# Just need assurance



## Nal0114 (Feb 20, 2019)

_About 2 1/2 weeks ago I got 2 baby gerbils from the pet store. They were just old enough to leave their mother so right around 5 weeks old or so. _

_It's taken me about 2 weeks to tame them enough where they feel comfortable enough for me to hold them for more then a few seconds. _

_But I've noticed they squeak alot. Now i __read online that this is due to when they feel threatened? However, they really only squeak when they are wrestling, or I atleast hope they're wrestling and not hurting each other. They are otherwise inseparable.

My question is, is this normal behavior my previous gerbil he did not squeak. But these 2 little guys do it everyday.

My next question is, my previous guy really loved store bought gerbil food, but these 2 babies seem to be a bigger fan of freshly put together blends (carrots, nuts, seeds, etc.) They dont prefer to eat store bought gerbil food as a matter of fact they end up spilling store bought food all over their cage before they consider eating it.

The pet store employee told me store bought food was better for them, but these 2 really enjoy fresh food. Is that a problem?

Also, these 2 dont really prefer to drink put of the water bottle? They seem to fight over it actually. That was when instarted giving them carrots because the carrots have water in them and they are still getting a good source of water. Has anyone else experienced this?
_
_I need reassurance. My last boy Bosley died at 5 years old, and experienced none of the traits these babies are doing._


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## Tiggers (May 27, 2014)

I would use a good quality gerbil food as your getbil's staple food and reserve fresh food for occasional treats in small quantity. As long as there is urine in your gerbil enclosure, then they are drinking sufficiently. If your gerbils are arguing over their water bottle, then add a second bottle to their enclosure. While gerbils will share common traits, individuals may differ vastly in their habits and antics.


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## PepaCub (Sep 26, 2013)

Yeah, I wouldn't worry about their squeaking just yet - young animals can do this a lot as a way of appeasing older gerbils (or in your case your giant hands). It is totally natural, like grooming in other animals - sort of like a 'I am feeble and cute, be nice to me'.

As for the food, I use the gerbil mixes as a base and add all sorts to it. I know some people talk about feeding only the correct food due to the nutrients rather than making your own, but if you are buying a store brought food and adding treats and fresh veg - you are changing the nutrients anyway. However, there are certain things that a gerbil does need to remain healthy, so as long as you are offering a huge range of very different foods (nuts, seeds, grains, veg and plant material) you should be somewhere near the mark. It depends how particular you want to be - but there are many gerbil websites with suggestions for do it yourself diets out there if you fancied an online search or two. Or try to find Scuttling Gourmet - a sort of rodent nutrition guide to independant ingredients.


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## Nal0114 (Feb 20, 2019)

Yes they get all of their regular food that a store recommends.

I bought the same stuff the pet store was feeding them, I dont think they liked it so i tried something different and they have been eating almost all of it.


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