My gerbil keeps eating her babies, should I leave her to it or intervene somehow?

Answer 1

Leave her, they breed so many, may be offer her a mars bar?

Answer 2

Unfortunately, this is somewhat common among gerbils. This happens mostly from stress or the mother's instinct that the babies will not survive.

First, be sure the male is separated from the female. The male could stress the female into eating the babies, or he might even try to eat the babies themselves. Also, mother gerbils can often tell if a baby is sick and unlikely to survive, so eating the weak babies (as sick as it may seem) makes the litter smaller, giving the remaining babies a better chance at survival.

Whatever happens, it is best to leave the mother alone. There isn't much of a way to intervene, as baby gerbils are near impossible to hand-raise. Since this gerbil seems to be a particularly unsuccessful mother, perhaps it would be best to prevent her from breeding again in the future.

Answer 3

Separate the gerbils immediately! I had that problem when I had a set of gerbils, which I was taking care of during the summer of 84. We had to get the male gerbil out of the cage and put in another cage, and my mother called my teacher and he said it was good to separate them, and also said that the mother would accept the babies or not accept the babies.. Another word of advice (My teacher also told me this, but I don't know if is is right about this of bluffing) is to stay away from the mother gerbil's cage as much as possible, because they can eat them if someone continues to go near the cage. You can still take a peak and check on how the mother gerbil and how the babies are doing, and feed her on a regular basis. Also the mother gerbil may eat the babies for no particular reason.

Answer 4

Baby gerbils, like other rodents, are born blind, hairless, and mostly helpless. Though rarely, under population stress, baby gerbils may be killed and eaten by littermates or parents-- so make sure they have enough space. Male gerbils are excellent fathers, and should be left with the family to help raise the pups. However, gerbils will mate immediately after giving birth, so leaving the male insures another litter will be on the way. If another litter is not desired, a daughter from a previous litter can be left to help raise the pups instead of the father. Gerbils reach puberty quickly; males will attempt to mate with their mothers if allowed to reach maturity in the same enclosure, but make sure not to remove them too early, either.

Answer 5

I say leave her to it, i used to bred gerbils and saw that happening alot, they are pink right? so she's either gonna care for them or you know, so separating is not gonna help, they'd die anyway.,they feed from her like a baby cow would, another female wouldnt smell right to the babies, and not have the milk more importantly unless she's of the same time.. I think i separated the mother into a cage of her own,....... ive just read other peoples comments and separating the father is better sorry,thats a better solution. though sometimes with gerbils you gotta just let them do what they gotta do.

Answer 6

Sometimes the parents eat their young, this is not because they are hungry or stressed. Gerbils follow their instinct and keep their nest clean by eating dead or sick pups. In the wild predators would otherwise smell the dead animals and come and thread the whole family


Gerbils are Known to eat there pups. Apparently mother gerbils eat there pups only when they need protien,so i suggest feeding your gerbils Mealworms or try kitten food

Answer 7

if you are going to intervene, how do you plan on saving the babies? At that size they have NO chance of survival without mum.

Make sure mum is somewhere quiet, undisturbed when she has the litter... fuss her... treat her and do not touch the babies before they have fur on their bodies.

being a mother myself, i can understand why some animals do this... they simply dont want the babies

If that still doesn't work its time to stop breeding this little canibal.

Answer 8

if she is eating her babies then something is not right in the setup. How large is the cage or tank, how many other gerbils are in there, is she able to get away from the others to have peace with the babies. She is eating them either because they are born dead or because she doen't feel safe.

Answer 9

Oh you most certainly must intervene. Mummy gerbil requires some bbq sauce to go with her baby gerbil snacks. How could you be a pet owner and not know that? BBQ sauce for gerbils, ketchup for hamsters.

Answer 10

If the male is in the same cage, she will feel threatened and that is why she is eating them, keep the male away and when she has her babies do not go near her or the babies until they are bigger, make sure she has enough food and water

Answer 11

She must feel threatened. Make sure there is plenty of food and water and leave them along for a while to adjust. Even dog and cat do this sometimes.