House of Eeyore & Piglet

HOW I GOT STARTED KEEPING GERBILS

PETS FOR A CHILD

The memories are hazy. I vaguely remember some pets my family kept when I was young. We had a mixed bred terrier named Rubee. Once, we had some rabbits and hamsters. These recollections include one of a nasty hamster bite! And I mean bite. Not a nibble but a hard bite that broke skin and drew blood!

SO YOU WANT A PET?

For years, I didn't own any pets. There have been fish aquariums around the house, but I have not been too keen on fishes, and have never considered them as pets. I was thus inclined to buy some pets of my own. Larger animals like dogs and cats seemed a hassleto own, so the natural choice fell to Crouching Tiger! Classic Gerbil Pose hamsters, despite my not-so-pleasant encounter with them, a long time ago.

I decided to get dwarf hamsters which have become commonly available. In my research on hamster-keeping, I meant to borrow a book on hamsters from the public library. There were none to be found but one, a guide to "small pets". The book contained advice on rabbits, guinea pigs, rats, mice, hamsters and - a curious looking rodent that I had never seen or heard of before.

Yes, it was the gerbil! The photos of the gerbil, with its innocent demeanor and adorable posture of standing upon its hind legs, gradually drew me to this charming animal. Descriptions of the gentle, docile nature of these creatures helped too. By the time I was through with the book, I had decided to own a gerbil instead.

THE SEARCH...

I was not sure if gerbils were sold in Singapore. Many pet shops I went to didn't carry gerbils, only hamsters. Eventually, though, I did find a couple of stores that did, but they were rather costly. There wasn't much choice in terms of the colors too. I was looking for a pair of same sex gerbils, of different coat colors, so I could tell one from the other easily. Sleeping

FOUND!

Eventually, I got a pair from a breeder at a reasonable price. One was a grey (or more correctly described as dove). The other a beige (argente cream). Two females from the same litter. This is the beginning of the relationship with my gerbils...