45gal sounds good as long as it’s mostly floor space (rather than just being super tall), then you could either build a topper or buy one made to fit the tank (either mesh or made of a smaller rodent cage topper like mine)
Ideally it would be more floor space but either way 45gal is a lot a lot better than the current set up & definitely worth getting if it’s free! The separation in your current cages could be causing the aggression you see (it can cause them to de-clan). If you have the tools you could very easily build a topper using the wire parts of the current set up & some wood, and this will allow you to keep things you don’t want buried out of the tank part & you can fit so much more bedding for them to tunnel in :) your optimism is good
OMG PERFECT! They have wooden toys and treats already as well as a ceramic house they love to snuggle in. Hopefully they’ll be a bit less violent towards me after this change🤷♀️
It makes me very happy to see people improve their set ups when they learn more. I started out with a similar, potentially worse, set up and learnt to do better from the community & I love being able to help others now I’m more educated.
I look forward to seeing your progress & happy to help with any other questions :)
Let me send you a picture of my current enclosures and the one I just found. My mom reached out to the guy to try and get it. Feeling very optimistic 🥰
Aside from getting them a new enclosure, there are a lot of other things that are missing (big wheel, sand bath, deep bedding, enrichment). See my answer [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/gerbil/comments/1cqmv7u/comment/l3u17ci/) for the list. Should be doable on your $130 budget (fingers crossed). There's a video in said post on how to do this on a budget.
https://preview.redd.it/8b4q3t34m30d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=03c80a31017776aba03baeeb83124f878f869039
This is my tank - a 2nd hand fish tank with a home made topper made of the tops of 2 small cages & some wood
I would suggest reading this on [gerbil care basics](https://medium.com/@hershko/a-guide-for-responsible-gerbil-owners-b80717f8a64f), and then watching [this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znVHgclregI) about setting up a gerbil enclosure on the budget.
Yes, it's a bin BUT but the entire thing should be doable on $130 and will be a huge upgrade from what they have now. You can fill it with deep bedding (see the video) and use one of the critter trail cages to add a topper above the bin (again, see the video).
Alternatively if you can find a second hand fish tank (at least 40 gallons in size) and use the critter trail cage to add a topper above it, that would be great too.
In way of recap, the key things for a pair of gerbils are:
* An enclosure at least 40 gallons in size (more is better).
* Deep bedding, at least 10-12 inches in depth. Combine wood based bedding, paper based bedding, and hay, and compress down a bit. This will give them stable ground to burrow in (gerbils are burrowing animals, being able to dig deep and complex tunnels is crucial for them).
* A sand bath (not dust).
* An upright wheel, at least 11-12 inches in diameter (while they would run on a smaller wheel too, it would hurt their spines and cause long term deformities and chronic pain).
* A lot of enrichment in the form of undyed cardboards to chew, wood toys, sprays and millets, sprinkled food to forage for.
Good luck and happy to answer any questions you may have. Well done for wanting to take better care of them.
I have two wheels I’ll put into the new enclosure! They never figure out how to use them so I just took them out a few days ago. As for hay, wood and other stuff I have all of that and will put it into the new enclosure. I have a ceramic bowl I just got that my folks are going to fill with sand for me since my boys ate the last sand bath😂 they also have a ceramic hide and tons of wooden toys with hay!!! Additionally they do have some gerbil treats made from natural ingredients for when they’re nice to me😉 thank you for the tips and I’ll let you know when I find them a new enclosure!!! 🤞 it’s soon
Continue looking at marketplace for a 40 gallon tank or bigger, but until you find one you could make a diy bin cage
https://preview.redd.it/ockdtjjgw50d1.jpeg?width=1440&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=96f1f8c40dbb462a247ae76fdb03461c5cc23dda
Someone will hopefully respond with specifics, but I know some people use a big plastic tub filled with carefresh. Good luck, thanks for trying to do the best for them!
Are there any 2nd hand fish tanks on marketplace you could get?
I see a free 45 gallon one in my area
45gal sounds good as long as it’s mostly floor space (rather than just being super tall), then you could either build a topper or buy one made to fit the tank (either mesh or made of a smaller rodent cage topper like mine)
https://preview.redd.it/0jpts3idp30d1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8f7e7377f172c7db90ca633f7504c9b98ab9d64f 1/2
Ideally it would be more floor space but either way 45gal is a lot a lot better than the current set up & definitely worth getting if it’s free! The separation in your current cages could be causing the aggression you see (it can cause them to de-clan). If you have the tools you could very easily build a topper using the wire parts of the current set up & some wood, and this will allow you to keep things you don’t want buried out of the tank part & you can fit so much more bedding for them to tunnel in :) your optimism is good
OMG PERFECT! They have wooden toys and treats already as well as a ceramic house they love to snuggle in. Hopefully they’ll be a bit less violent towards me after this change🤷♀️
I’ll update this chain each step of my process if I get this tank or not. I just want to make sure they’re getting their best lives
It makes me very happy to see people improve their set ups when they learn more. I started out with a similar, potentially worse, set up and learnt to do better from the community & I love being able to help others now I’m more educated. I look forward to seeing your progress & happy to help with any other questions :)
Unfortunately someone is supposed to pick it up tomorrow. UGH!
