Bud and Sam Not Meant to Be

Poor Bud and Sam. Putting them together was not meant to be. Their personalities clashed. They won't even interact when I held each one in my hand. They have been in a split since the end of the July.

Last night Bud went to his own digs. I took the divider out and gave Sam the big 20 gallon for now. I will just have to give them extra toys and stimulation. Bud was always good with the ladies. I might get him a senior female to love. I might do the same with Sam later on. Male to female bonding seems to always work better.

Bud is about 1 1/2 feet away from the other two boys. At least he can smell them and know they are around. I am planning on putting Sam in the 15 gallon (where Mona and Simone are currently located) and give the girls the big 20 gallon to romp around. That sounds like the best option I have right now. This is my first failure in try to put two gerbils together.

Also, while I was cleaning an extra small cage, I found Trixie's last thing she chewed. A partial paper plate. It brought sadness to my heart.

Gerbil Updates

It's been awhile since I posted. A bunch has happened over the month. A couple of days after this last post, Trixie passed on. She developed pneumonia.

We didn't want Bud to be left alone. So we got three wonderful 8 week old pups on July 24th.. We thought we might make a foursome. It wasn't to be. The pups were all too old to be put together. So we left two pups together. The other pup we are split caging with Bud. The pups names are Dexter (after the tv show), Toby, and Sam.

Bud and Sam have been in a split cage for almost 4 weeks. I swap sides regularly. I tried an intro last week. They ended up in a gerbil ball. No blood drawn. Alot of back arching and shoving and
tense nose to nose sniffing. Lucky I was wearing gloves. These two want to be dominate gerbil. Sam is over 12 weeks old now and Bud about 2 years old.

I know they want to be together but someone has to be the boss. Bud needs the company of another gerbil. Bud started purring in my hand when I take him out now. He really wants company. Even little Sam sometimes purrs when I take him out to hold.

I try using "hand" intros but they seem to don't want to really interact in my hand. There is plenty of butt sniffing though. They are both sleeping near the wire almost everyday now.

Any suggestions to help? By now, they have to smell alike. I want to try again this weekend. Would doing brief intros at night for a few minutes help? I have never had a split cage go this long.

Trixie's Weekly Update

Trixie is holding on. She still weighs about 60 grams. She has slowed down. Breathing is becoming more labored. She is still eating and drinking on her own with supplement food from me. She starting to like bread crust. So I have been feeding that also. She now likes to sit in my lap in her pouch where it is nice and warm. She is losing some muscle mass.

She still likes to chew on paper plates. She still grooms Bud. Bud grooms her and trys to keep her warm. I am still giving her twice a treatments. She is still peeing and pooing. The poo is getting a little less. Trixie will tell me when it is time to go. Not today.

I have not seen her in the wheel in the past couple of days. She is still very spunky. Eyes and ear bright as ever. Still purrs when I hold her. She still likes to sit on my shoulder when she wants to. She will sit there for minutes. My shoulder must be a warm place.

I know her time is coming soon. Her fur is starting to shed a little. Why do gerbils have such short lives? I wish Trixie could live to four (December 8 birthday) but I know that is not to be. I will cherish everyday that she is here with us. Trixie loves being with her people.

Send her comforting wishes.

Frankie 2/2005 to 1/10/2007

My little Frankie-poo passed on about 5:20pm.

Sweet Dreams Little Frankie-poo

You were a very special mouse with lots of personality. One of many. You outlived them all. You hid when your siblings found a home knowing that you wanted to be with me. You showed us how nice a little mouse can be. You were so patien twhen we had to give you medicine. You loved to be petted. You loved your wheel. So much so that you gave it one last jaunt yesterday. You will always be remembered. You are now with your family and wait for me at the Rainbow Bridge. You are now at peace little one. No more itching. We will miss you.