Help, Why Are My Gerbils Eyes Closed?

So, you noticed your gerbil had their eyes closed while they were out of their burrow – and you have never seen that before.  Should you be worried?

Well, it depends on a number of factors including their age, their current weight, who they are with, their environment, the weather and whether this was the first time you have seen it.

Let’s look at those more closely below – but just to say – if your gerbil isn’t moving, is laid flat out, is obviously panting, is excessively rubbing or grooming their face on that side, or the eyes have any sort of thick or sticky discharge – they may well be seriously ill, have somehow injured their eye or have a painful eye infection.  

You are going to need a vet to check them.  

This article can’t help with treating any of those conditions, and they may well not get better on their own.  Red discharge however is quite normal in gerbils – although it too can be a sign of another health issue or allergy.

Eyes can cause your gerbil a huge amount of pain if they are inflamed, scratched or otherwise damaged – and eye issues are always one of the ‘straight to the vet’ conditions – even if just for a better look and some pain killers.

General Gerbil Behavior:

In good health, an adult gerbil will be alert and active, with soft, smooth fur and an inquisitive nature.

They will come out – well at least one of them will – when the tank is opened, things are moved around or they smell some tasty new food. 

An older gerbil may well still be alert and active, but takes a bit longer to wake up, and stays dishevelled a bit longer than usual – even with a sand bath!  Not usually a problem if you have watched it happen over time and everything else seems normal for them.

It is only when one of these things changes suddenly that we may assume that something isn’t quite right and make a note of it.  We may try a few things to remedy that situation – but generally after a few days – they are back to their usual antics.

This is a really great marker for when anything changes – you need something to compare it to – especially when you see your gerbil’s eyes closed when they are out of their burrow.

Topics covered below which should include your own issue:

• My gerbil’s eyes are closed and they are really old/young
• My gerbil’s eyes are closed and they have lost weight
• My gerbil’s eyes are closed and they live with friends
• My gerbil’s eyes are closed and I recently changed their bedding
• My gerbil’s eyes are closed and it is really hot/cold here
• My gerbil’s eyes are closed and they seem really tired

My Gerbil’s Eyes Are Closed and They Are Really Old/Young  

Eyes closed isn’t a normal setting for a healthy young gerbil.  Obviously as pups they are closed for the first 3 weeks – but after that, they should be clear and sparkling every time you see them.

However, as gerbils age – they often don’t produce the usual amounts of moisture – and they can sleep more heavily.  Often this results in a sleepy eye on waking.

They still want to come out and explore – but there is a bit of something that holds the eye fully or part shut for a short while.  As long as it isn’t gunky-looking – this will naturally resolve itself within a few minutes – usually when they give it a good rub.

If your gerbil, however, is quite young – this could be something else.

Yes, heavy sleeping or being slept on by another gerbil is a big possibility – but if this looks a bit more sinister or is accompanied by any other symptoms – this might need a closer look.

It could simply be a run in with a piece of substrate that it hadn’t expected – like using hay or straw for the first time – or that they are just still at the ‘binky’ stage and run into things, so could have accidentally damaged something there. 

However, if you see them pawing at, or overgrooming their face – certainly take this more seriously.

My Gerbil’s Eyes Are Closed and They Have Lost Weight

So you noticed the closed eyes and picked your gerbil up – but it feels a bit boney? 

Something is wrong – and it is quite likely tooth-related – so lift up those cheeks and take a look.  You want to see 4 big yellow teeth – 2 at top and 2 at bottom – and each pair the same length.  Anything less than that – needs a dental – and some very soft nutritious food in them meantime.

Not enough people keep a regular note of their gerbils weight for a comparison.  You can’t often tell by looking whether your gerbil has lost 5 or 10 grams this past week – it might only show after 20+ grams – and that is a serious percentage weight loss in an adult gerbil.

Gerbils weight doesn’t really fluctuate too much – unlike duprasi who can be all over the place with no ill effects.  If you gerbil loses more than 10g of weight in a short time – it is most likely something serious. 

Always go teeth first – but if the teeth are fine – then the eyes closed here could certainly indicate something else going on that needs investigating.

My Gerbil’s Eyes Are Closed And They Live With Friends

As said above, sometimes your gerbil has just been slept on by another gerbil in a sweaty nest. If your gerbils are young and are living in a pair or a larger clan of related or same age males – this is most likely.

However, it is possible that if this is an older gerbil in a mixed-age clan – that it is the result of over-grooming, or over dominance.  Sometimes younger gerbils can really bully or annoy older gerbils and it wears them down.  This can cause them to sit around outside of the nest with their eyes closed – they are avoiding the other gerbils – and are a bit stressed – and they are tired. 

Often, in such a clan, this is seen in early days of a declan, and the older gerbil would be best removed to his own tank to recover – and most likely a permanent new home.  Quite often, after the endless pestering stops – and they have had a good peaceful sleep, they completely recover and are soon a spring chicken again!

My Gerbil’s Eyes Are Closed And I Recently Changed Their Bedding

Allergies are always at the front of anyone’s mind when people say they have recently changed their substrate of bedding material.

Just like with humans – anyone can be allergic to anything – and at any time.  So if they have always been fine on aspen, or your friends gerbils are fine on hemp, it won’t stop your gerbils getting an allergy to the same thing. You could well get stuck-together-eyes along with a red discharge and a sore nose from something you friend has used for years.  Often when gerbils release porphyrins (the red discharge) they over-groom and the face and nose get sore indeed.

The only way to test for an allergy is a complete clean out – including all accoutrements in the enclosure – as well as a good 3ft of environment outside of their enclosure where dust from the previous substrate could have fallen and settled.  

The reason you have to be so thorough is because if you disturb this old dust or they come into contact with their old substrate before about 6 weeks has passed – you won’t see if it has improved the situation. 

Allergies really need a good 2 months to settle down – so you need to be thorough and you need patience – otherwise you can’t ever rule anything out.

My Gerbil’s Eyes Are Closed & It Is Real Hot/Cold Here

Changes in humidity can often trigger sticky eyes in gerbils because the substrate acts in a different way depending on the humidity – which often rises in colder weather.

Colder weather can also trigger respiratory conditions to worsen (just like with humans) and so more likely to cause biological stress – and end up with porphyrins again – and over-grooming on the face.

Getting too hot or humidity getting too low can also have adverse effects on what you see as ‘normal’ and so could create to circumstances needed for closed eyes.

Hopefully noone of these would be a serious issue – but if the weather/humidity stay the same for too long – it could become one. Buy yourself some visual hygrometers to keep an eye on things if you are concerned with ongoing issues.

My Gerbil’s Eyes Are Closed And They Seem Really Tired

If your gerbils eyes were closed and you could pick them up really easily – without them panicking, take note. Lethargy at any time is bad – so this is where you step up your care or visit the vet – depending on any additional symptoms listed below:

• If your gerbil is older than 2 years old
• If your gerbil has lost any weight recently
• If your gerbil has any wounds on their body or can’t support their own weight
• If your gerbil doesn’t take a favourite treat if offered right in their face
• If you suspect they may have eaten something they shouldn’t have (including non-food items)

If however, they are young and there seems to be nothing else obviously wrong with them – then you need to make the warm and comfortable in a quiet place with food and drink right close to where they are.

Take extra time to watch them and see how they – and their tank-mates – act and groom. Sometimes this will give you vital clues as to the issue – and it may involve a seperation – or just extra yummy food and a hot water bottle?

Let’s hope it is nothing serious – but either way – make sure you are registered with a local exotic vet or two incase you ever need one. Registering costs nothing – but means that you are one step closer to fast treatment if you ever need it.