Gerbils do a lot of digging in the corner of their cage and it is quite normal and is not a thing that you should be worried about that. It is a normal behavior of gerbils and you can notice sometimes they do a lot of digging. So the question arises why do gerbils do this much digging in their cage?
This is the natural instinct of the gerbils and this is a kind of habit they can adopt even when they are young. This is the kind of activity that they do almost every time and every day. But you don’t need to worry at all and the thing is you need to find the ways that will help your gerbil to get rid of this activity.
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Reasons behind the digging habit of gerbils
Talking about the digging habit of a gerbil, it is their natural urge to burrow most of the time in the day. It is a kind of habit that they adopt while they are young or watch other gerbils doing this. This is a kind of habit that they don’t do while they are in stress or frustrated but do because they enjoy doing it.
Gerbils enjoy digging into their daily routine and this is the thing that makes them happy. This is the kind of symbol for their owners that they are happy and in a cheerful mood. Also, they feel comfortable doing this thing of digging at their favorite time.
Is the habit of digging normally for gerbils?
For an owner, if your gerbil is digging then it is not a big issue and totally normal. It is their natural instinct and they enjoy digging during their fun time. This behavior is absolutely normal for gerbils and this behavior depends on them in some gerbils will love to do digging all the time but some will not prefer doing such activities. This thing is noticeable when you have more than one gerbil as your pet and will see one will do a lot of digging in one of the corners of the cage while the other will stay calm or do something else than digging.
They do it as they love to rearrange things in the cage or make some sort of path to come outside the cage. So it is advisable to the owners that you should buy a good cage with multi-layers so that the gerbil will not be able to dig that completely and make itself a way of coming out at any time.
Sometimes you will also notice that your gerbil completely stops digging in their cage and one reason could be they are bored of doing so this is completely normal and you don’t need to worry at all. This is all normal and after some time they will again start doing the same stuff as it is their habit and they can’t let their habit so easily.
Should an owner be concerned about the digging habit of gerbils?
Even if it is a normal behavior of gerbils to dig in the corners all the time but at a point, you need to be concerned about this habit as an excess of anything is bad in any way for them. If gerbils are doing so much digging then it is a matter of concern for you that is everything well with your pet. It is not about fun all the time for gerbils but sometimes they may be stressed or not happy with you or in the cage and their surroundings.
So as a pet owner you need to find out the reasons behind this unusual behavior of your pet. Try to spend time and play with them and offer them treats with their favorite food. Keep them happy and busy so they will not be in stress anymore and enjoy their time. There are other steps you can follow to keep them busy and help gerbils avoid digging.
How to stop your gerbil from digging in the corners?
If you want your gerbil to stop digging then there are a few steps you can do to help your pet to get rid of the habit of digging. So one of the things is you need to ensure that they have a lot of toys to play with them so they do not need to start digging the cage.
They can chew the toys and play with them and can scratch them when they urge to do digging the surface. If they have lots of toys to play with and have extra time to get bored then they will start leaving digging slowly. They will reduce digging in the corners as much as they do before.
Another unusual habit of gerbils is that they chew a lot of whatever comes in their hands and they love chewing the things like they love digging. So you need to put a lot of soft toys so that can play with them and chew them. If you will not put toys in their cage then they will start chewing wood like digging.
One more thing you can do is provide good bedding for them in their cage so they will not be digging in that place and start playing some other games. You can spend time with them and take them out from time to time so they will be happy and will not do such stuff all the time.
Wrapping up why is my gerbil digging in the corner?
Digging is the natural instinct of gerbils and it is absolutely a normal thing for them. So you don’t need to be concerned about it and it is a part of their fun time. They also love to chew the things that come into their hands. If they are doing it in limit then it is fine but it is okay if they start doing this in excess.
In that case, you need to pay attention if everything is good or not. Maybe they are stressed or unhappy with their surroundings or maybe they are not well. There are a few steps you can follow for your pets to avoid digging and keep them happy. In some cases, you can also contact a vet.
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