That gnawing feeling . . . of love Regional gerbil show offers fun, educational experience - Omaha.com

That gnawing feeling . . . of love Regional gerbil show offers fun, educational experience - Omaha.com

The Ralston Recorder's Article on the Gerbil Show.

Gerbils charm hearts of judges - Omaha.com

Gerbils charm hearts of judges - Omaha.com

I was there and had a blast. My senior gerbil Sam took third and my Lilac Male Bobby took second in his class.

Gerbil Mug Rug

Take a look at this wonderful Gerbil Mug Rug that I received in a Crafster Swap. it is so beautiful. My partner knew I love gerbils so she made me this Mug Rug with a gerbil on it.

Friendship APL Elyria Ohio

I volunteer at the APL.

Little Bear's Time is Short

Little Bear's time is winding down soon.  He barely ate anything this morning. We had him in his cozy on our lap this morning before work. He is so tired. It takes all his energy just to eat a small pea. We even took the skin off for him. Medication doesn't seem to helping much now even the Metacam.  I will be surprised if he lives to the weekend. He is the senior gerbil of  the group.  You should have seen him last night on Steve's lap. He took a long nap in his fleece cozy. Steve radiates heat. Little Bear loves it. Little Bear got some energy and climbed all over Steve. Nose twitching to the sounds of the other gerbils. I know that comforts him.  He knows that he is loved.   This hammock was a craft swap item that I received recently. Little Bear loved climbing on it and just rocked and bonked his head on it.

Little Bear

Little Bear is over 3 1/2 years old. His birthday is in October. He is currently on his third round of antibiotics for his heavy breathing. I know that his condition is probably chronic. I also give him some Metacam every other day to help with any pain. He recently took a fall off Steve's shoulder. Steve was kneeling so it wasn't that far. He hurt his one shoulder. He is still hobbling around. It is slowly getting better. We let him run around the floor this morning. surround by us and other stuff. He can't go that fast. He has fun. He always came back to the towel and his cosy as his safe point. We are just enjoying him day by day. We know his time is limited. There is only so much we can do. He is still fiesty doing normal gerbil stuff.  Eating, drinking and chewing. We are supplementing his diet with small amounts of fruit and vegetables that he loves.  He knows that we love him dearly.

 In the picture above was taken two days ago on Steve's lap. Little Bear loves to lay in his cozy now on Steve's lap because it is so nice and warm.

Dexter is Going to the Vet Tomorrow

Dexter is going to the vet sometime tomorrow. I noticed that he was acting rather lethargic. I was able to pick him up which is not normal for him. He has had a sore on scent gland for awhile. It has not gotten worse until now. He has really started licking it alot to the point of an open sore. It must be itchy to him. I gave him a little Metacam to help with any pain. I also put some of the salve that the vet gave me to help it a little. I know he is going to have to have surgery on it. There is no choice. I have seen this before with Buddy.

The vet office will call me in the morning for an appointment. I will keep you posted on what happened at the vet.

July 6, 2011 Update:  Dexter had 'minor' surgery. His little nipple sore (that he had for awhile) was lanced off. For some reason this time it was really bugging him causing him to lick and bite it. So no major surgery needed. Thank goodness. Dexter is a happy little gerbil now. Sleeping next to his buddy Toby. Vet said that sometimes this happens in male gerbils. Sometimes males get a nipple and becomes inflamed.

Baby Boys are Back and Happy Memorial Day

The boys came back to me last night.  The family is highly allergic to them. They got tested from their doctor to be sure.  They were ok with syrian short haired hamsters. So they are going to get a hammie from a local breeder that I recommended.  They named the boys Cherub and Rocket.  I am keeping the name Rocket but maybe changing the name from Cherub to Chip after my dad. It was his nickname when he was working.

Also, Happy Memorial Day from me and the gerbils:

Two Babies Got Adopted

My two 9 1/2 week old lilac pups got adopted by friends of ours  yesterday evening. They are good pups. Very friendly and tame. The family will take real good care of them. They recently lost their hamster. They  were really looking forward to adopting them. I will miss them. I watched them being born and grow up into wonderful little gerbils.They love to chew and run in the wheel. They also love their morning Cheerio. The family will send me updates and pictures of them once in awhile. I will let you know what their names will be.

Little Bear All Better

Little Bear my oldest (3 1/2 years old) has been real sick since last Wednesday. I took him to the vet Thursday evening.  The vet prescribed Baytril and the pink antibiotic that I already have. So LB has been on two medications twice a day.  He has made a full recovery. He loves his medicine.

I really thought he wouldn't make it Saturday. He was so sick. The Baytril must mus finally kicked in.  By evening he start acting like his normal self.  He is now a happy little boy again doing his normal gerbil stuff.  He will be on the Baytril until tomorrow morning and the other stuff to next Wednesday.

