My girlbil escaped behind kitchen counters. Please! Help me capture him!!!

Zascar

This is a bit of a nightmare guys I'd appreciate some help. I stupidly let my gerbils run around the floor in my apartment since - there are not to many places they could get lost (so I thought) but one of them jumped up on a ledge at the base of the dishwasher, and disappeared down a tiny little crack at the side under some other panels. I had no idea, I thought it was all sealed, I've learned my lesson! The thing is I can take one of the panels off but not the others. I had the builder up and you cannot take the kitchen apart its totally sealed. That was 3 days ago and he's still in there. He comes out all the time, I see him a few times a day, but its in a corner and he scurries back in any time I make a move.

I've tried dozen of ways to try to catch him, elaborate traps, but none of them have worked. I got a humane mouse trap but its very small and he won't go into it. I'm going on holidays on Saturday morning - and my flatmate is freaking out - she won't stay here while he is loose.

This is now really stressing me out. I need to get him back but I'm running out of ideas...
Thanks

Victor

Make sure he can't get out of the apartment under the front door.

What if you leave out food?

meoklmrk91

Best bet would be to put a big enough box, or something like it, on its side. Then put a good bit of food in it, after three days he will be hungry and when he comes out he will go to the box once he is in right the box and there you have your gerbil. Might take a bit of patience though...

Zapperzy

Have you tried a bucket with steps or a towel to climb up the side and bait all along it and inside the bucket (something really smelly and tasty like peanut butter) but no way of getting out of the bucket once they fall in (but make sure you pad the bottom so the fall doesn't hurt him)?

Outkast_IRE

Big box , a stick and a long piece of string thats your simple effective trap right there while he caught in the box block all possible escapes.

Bullseye1

Is there any way of setting up a seal/stop when he comes out so that he cannot go back?

Zascar

I tried the steps thing with peanut butter but he did not go for it. I tried peanut butter in the humane mouse trap but no joy there either.

I tried waiting to try to trap him but I only see him 1-2 times per day usually. I cannot wait all night.

Bullseye1 wrote: »

Is there any way of setting up a seal/stop when he comes out so that he cannot go back?

I was thinking this, but how exactly can I do it?

Thanks for the replies guys please keep them coming!

Bullseye1

Maybe if you reduce the area available to the gerbil it might give you a better opportunity of catching it on his retreat.

JustAThought

Haha it's tragic but hysterical! Genuine suggestion. Sleeping bag, masking tape and big piece of strong cardboard. Camp out : no iPods, no noise; be prepared to sleep there right up beside the crack. At some point he will come out: cover the hole superqiluick; tape it up tight with the masking tape ( won't damage the paint/ Walls) and then you re in even terms wih little hoodoni! ( who is clearly enjoying his holiday!) poor you!

Zapperzy

I presume since you have another gerbil that this one is safe in it's cage? Was going to suggest leaving the cage open on the floor with loads of food and bedding, and checking on him often and hope to catch him mid nap in the cage. Maybe if you left a box or an old cage on the floor with some of the bedding from his current cage it might entice him back into it and give you an extra chance to trap him while he's gathering bedding or food.

Witcher

Happened to me back when I was a kid, hamster got out of his cage and ran under the stairs, every night for about a week he'd come out, run around the edge of the room and go back until we caught him with a little fishing net, sneaky bugger he was:P

zenno

put his own cage down close to where he is and put food in the cage i'm sure he will enter the cage as he will need water from the bottle and he will remember it as his home. if he goes into his cage he might just stay there and hide in his cage when you come along and not run out of it. it's really all you can do because these desert rats gerbils from mongolia are extremely fast moving and are really hard to catch.

put the other gerbil in a different housing if possible until you catch this little feller.

put some cooked scrambled eggs in the cage as well as they love that stuff, serious, with the heat from the scrambled eggs he will pick up the scent a mile away.

Sigma Force

A humane rat trap would be larger perhaps that might work. But as said set up a smaller section and put the cage with the door open (no other gerbil in it) on the ground with food in and lots of cardboard to chew, the gerbil might go in and be so busy chewing the cardboard that will give you the chance to close the cage door.

Hopefully you manage to catch him, in the mean time make sure the gerbil has access to food and water a shallow bowl of water will work or some tiny bits of washed veg.

One place you could let them out that would be safer is in the bath tub they can't climb up the sides.

Once he's out if you can use a lenght of wood or anything at all that will block the area he goes back to. If you've lots of books you could set up a wall of books to section off the area.

Zascar

I got him!!! Ahh soooo relieved I was getting really bloody stressed out about the whole thing. I put his cage beside the gap and he eventually came out and jumped in, I had to throw something at the cage to shut the door. He's back in his new cage now with his brother, very happy - but not as happy (relieved) as me...

Thanks for all your help!