pups coming soon

[Beavis Miner]

My gerbil is going to have pups in about a week.
I have heard that when she has the babies there is not suppossed to be any
kind of wheel in the tank. All Im supposed to leave in there is a hiding
place some toilet paper and the bedding. Is this true? or can I also put the
male once a day in a different cage with a wheel so he can let of some energy.
Also is there any kind of special food I need to feed the mother now and any
special food I need to put in thier tank when the pups are born. Someone told
me to give them food with 15% protein so Im doing that now.
Any other information you can give me on subject would be greatly appreciated.
I have one more problem. I heard gerbils mate the night that the babies are
born I would rather not have another any more pups for a while. My point is I
want to put the male pups with the father and the female pups with the mother
but I cant take the pups from the mother for 5-6 weeks but if I leave the
father in with the mother and pups they will mate. The only way I could think
of to solve this problem is to take the father out then in 5 weeks put the
male pups in but by then the father will be lonely and I have to introduce
them.


Thanx for reading thing long e-mail, but I've never breed and kind of animal
before and I'm a little nervous,
Wee