Drinking bottles & water bowls for gerbils in the gerbil webshop

You can easily and quickly buy Gerbil Drinking Bottles & Water Bowls at DRD Rodent Shop ^® The Gerbil Webshop for your Gerbil!

Gerbils need a drinking bottle to drink hygienically. However, a good drinking bottle is a challenge because Gerbils are real rodents! When choosing and placing the drinking bottle, this should be taken into account. If there is a lack of gnawing material or toys , the Gerbils can start to gnaw on their drinking bottle. The best option for Gerbils is therefore a glass drinking bottle.

Which drinking bottle is suitable for Gerbils?

Gerbils are known for their gnawing behavior, they are real rodents and a plastic drinking bottle is therefore not resistant to their sharp teeth. That is why we recommend a glass drinking bottle for Gerbils. Our glass drinking bottles are completely gnawing-proof and long-lasting, so that your Gerbils can drink in a safe and sustainable way.

Why are there plastic drinking bottles in the Gerbil category?

However, we also have plastic drinking bottles in this Gerbil category, why? The reason for this is that there are also enclosures for Gerbils with a grid section. This grid section sometimes covers the entire top of the enclosure and sometimes only partially. A plastic drinking bottle can then be attached to the grid on the outside and the Gerbils cannot reach it to gnaw it to pieces.

Not all Gerbils chew through the drinking bottle. Some Gerbils leave the drinking bottle alone, we can hardly believe it, but our customers still indicate that some of the Gerbils do not do this. For all these sweet and well-behaved Gerbils we have left the plastic drinking bottles, but for the rascals we recommend the glass drinking bottles!

Why a Gerbil Drinking Bottle?

The most well-known way of giving water is the drinking bottle. This is easy to attach to the enclosure and gives the Gerbils access to their drink all day long. A drinking bottle is also very hygienic, because no dirt can get into it. It is very important that the drinking bottle is cleaned regularly, otherwise algae and bacteria can grow in it. These micro-organisms are harmful to the health of Gerbils.

✔ Hygienic
✔ Always access to water
✔ Controllable water intake

Another great advantage of a drinking bottle is that you can monitor the water intake. So you can see how much your gerbils drink and that is important to keep an eye on their health. Animals that are sick and no longer drink are extra vulnerable and can quickly be in danger of life due to dehydration.

Can a food bowl be used as a water bowl for Gerbils?

It is also possible to give the Gerbils water from a drinking bowl. It is very important that the drinking bowl is cleaned several times a day and is placed on a stable surface. Placing a water bowl on the ground cover is unfortunately not an option because the Gerbils will then undermine it.

Is a water bowl dangerous for young Gerbils?

Yes, a food bowl that is used as a water bowl can be dangerous for young baby Gerbils. This is the case if a litter has been born and the youngsters are already starting to walk around a bit, then there is a chance that they will end up in the water bowl with all the consequences that entails. If there is a litter, we recommend placing the water bowl on a plateau that the youngsters cannot reach and only offering it when the youngsters are big enough to drink from a water bowl independently.

As can be seen in the image above, the drinking bottle for hamsters can be hung in two ways. We also use this example for the gerbil! One way forces the gerbil to stand on its hind legs, and the other way gives the animal the opportunity to drink on all four legs. Which is better? Can you also hang the drinking bottle somewhere in between? We answer all your drinking bottle questions!

How do Gerbils drink in the wild?

Gerbils get a large part of their moisture from their food . Seeds, parts of plants and insects already contain some moisture. This is also possible at home. After all, food always contains a little moisture, completely dry does not exist, otherwise it would be dust. If you also give your gerbils green food, for example, they get a larger part of the necessary moisture from the green food. You can then notice that your gerbils drink less. This is because he gets enough nutrition from his green food. Live insects such as mealworms also contain a lot of moisture. However, it is still important to always offer a water source in the form of a drinking bottle or a water bowl.

Another way that Gerbils drink is by licking the dew drops off plants or catching them with their paws. For this, the Gerbil must stand upright and they do it well! A Gerbil, unlike a Guinea pig, is made to be able to stand upright. Its entire build is adapted to this and so standing upright is a natural position for a Gerbil. Drinking from a drinking bottle therefore actually imitates the natural way of drinking of the animals.

Drinking from a water bowl seems like a natural position, but in the wild Gerbils rarely come across puddles of water from which to drink. In the desert it is very dry and moisture must be found in other ways.

Can a Gerbil get a hernia from drinking from a water bottle?

No, absolutely not. There is not a single case documented and in practice this is not possible. In our blog " Neck hernia due to drinking bottle in rodents & rabbits " we explain further why this is not possible.

How high should the drinking bottle for Gerbils be hung?

As we have already mentioned, the drinking bottle can be hung in two ways , namely a little higher so that the Gerbil has to stand or a little lower so that he can drink on all fours. Both ways are good, but everything in between can be annoying for the Gerbil because he can't quite stand on his hind legs and also not quite on all fours, so it's not quite right.

We know that this can be a challenge in relation to the ground cover, so it can be useful to hang the drinking bottle in a place with a stable surface. So a place where the Gerbil stands stable, for example a plateau or in a sandy part of the enclosure.