He is a strong willed little gerbil. He refused to give up. He is a nutmeg but no ticking in his fur. He was dark as a pup but his fur just kept getting lighter and lighter.

Gerbil Show Time

April 30, 2011:  I attended the AGS New England Gerbil Show in Bedford MA at the Middlesex Community college. I had a blast at the show this year. It was great seeing old friends and making new ones. The public looked like they really enjoyed all the activities and displays at the show. And of course all the gerbils in all their cuteness. Who can resist all the baby gerbils at the show. The crowd was light but there was always someone walking around. We had two Mock Shows and Tube Chew contests. One in the morning and one in the afternoon. We had gerbil races in the morning. We also had a special new activity this year. Maze timed running's. This was enjoyed by all. I hope it becomes a regular activity at future shows. I even entered my own Clarice in the competition. For fun, I enter my black boy Dexter in the afternoon Mock Show and Tube chew contests. Dexter tied for 3rd in his Mock show category. A beautiful Burmese girl won Best in Show. There was a gorgeous PEW boy that so reminded me of my Bud.

My favorite moment this year was Jennifer's Rafe. Last year was climbing shoulders. This year he wanted to jump. He could not get enough jumping from one set of hands to another. He was having a blast. Of course he got a new cozy for being so adorable. Jennifer was amazed at what Rafe wanted to do. There is no stopping this senior gerbil. He is great in the pet class competitions.

I have all my pictures and videos from the show posted on my showpage. The picture shown is my Dexter.
http://hhgerbilry.com/agsgerbilshowne2011.html

If you attended the show, what were some of your favorite show moments?

Bud has Passed

Our senior gerbil Bud passed on this morning a little after 6:30am. He died in his cozy (bonk-bonk) on my lap. Funny thing is though;  that about 5 minutes before Bud died, Dexter was thumping so loud that we heard it and knew something was wrong. Toby and Dexter's cage is right in front of Bud. They can see and can smell each other all the time. I do believe that Dexter was telling us something about Bud. I also think that these three might have been closer than we thought.

Bud was about 4 years old. He was at first paired with Trixie. He adored her. After Trixie passed, we tried pairing up Toby and Dexter with him. It never worked out so Bud ended up being a lone gerbil. He thrived.  Bud became our "people" gerbil. He answered to his name. Loved getting hand gerbil massages. Shoulder sitter and watch tv while doing it. Loved our laps. We were his clan. There were times that Bud groomed my arm like gerbils do when they groom each other. He was so gentle.  Bud liked being in the ball once in awhile. Wheel runner. Just a big wonderful 100+ gram white gerbil. We loved him so much. We will miss you.

Sam and Clarice Litter 2

"Bobby" (4 weeks old)

Clarice had her second and final litter this morning. So far three little pups. We took Sam and Bobby out last night. Clarice was showing signs that she was due very soon. Milly and Ginger are with Clarice helping to raise the second litter. They will take the place of Sam in the care department. Clarice was such a good mom with Bobby, Milly and Ginger. She will be a good mom to these pups.

Just pray the new litter will make through the next few days. This is the first critical stage of a pup's life.

Clarice had her litter too fast. I was going to clean the tank today. I will wait another week and do some spot cleaning. The wheel seems to calm her down so I left it in this time.  The wheel is raised so the new pups won't get hurt. This is gong to be fun watching these pups grow up with their older siblings caring for them.


Sam and Bobby are dong just fine. Bobby didn't know what do with his dad all by himself. He was used to his sisters around. They cuddled up last night in their new house. I saw Bobby eat out of the food bowl this morning. Bobby does know how to drink from the water bottle. I will probably put them in a 15 gallon later. Right now they are in a 10 gallon. They will be gong to the gerbil show in little over a month. Sam and Bobby will be competing.

Pups Now 3 weeks old

The pups are 3 weeks old as of March 14th. Their eyes are open. They are very active learning to be gerbils. They started sampling their parents food and chewing bits of cardboard. Their little teeth are coming in. So far their favorite is rolled oats. A nice soft food they can eat. The pups favorite place to play is in the chube.  They will be learning to use the water bottle soon as mom will start weaning them from the milk. Sam and Bobby will be in their own tank at the five week mark. Clarice is expected to have her second litter by then (if she is pregnant)..  The girls will stay with mom to help with the second litter and keep mom company. Milly is the calmest of the pups. She likes to be held. All the pups will be going to their first gerbil show to compete in the pup class April 30th in Bedford, MA.  Sam will be competing as well as my agouti Toby.

Big Day for the Pups

This is a big day for one of our girl pup. She opened her eyes today. We decided to call her Milly. She has a straight tail while her twin sister has a kink in her tail. That is the only way I can tell them apart right now. Bobby and his sister should be opening their eyes in the next day or two. They move so fast that it is hard to take a good picture. This was the best picture I could take of Milly today. She looks just like her daddy Sam.

