Keeping Gerbils

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. Unlike hamsters, which are available in a variety of colours, the only gerbil colours that exist are brown and black. True False

2. Why might a standard wire cage be unsuitable for your gerbils? All of these They will gnaw on the bars, rubbing away the fur on their noses They can kick the bedding out through the bars, making a mess The cages are not deep enough for them to dig and burrow.

3. Gerbils are desert creatures and have adapted to desert life in many ways. Which of these is not true? Many gerbils have white stomachs to deflect heat from the sand They have developed very efficient kidneys which means they never need to drink water Their tails snap very easily, allowing them to escape from birds, snakes and other desert predators They have powerful hind legs which enable them to burrow into the sand during the hot desert days

4. Gerbils are nocturnal, like hamsters. True False

5. You soon discover that your gerbils love sunflower seeds. Why should you limit the number of these that they eat each day? They contain dangerous toxins They are very expensive to buy They are high in fat and can cause obesity They cause kidney damage

6. You notice one of your gerbils thumping with his back foot. Why might he be doing this? Because he's frightened It's part of the mating ritual To communicate with another gerbil All of these

7. Why shouldn't you give your gerbils cardboard tubes to play with? There's no reason why they shouldn't play with cardboard tubes Gerbils often get stuck inside the tube Cardboard contains a large number of toxins Gerbils can choke on the cardboard

8. Which of these is not a species of gerbil? Spanish jird Fat-tailed gerbil Mongolian gerbil Shaw's jird

9. What should you do if you discover your female gerbil has had babies? Remove the father immediately Call the vet Move the mother and her babies into a different cage You don't need to do anything

10. At approximately what age can you separate the baby gerbils from their mother? 12 weeks 2 weeks 6 weeks 20 weeks