Bushy Tailed Jirds
Bushytailed jirds are amazing creatures very like a small squirrel or large gerbil. They make very good pets for those that are interested in something a little different yet still easy to care for.
Bushy Tail Jirds (Sekeetamys calurus)
Description
Roughly the same size as a Mongolian Gerbil but a bit longer and thinner in build. Their faces are long and pointed with very prominent whiskers. Their most striking feature is their tail. In a non-dominant animal this is quite thick along most of it’s length. The tail is often tipped in white, although the amount may vary from a few sparse hairs to an inch or more. Only in a dominant male is the bushy tail seen in all its glory.
Bushy Tail Jirds
Diet
They can also be maintained on a diet of lab blocks, and rat or mouse mix, with bits of fruit or veggies regularly. Cheerios or wheat bread are great treats, in small quantities. Do NOT feed chocolate, fried foods, salted foods, candy or junk food! I’ve also offered my jirds crickets and mealworms as treats, which they seem to adore. They should also have a small lime block in their cage, which they’ll chew on as often as they need to.
Vitamins, like Nutri-Cal are a good addition to their diet, and added calcium during nursing and growth due to demands on their systems at those times, but take care not to overdo it. Water bottles are better then bowls, as the jirds will kick litter into bowls and then refuse to drink the soiled water. Ceramic or stoneware food dishes work well for keeping seeds or fresh foods off the floor, and a wire mesh hopper that allows the gerbils to eat the lab blocks through without them falling is also a good idea.
Habitat
It’s perfectly safe to house a single male and his harem of females together, even while pregnant and nursing babies, so long as the females get along all right. Some breeders prefer to separate them into male/female pairs to prevent fights amongst females. If they feel that there are too many jirds in the cage however, they will stop breeding and may even cannibalize newborns. A ten gallon cage will house one or two jirds, or a litter of weanlings temporarily.
But in reality, the more room they have, the happier they will be, and the better their health. Jirds need lots of toys to chew to keep them happy, as well as keeping their ever growing teeth down to a reasonable length. PVC pipe tunnels, and wooden ramps and houses, branches and rope swings will all keep your jirds from getting board during the hours when you are sleeping or can’t be with them. They need to be kept out of drafts or direct sunlight. Bedding should be aspen, paper based, or hay. Try to avoid Cedar or Pine.
Special needs
Bushy tails will benefit from a bowl with sand in their cage so they can ‘sand bathe’ to get the access oils from their hair. If not allowed to sand bathe on a regular basis, the oils can build up and lower the animals natural resistance to pests or cold. Long term neglect may also cause health concerns.
Personality
- Attitude – Very curious, friendly, and sociable
- Tame-ability – Fair to Good
- Trainability – Fair
- Activity level – High
- Vocal – No
- Minimum owner’s age – 12
Reproduction
- Lifespan 4-5 years
- Maturity 5-6 weeks
- Sexual maturity 3 months
- Receptive evenings
- Gestation 21-25 days
- Infants show color pigment at 4-6 days
- Infants can be handled at 2 weeks Infant eyes open at 16 days
- Ready to wean at 5-6 weeks
Mutations
As far as I’m aware, there haven’t been any major mutations in Bushy tails. They do vary a bit in color intensity, and some have more white on the tip of their tails then others.
Pet Status Uncommon