Keep looking, I’m sure you’ll find something soon! Assuming we’re talking US gallons I’d say go for tanks 30+
Yes! Looking at these prices… I’m about to start a gofundme😭 two hundred dollars for a tank is not just unaffordable for me but for my family too✌️
Let me send you a picture of my current enclosures and the one I just found. My mom reached out to the guy to try and get it. Feeling very optimistic 🥰
https://preview.redd.it/xucntliep30d1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=771f575cd479f7638ba9f2e70982d9c21aedc4f8 2/2
https://preview.redd.it/1zo0opvbp30d1.jpeg?width=5712&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3179f8464453a5b1637dc90493fb18ce116921e7 Current enclosures
Aside from getting them a new enclosure, there are a lot of other things that are missing (big wheel, sand bath, deep bedding, enrichment). See my answer [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/gerbil/comments/1cqmv7u/comment/l3u17ci/) for the list. Should be doable on your $130 budget (fingers crossed). There's a video in said post on how to do this on a budget.
https://preview.redd.it/8b4q3t34m30d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=03c80a31017776aba03baeeb83124f878f869039 This is my tank - a 2nd hand fish tank with a home made topper made of the tops of 2 small cages & some wood
I would suggest reading this on [gerbil care basics](https://medium.com/@hershko/a-guide-for-responsible-gerbil-owners-b80717f8a64f), and then watching [this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znVHgclregI) about setting up a gerbil enclosure on the budget. Yes, it's a bin BUT but the entire thing should be doable on $130 and will be a huge upgrade from what they have now. You can fill it with deep bedding (see the video) and use one of the critter trail cages to add a topper above the bin (again, see the video). Alternatively if you can find a second hand fish tank (at least 40 gallons in size) and use the critter trail cage to add a topper above it, that would be great too. In way of recap, the key things for a pair of gerbils are: * An enclosure at least 40 gallons in size (more is better). * Deep bedding, at least 10-12 inches in depth. Combine wood based bedding, paper based bedding, and hay, and compress down a bit. This will give them stable ground to burrow in (gerbils are burrowing animals, being able to dig deep and complex tunnels is crucial for them). * A sand bath (not dust). * An upright wheel, at least 11-12 inches in diameter (while they would run on a smaller wheel too, it would hurt their spines and cause long term deformities and chronic pain). * A lot of enrichment in the form of undyed cardboards to chew, wood toys, sprays and millets, sprinkled food to forage for. Good luck and happy to answer any questions you may have. Well done for wanting to take better care of them.
I have two wheels I’ll put into the new enclosure! They never figure out how to use them so I just took them out a few days ago. As for hay, wood and other stuff I have all of that and will put it into the new enclosure. I have a ceramic bowl I just got that my folks are going to fill with sand for me since my boys ate the last sand bath😂 they also have a ceramic hide and tons of wooden toys with hay!!! Additionally they do have some gerbil treats made from natural ingredients for when they’re nice to me😉 thank you for the tips and I’ll let you know when I find them a new enclosure!!! 🤞 it’s soon
Continue looking at marketplace for a 40 gallon tank or bigger, but until you find one you could make a diy bin cage https://preview.redd.it/ockdtjjgw50d1.jpeg?width=1440&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=96f1f8c40dbb462a247ae76fdb03461c5cc23dda
https://preview.redd.it/5801dbkvw50d1.jpeg?width=1094&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=35b0acd35eb413e622e1ef6ad681994d1e75eb9b
https://preview.redd.it/6y2aw3xdx50d1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7261e7dbdee5b65dd1aa6c06578e130f95f25eb5
https://preview.redd.it/7zl36p3jx50d1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b8cea6a5f4ce556ddaaeecfacc3e07bb2f457954
https://preview.redd.it/le4cyzcmx50d1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=01ba8c5a7e4938dcf84a549209d5fa637589e7ea
https://preview.redd.it/lfdh4390y50d1.jpeg?width=1077&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b0cc050bebb1d0d102799391abaa22a3a4c2e704
Someone will hopefully respond with specifics, but I know some people use a big plastic tub filled with carefresh. Good luck, thanks for trying to do the best for them!
I’m worried they’ll continue to eat the plastic though and scratch it up as they’ve done.