All of these pets need to have a supply of fresh water available to them at all times. Their cages should be kept clean, and they all require daily exercise.
Hamster
| Hamster
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- Cage
- A hamster's cage should be at least two square feet or larger. All horizontal floor surfaces (including levels) should be solid. The walls and ceiling can be coated wire with a half-inch (or less) spacing between wires. Keep the cage clean!
- Bedding
- Aspen wood or paper-based bedding free from scents or oils. Aspen is the only type of wood-chip bedding can be used. Softwoods (pine, cedar, etc) and cat litter should be avoided.
Gerbils
| Gerbils
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- Cage
- Gerbils can be kept in a glass tank such as an aquarium. It should have a wire mesh top, and should allow for five gallons of capacity per gerbil.
- Bedding
- As with the hamster, the only safe wood-chip bedding is aspen. Pine and cedar are toxic to these animals.
- Feeding
- Sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and peanuts are favorites of most gerbils, though they have individual preferences and too many sunflower seeds may result in illness. They also enjoy fruit peels such as orange and banana. In fact, gerbils will eat almost anything; dog biscuits and chews; rat food; rabbit food; guinea pig food; oats; various "special" treats from pet shops, which in fact were not appreciated nearly as much as some parsnip cores. Most weeds dubbed as safe for grazing animals like rabbits or guinea pigs can be eaten by gerbils as well. Pet gerbils will especially enjoy live crickets, grasshoppers, and locusts as food, tearing the insect apart and eating the juicy insides. It is good for you to feed your gerbil vegetables such as celery or carrots or an apple. Take care not to feed them too much of these foods as they contain a lot of moisture and can cause an upset stomach.
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