I'm sure you've all been enjoying the heat wave we've had lately. I certainly have! I was a bit worried about the jirds though because they didn't seem their normal selves. They came out of their house to sleep on the bedding outside, and weren't as active. I thought they were probably feeling a bit hot. I'd read on perserblog.de that they had given their jirds a cold stone to sit on. Unfortunately I live in the middle of town and stones are not very common! I improvised with a small dish from the cupboard and left it in the fridge for a few minutes before putting it in their house. They quite liked sitting on it to cool off and were quite keen to jump in the sand bath when I put it in there to freshen up.
They have decided to sleep in the top of their house now but I think it's a bit of a squash as one normally sleeps out of the door! This has meant that I was able to take a couple of very cute pictures...
The Jird Blog
Thursday 4 August 2011
Saturday 30 July 2011
New jird video
I've just finished putting together a new video of Mario, Luigi and Yoshi! Hope you enjoy it.
On a quick note I'm pleased to announce that they seem to be eating more of the Gerri Gerbil now, although they still like to take it all out of the bowl and leave it around the edge. The green flake bits seem to be their favourite.
On a quick note I'm pleased to announce that they seem to be eating more of the Gerri Gerbil now, although they still like to take it all out of the bowl and leave it around the edge. The green flake bits seem to be their favourite.
Tuesday 26 July 2011
Fussy eaters
Just like me, the jirds appear to only like what isn't good for them. They are turning out to be quite fussy eaters!
Things they like (so far):
Clearly I have jirds who like gourmet dining only. I know fruit and veg sounds ok, but I've read in a few places that they should only have it once a week so they don't get bad tummies. In an effort to try and get them to eat more of their 'proper' food, I only give them small amounts of the treat food each time but they just won't eat the gerri gerbil. Oh dear. Hopefully they'll get a taste for it as they get older.
Things they like (so far):
- Sunflower seeds
- Pumpkin seeds
- Millet
- Almond
- Walnut
- Bread
- Broccoli
- Cherry tomato
- Cucumber
- Carrot
- Dried corn on the cob
- Dried fruit
Things they don't like:
- Mealworms (I was very surprised at this, my last two loved them!)
- The entirety of gerri gerbil mix! All the pieces get taken out the bowl, nibbled, and discarded at the side. They seem to be quite methodical about this, going through all of the bowl until they get to the good stuff, leaving me a nice mess to clean up in the morning!
Clearly I have jirds who like gourmet dining only. I know fruit and veg sounds ok, but I've read in a few places that they should only have it once a week so they don't get bad tummies. In an effort to try and get them to eat more of their 'proper' food, I only give them small amounts of the treat food each time but they just won't eat the gerri gerbil. Oh dear. Hopefully they'll get a taste for it as they get older.
Monday 25 July 2011
Megazorb squashing and house amendments
I vacuum bagged the megazorb today. This was actually quite successful although when decanting it out of the sack I did manage to get a great deal of it over myself and the carpet. It didn't compress as much as I was expecting, but still enough for it to be more manageable. It meant I could hide it easily in a space behind a cupboard!
Now I've had a chance to see what the jirds get up to in their house, I've moved the toys round a bit. The wheel got moved to the bottom after one of the jirds managed to get on top of it, and then roll off and fall to the bottom. Luckily he was ok but I didn't want another one to do it and hurt himself. They were investigating the wheel yesterday and finally worked out what it did! They quite like it now.
Another small amendment has been the addition of a new water bottle. The one I had before stuck on the glass but as soon as I put water in it, it leaked. I was also worried about it being plastic and the jirds chewing it. I got one of the basic water bottles and made one of the ventilation holes bigger so I could push the spout through from the back. It worked well, apart from the bottle was quite bulky and I couldn't push the cabinet all the way back against the wall. As a solution I found a 'flat bac' bottle online which takes up less space. It also comes with a floating duck inside so you can see when it needs refilling - novelty value! These bottles come with a clip to attach them to wire cages, and you can also buy suckers if you want to attach it to a smooth surface. Here is the link to the website I bought it from: http://www.ukpetsupplies.com/product.php/2507/0
Now I've had a chance to see what the jirds get up to in their house, I've moved the toys round a bit. The wheel got moved to the bottom after one of the jirds managed to get on top of it, and then roll off and fall to the bottom. Luckily he was ok but I didn't want another one to do it and hurt himself. They were investigating the wheel yesterday and finally worked out what it did! They quite like it now.
