Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey everyone...I just acquired a small colony of gerbils...Since I raise snakes and my stock is constantly growing I figure I might as well put these gerbils to work and breed for the purpose of feeding my snakes...However I have not heard to many people mention that they stuck a fat juicy gerbil pinkie into there snake tank...So before beginning this little project of mine I would like to ask all of your opinions on feeding my snakes young and stunned gerbils....Thanks....-ELvy

I haven't personally fed a snake a gerbil, but many people do. I work in a pet store (not chain!) and we frequently have people ask for gerbil pinkies...sizewise, they're somewhere in between a mouse pinkie and a full-grown mouse. Must be working, because we sell quite a few of them. Too bad, I think, because they're so cute! Oh well...such is life! Hope this helps.

Kristine

I have fed my snakes gerbils and hamsters. They eat them just fine and I do not have a problem getting them to eat mice again when I run out. I have heard that some snakes get picky and once you feed them gerbils they turn their nose up at mice.

We have used gerbils for feeders but not all corns will take them - some seem to object to the scent or texture. We find we get a better growth rate when they are on gerbils, comparable to rat pups instead of mice. The major problem with feeding gerbils is that they are expensive to raise - they don't breed well with colony setups - need to be in pairs. The babies have a slow growth rate compared to rats or mice and gerbils are very wasteful with food. They are cute and odor free though, so may be worth it.

mary v.

Check out the feeder forum. While I don't feed gerbils, the opinion that if you feed gerbils, your snakes may be unwilling to eat rats and mice later, does get bandied about. Rats and mice are much more productive. Since I have no babies, I only raise rats. They smell less and reach edilble size much faster.

DeMak