gerbil pups, their parents, & the wheel

[Susan Fitts]

Hi Everyone!   Thanks for the input! I ended up making my own judgment after attempting to remove the wheel.  These gerbils absolutely LOVE running in the wheel. When I attempted to remove it, they totally abandoned the babies for nearly an hour with no sign of interest in the little ones at all.  All they did was run around, getting up on their hind legs at the sides of the tank looking for their wheel. Even after I walked away from the cage they continued their frantic search!  I placed the wheel back in afraid for the pups well being with neither parent tending to them.  After a little run both parents were back with the babies.  What I did do was lift the wheel higher from the tank floor, so when the pups wander out they won't get hit or tangled up in it.  It's just low enough so the parents can hike up into it.  About 2 1/2 inches or so up.  The parents can still manage to get onto it and are happy again.  I guess it is an individual thing to gerbils.  If they hadn't made such a big deal out of the disappearance I would have kept it out, but clearly it is an important part of their daily/nightly routine! I'll keep everyone posted. Susan