Scent Gland
Libby Hanna
and Cathy Bickel
The scent gland is a waxy-looking, hairless spot in the middle of a gerbil's underside. It is more prominent in males than females and gets larger as the gerbil matures.
Gerbils rub their scent gland across surfaces, or other gerbils, to mark them with their scent. If you see a gerbil dragging his belly along the ground you may be seeing scent-marking behavior. Mounting another gerbil from behind can be an aggressive action, or part of mating, but it could also be just scent-marking behavior. The scent left behind is imperceptible to humans.
Scent glands are susceptible to tumors, both benign and malignant. These can often be removed by the vet. Deal with them early before they have a chance to metastasize.
GerbILARIUMS
Showcase of various custom cages built for gerbils.
Be sure the size and type of cage is manageable and one you can keep clean. It's not all about size. Gerbils need stimulation and ideally time to explore out of the cage: gerbils love to run, climb, dig, nest, take dust baths, tunnel and chew.
