Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am about to start breeding gerbils (for ball food) and was wondering if they bring in groups or only in pairs. Thanks for anyones help

Bob

pairs are better...usually only one female will have babies anyways....I actually had a first shortly ago....both females dropped....but the second batch got runted anyways...lived but not happily....I keep pairs in lab cages....after the first litter I leave a kid from first litter in with them and pull the rest then after the second litter is hopper size I pull the first kid...it acts like a buffer...a baby sitter...something to do....gerbils suck...they need something to do...or they will set in the corner and dig and dig and dig and dig and dig...you get it...paper to shred....paper towel etc...little pieces of cardboard.....

one person bred them in big tanks...a DEEP layer of dirt and straw was used to utilize tunneling...I never tried it...just heard of it....I use pine...feed oats,corn,millet,soybean,lab block,dog food a little bit ,sunflower seed, and once in awhile peanuts.....

I spoil everything........

good luck..gerbils can be the stupidest critter to breed....

babies from 1 to 10......4 to 6 average......black is dominant color
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......JY

Thanks for all the info

Eh... I had a breeding pair. Though, I never could bring myself to feed the little buggars off. They were just too cute. Plus if I had gotten one of my balls stuck on them I don't know what I would have done. My female had three litters 5-3-4. Small litters and they grew slow. I have given away all but four females so far. If you live close, you can have them lol.

I don't know your reasoning behind feeding them, but in my opinion, if you're looking for something to feed pickier ball pythons, I'd go with asf's. I forget who said this, but "They make rabbits look like amateurs!" Plus they are great colony animals. The BAD... they chew everything!!! I had to resort to glass tanks and wire around water bottles.

Good luck either way!
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Balls
1.3 Pastels
0.2 Cinnamons
1.0 Fire
1.0 Spider
1.0 100% Het Albino/100% Het Pied
0.3 100% Het Albino/50% Het Pied
1.1 100% Het Pied
0.2 PH Albino
1.5 Normals (1.0 unknown)
Boas
1.0 Salmon
1.0 Pastel
0.1 Pastel P. Super Hypo Het Anery PH Albino
Corns
1.1 Bloodred Het Hypo 66% Het Anery

Well... I guess you did say your reasoning in the first post. Sorry!

Wanted to ad: I do believe Gerbils do best in pairs.
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Balls
1.3 Pastels
0.2 Cinnamons
1.0 Fire
1.0 Spider
1.0 100% Het Albino/100% Het Pied
0.3 100% Het Albino/50% Het Pied
1.1 100% Het Pied
0.2 PH Albino
1.5 Normals (1.0 unknown)
Boas
1.0 Salmon
1.0 Pastel
0.1 Pastel P. Super Hypo Het Anery PH Albino
Corns
1.1 Bloodred Het Hypo 66% Het Anery

I wouldn't. Once they start on gerbils, it's hard to get them to eat anything else.
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"What is man without the beasts?
If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from great loneliness of spirit.
For what happens to the beasts,
soon happens to men.
All things are connected."

-Chief Seattle (Duwamish Tribe)

They breed real well for me and are rarely refused. I haven't had problems with babies getting stuck on them. (I feed whatever is size ready - rats, mice, ASFs).

They are great for those mice only feeders that you have to get up to size...

I keep mine in a 1.5 family group....

yes they would want to also breed ASFR

some snakes prefer one or other....I actually have mice eaters gerbil eaters and ASF eaters that won't touch anything else...rat eaters also.....suxx....

I prefer balls that eat aything and everything I put in with them....

they usually eat so much they stop at 800 grams...LOL...

gotta love them.....???
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......JY

Thanks for all the replies, I do already breed ASFs, but I have two high end females that are driving me crazy, so I am going to try gerbils if they get stuck on them and dont take anything else I dont care as long as they eat SOMETHING. One hasnt taken anything since the middle of december, and shes only about 800 grams. If she was an adult I wouldnt worry about it to much, but she needs a meal.

Bob

At 800 to 1000 A LOT of young ball pythons WILL go off feed for a while. My only one this year went off for 4 months at 996g and started eating again just recently at 945g! I call it the WALL..... I belive its very common and I usually combat the wall by scaling down the meals from 700 and up to 1100 grams to a x-small rat ONCE per week. there is no way I would start feeding gerbils at this point... they WILL start eating rats again once they go back on feed AKA over the wall... its un nerving I know but how much fun is it going to be to deal with gerbils that they might not eat anyways or have 2 high end females stuck on gerbils.. JMO.

Good luck with the stuck girls

Brian

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Brian Hettinger
480 Pythons
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They hit 800-900gms in November and haven't eaten since. I was just thinking about putting them in smaller tubs or taking them for a car ride (which I have heard works. Weird, huh??)

They should start any day now and will put on anouther 1000gms before next fall....

Good luck!!