12 Day Old Pups

The pups are now 12 days old. Fully furred in their premolt colors. Two orange girls are possibly argente and one gray boy probably sapphire. Sapphire is a beautiful color. It is lighter than lilac but darker than dove. The mom Clarice is a Dove.

6 Day Old Pups

The pups are starting to show their fuzz colors. One is clearly grey while the other two are orange. They are dark eyed. The grey will probably be either a grey agouti or a siamese. The orange ones have a few possiblites still. They could be nutmegs, DEH or others. Please let me know what you think. I won't know their sex until they are 7-10 days old.

4 Day Old Baby Gerbils

I just took this picture a few minutes ago. They are so cute. They are going to have dark eyes for sure. Can't determine colors yet. The skin tone is looking dark so their fur will be in the darker range. I think the fourth pup is gone unless hidden real well. They look strong, fed and healthy

.

2 day old Gerbil babies

Here is a picture of my little babies. Only two days old. There are four in there. Count the paws.

Clarice and Sam - 4 babies born today

Born today. 4 little baby gerbils. Parents Clarice and Sam

Snow and Knitting

I really hope we have a snow day tomorrow. I want to do some knitting and play with my gerbils. I heard and saw on the radar that is going to be bad. I heard on the scale of the 1978 blizzard. I vaguely remember that as a kid. We had no school and my sister and I had a blast outside in the snow. Mom took pictures. I live in Northern Ohio so it is coming. Be careful tonight and tomorrow if you are on the roads. I would avoid going out unless you really really had to.

HHG February Pet Photo Contest - Need Entries

I am going to start back up the photo contest for February. I only have 3 entries. I would like at least a few more. I am accepting entries until January 31 at 11pm. Open to all pets. Please email them to me directly or  gerbilcontest@hhgerbilry.com

http://hhgerbilry.com/gerbilshow1.html

Thanks!

Meet Becca Rose

This is Becca Rose (formally Adora from previous post). I adopted her from the APL Friday, January 14, 2011. I visited her the night before and I had to adopt her. I estimate her age to be about 8 months old. She is a PEW (Pink eyed White). She is family to my older PEW male Bud. She is so sweet. Loves to chew. We got her a wheel yesterday and loves it. We also found out that the petstore that she and Bud came from no longer have white gerbils as all the white gerbils from that store are Bud's descendants. So now she is the last. It was fate that I got her. She is currently in a 5 1/2 gallon tank until we can get her into a 10. She loves her new home now since her old home was 1/2 that size and it was one of those all plastic Habitrail type cage with a wire bottom.  The names comes from the character Rebecca (Becca) from the HBO show Californication and Rose came from my sister and mom. Since she was family to Bud, "Rose Bud". She has a mangled ear probably from squabbling with her tank mates at the store. She might also have a dust problem as her nose is very red.

Featured Shelter Critter of the Week - Adora the Gerbil

This is little Adora. She came to the Friendship APL on the weekend of January 8, 2011. She is a cute ruby eyed white gerbil. She is an adult. She looks like a very sweet little girl. She current resides at the Friendship APL in Elyria Ohio. Would you consider giving this little girl a home?

Details about Adora can be found on Petfinder.com

Simone has passed

We got little Simone when she was 5 weeks old.  She turned into a a girl at 6 weeks old. Her first partner was Mona. After a little more than 2 1/2 years with Mona, she passed. Simone was then paired up with Sam. Sam adored her. Sam took real good care of her. Simone showed Sam the art of bed making. Simone was a sweet and gentle soul. She loved to be picked up. A shoulder sitter. Simone would have made a good show gerbil but she had nose allergies all her life. She loved her peas and corn. She was on metacam the final two weeks. It helped her much especially when Sam was ill over Christmas. Simone was well enough to take care of Sam.  The last couple of days Simone was on the decline. She had a bad tumor. Simone passed at the vet this morning. She will be buried next to Spot in my parents backyard.  Sweet Dreams little Simone.

Simone is Still Here

Simone is still with us. She is on metacam. She gets a dose everyday now. Her tumor did go away once but it came back with a vengeance. Her normal weight was 75 grams. Her heaviest with the tumor was 90 grams. She is now down to 85 grams. She still eats when we feed her and sometimes from the food bowl. She still drinks when we offer her the water bottle. She has not really chewed anything in over a week. I hear her grinding her teeth. She likes to sleep in a fleece cosy on our laps. She does sometimes get a small burst of energy but she is sleeping more and more. She is peeing but I have not seen any poop. She is peeing where she sleeps but Simone is still keeping her underbelly clean. Sam is taking good care of her by sleeping close to her and groom her when needed. Her coat is becoming raggy looking. She still has the lip problem.

Simone is over 3 years old. Is there anymore I can do? Should I take her to the vet to at least get her teeth checked? She is day to day.

Take a look at her last few pictures here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/gerbilgal/Gerbils2010

The pictures are the few last ones in the folder.