g. m. <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote
>Normally females with pups should not be left together, but there is
>an exception. Both females must give birth within days of each other.
>In order to insure that both females will have the hormonal or brain
>chemical inhibitions needed to avoid hurting the pups. This is why
>gerbils are able to foster pups when their pups are less than 14 days
>old. After 14 days old mothers will kill strange pups. Im not sure if
>this theory is correct but I am basing it on past GML emails and
>misguided gerbil books prior to the internet age. So they're were
>times it did work. However, as gerbils got older and birthing cycles
>didn't match, pups were injured and killed.
>
>
You are basing it on:
CHANGES IN THE RESPONSES OF MALE AND FEMALE GERBILS (MERIONES
UNGUICULATUS) TOWARDS TEST PUPS DURING THE PREGNANCY OF THE FEMALE:
Elwood, RW, 1977, Animal Behaviour, 25, 46-51
THE DEVELOPMENT, INHIBITION AND DISINHIBITION OF PUP-CANNIBALISM IN THE
MONGOLIAN GERBIL: Elwood R W, 1980, Anim. Behav., 28, 1188-94
POSTPARTRITIONAL REESTABLISHMENT OF PUP CANNIBALISM IN FEMALE GERBILS:
Elwood R W, 1981, Developmental Psychobiology, 14(3), 209-12
PATERNAL AND MATERNAL BEHAVIOUR IN THE MONGOLIAN GERBIL: Elwood R W,
1975, Anim. Behav., 23, 766-772
--
Julian
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
National Gerbil Society
http://www.gerbils.co.uk/
