support tunnels such as grapevines, cork logs, wooden houses etc. They also like to have some grapevines, cork logs, platforms, levels etc above ground for modest climbing, hopping around and perching. The sand bath and wheel should on platforms to prevent undermining and I also recommend placing a hide or two on the platforms as gerbils like to hide when they eat. I will add some photos of some of my tanks below for reference (not that any of them are perfect by any means!)
Don't be afraid of taming. Gerbils are very bullet-proof, and also very curious and willing to interact. I would start by just putting your hand in the tank and letting them explore it. You can reward them with a treat each time they place their paws on your hand (starting with rewarding just two paws, and eventually all four). You can also try feeding them something like oats or loose millet from your hand, something that they can't just grab and run away because this encourages them to remain in your presence and even sit on your hand. When you want to start holding them, it's probably best to let them walk into a jar or other container and take them to a contained area where you sit with them and they can climb on you. What I do is just scoop them, hold them for a second, then let them go, so that they learn that being picked up is no big deal. You can try to reward them afterwards with a treat but many gerbils aren't interested in food when they're outside their tank. Most gerbils aren't very easy to handle for the first two years or so, and that doesn't mean they aren't tame, they're just very busy. After two years most people seem to find they calm down, and become easier to handle.
They need access to sand for bathing. Ideally have a permanent sand bath/toilet in the tank if you have space, or you can place it in the tank a couple of times a week, or you can provide access to it when they're in a playpen or free roaming. They can have coco fibre too if you want. If you use a shallow container for either it will be kicked out in about five minutes though.
Example tanks:
Edited by daisy~, 25 October 2021 - 08:02 AM.
