Expert: Sheila Adby - 10/15/2009

Question
Hi,
I just got  a new gerbil (black bear is his name) and told he was a male. So i introduced him to my other male gerbil (grizzly bear is his name). Everything was perfect and went well. It wasn't until today ( oct 14) that I noticed baby!!!
I figured i have had blackbear for about a month, or maybe month and a half.
I've been told that the male will eat the babys, is that true? Do I seperate the dad from the babys and mom?
And can I'm guessing i can only keep one sex, so they don't multiple again, right?
Thanks for your help.
-Brittany

Answer
Hi Brittany

Unfortunately, incorrectly sexing hamsters and gerbils is pretty common in pet shops and ending up with a litter isn't that much of a surprise!

Having only one baby is a surprise, however,  as I would normally expect more than this.  Are you sure there aren't any other ones buried in the woodchip?  Be careful if you touch them - it is important that you don't single out just one, but instead touch all of them.  I never fully handle any babies until they are 2 weeks old.  The male should be fine with the baby - they can help raise them.  The problem is that the female would have been at her most fertile the day she gave birth and there is a chance that if they mated that day she is already pregnant with the next litter!

The standard gestation period for a gerbil is 23 - 25 days (although some do go for as long as 30).  You have different options - if the baby is a male, you could separate him and dad on day 22 and put them in a cage together.  Obviously you'll need to supplement its feed with human baby food (such as creamy porridge oats - this is a powder that you mix with water) as this will give some extra nutrients.  Alternatively, put a divider in the cage if it is large enough.  Make sure there is no way the divider can be chewed (use wire mesh) or the gerbil can get under/over it.  Then move dad into this area.  If baby from the first litter is a boy, at 4 weeks he should be transfered over to the area where dad is.  If the baby is a girl, then leave her with mum.  The reason for putting in a divider is that it is very difficult (and sometimes impossible) to introduce same sex gerbils to each other.  Probably the reason why yours got along OK was because they are opposite sexes. If there is a second litter, when the babies are 4 weeks old you need to sex them anyway and remove any males.  They can then go and live with dad in a tank together and the girls can stay with mum.  

I hope this helps.

Regards