There are many food mixes on the market for gerbils, hamsters, and other small animals. You'll notice that most of the food mixes in pet stores are not specifically for gerbils but are sold as "hamster and gerbil food." Do hamsters and gerbils have the same nutritional needs, though?

Most of the hamster mixes contain large amounts of seeds that are very fattening for gerbils. If you feed a hamster or hamster-and-gerbil mix to your gerbils, you should plan to do two things:

1. Pick the sunflower seeds out of the mix.
2. Wait to refill the food dish until your gerbils have nearly emptied it.

Place the sunflower seeds you pick out of the food in a small cup or dish. Keep them outside the tank for a hand-fed gerbil treat. Sunflower seeds are a great hand-taming tool.

Think of it this way. Think back to your childhood. Imagine that your parents left a giant, filled cookie jar in your bedroom. Now imagine that the only time you could have a cookie was at the dinner table while eating supper with your family. Under which scenario would you be more likely to spend time with your parents? Your gerbils are the same way. They are more likely to interact with you (and learn to trust you) if you are the only way to get sunflower seeds. Only give each gerbil a few sunflower seeds each day so they don't gain too much weight.

Some people make the mistake of dumping the uneaten food in the gerbils' bowl every day and refilling it the next day. The problem with this method is that the gerbils will eat their favorite treats and leave everything else uneaten. Again, imagine that you're a child. For supper, you have spaghetti, spinach, Pepsi, a glass of milk, and a piece of cake. Now, if you eat all of the spaghetti and cake and drink all of the Pepsi, would your parents dump the spinach and milk in the trash and refill your plate?

This is why it's important to let your gerbils come close to finishing one meal before giving them more food. As long as you clean your tank every 1-3 weeks (2 is average for most gerbil owners) and don't give your gerbils more than they can eat, it won't hurt for the food to stay in the tank until it is gone. See the photo of Spike's food dish on the right.

• Although rare, store-bought food can come home with mites or mite eggs. Learn how to prevent this in the Freeze Food & Bedding tip.


• Don't worry if your gerbils kick bedding into their food dish. Burying food is an instinct. Gerbils have an excellent sense of direction and a keen sense of smell. They can find their food, even if it's buried under five inches of bedding.


• Gerbils naturally seek out corners to use as restrooms. It is a good idea, then, to keep the food dish out of the corners so it doesn't double as a toilet.


• You don't need to use a food dish at all. If you like, you can place the food in a pile at the center of the tank. Gerbils enjoy burying food and digging for it later.


• If your gerbils gain weight, you can also pick out pumpkin seeds, peanuts, and other fattening items and use them as hand-fed treats.


• To see how your prepackaged food mix compares to suggested daily allowances for gerbils, see the AGS' (American Gerbil Society's) food guidelines chart.