Another small amendment has been the addition of a new water bottle. The one I had before stuck on the glass but as soon as I put water in it, it leaked. I was also worried about it being plastic and the jirds chewing it. I got one of the basic water bottles and made one of the ventilation holes bigger so I could push the spout through from the back. It worked well, apart from the bottle was quite bulky and I couldn't push the cabinet all the way back against the wall. As a solution I found a 'flat bac' bottle online which takes up less space. It also comes with a floating duck inside so you can see when it needs refilling - novelty value! These bottles come with a clip to attach them to wire cages, and you can also buy suckers if you want to attach it to a smooth surface. Here is the link to the website I bought it from: http://www.ukpetsupplies.com/product.php/2507/0
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I've used plastic coated wire to hold the bottle in place. The wire is held by a ventilation hole and one of the eye screws left over from putting the ladders up. |
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Spout comes in from the back. The jirds have sniffed it, but not used it yet. Until I see them use it they have a little dish of water inside the house as well. |
Sunday 24 July 2011
Play time
We went to Pets At Home earlier and bought a play enclosure for the jirds so we could let them have a good run around without them escaping. The Pets At Home website has them on offer at the moment for £11 instead of £15.99. Only problem is that it is a web only offer, but if you reserve it on the website you can then collect and pay for it in your local shop for the £11 price. This is the link if you fancy one: http://www.petsathome.com/shop/play-pen-for-hamsters-by-s.a.m.-15951
We put the pirate ship in there (being as it doesn't fit in the house!) which they had fun exploring, and some other toys. I think they were quite nervous of the new experience at first as they had a few accidents - luckily we had put newspaper down first. After they got over the nerves they had a great time, especially when they got given some sunflower seeds!
Here are some pics of their little adventure...
We put the pirate ship in there (being as it doesn't fit in the house!) which they had fun exploring, and some other toys. I think they were quite nervous of the new experience at first as they had a few accidents - luckily we had put newspaper down first. After they got over the nerves they had a great time, especially when they got given some sunflower seeds!
Here are some pics of their little adventure...
Saturday 23 July 2011
Settling in
The boys seem to have settled in fine. They woke up earlier for another look round the house and they are definitely getting more adventurous and confident. Their favourite food appears to be millet - it was the first thing claimed from the food bowl!
It's easy to tell who is getting which name. There is one jird who is always first to try everything, and gives anything a go, including jumps he can't quite make! That one is Mario. Luigi is always the second one out and likes to follow Mario and watch him before trying things himself. Yoshi is the shy one. He likes to sit in the house or under the log and only comes out when he feels brave enough. Waiting for him to come out of his shell...
Bad pun, sorry!
Well, I've spent all the evening playing with them and making the first video. Hope you enjoy it!
Well, I've spent all the evening playing with them and making the first video. Hope you enjoy it!
The boys have arrived!
Well, the boys have arrived and are all settled into their new home!
I think they had a comfortable journey. They seemed very happy in their travel box and after running around to explore it for a bit they all went in the house and went to sleep until they got home. We put them in the house and showed them all the different levels. They explored it for quite a while before going to bed. I think they were exhausted after their busy day. Hopefully we'll see them again later.
We managed to take some pictures that weren't blurry. They are very quick and hard to photograph! I've also filmed some video on my phone but it will take me a little while to edit it. I'll post the finished article soon!
I think they had a comfortable journey. They seemed very happy in their travel box and after running around to explore it for a bit they all went in the house and went to sleep until they got home. We put them in the house and showed them all the different levels. They explored it for quite a while before going to bed. I think they were exhausted after their busy day. Hopefully we'll see them again later.
We managed to take some pictures that weren't blurry. They are very quick and hard to photograph! I've also filmed some video on my phone but it will take me a little while to edit it. I'll post the finished article soon!
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