>1. I live in the North so it gets really cold in the winter time (30-40
>Fahrenheit). I know that they are desert creatures so how can i keep them
>warm?
Only 30-40 F? That's not cold at all! That's shorts and sun-tanning
weather! Can you tell I'm from Fairbanks (just moved South, though!)
Seriously, look at a map of the world and notice the location of Mongolia.
It's just south of Siberia. As Julian Barker often quotes, the gerbil can
survive temperatures as cold as -40 C (which is -40 F). The deserts of
Mongolia can get rigidly cold as well as oppressively hot. Remember that
the term "desert" refers to the amount of moisture a climate gets, not to
how hot or cold a climate gets.
Keep your gerbils indoors to keep them warm. If you must keep them outdoors
or in a shed, make sure they have several inches of bedding material to bury
themselves in. Do you keep your gerbils outdoors?
>2. Can gerbils be taught tricks, and do they respond to their names?
Some have reported teaching their gerbils tricks, although I haven't tried.
>3. What should i buy them to play with?
Ya don't have to buy a thing! Just put all your used cardboard in their
tank. i.e. toilet paper tubes, paper towel tubes.
>4. I covered the "hamster wheel" with paper. But they still won `t run in
>it.
>What should i do [im dying to see them run in it] ?
Make sure the wheel is off the ground and securely anchored to something.
If the wheel is shakey or if it easily gets clogged with bedding, they won't
run in it. Hang the wheel with wires from the top of the tank. Some
gerbils take awhile to learn to like the running wheel and some never really
like it.
Welcome and good luck!
Deb Adams
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