How to tell the difference between guinea pigs hamsters and gerbils

have you ever gotten confused when looking at a small furry friend thinking it was a hamster but it was a guinea pig? well, if you have or haven’t and want to know how to tell the difference between these 3 rodents? then let me help you here are the key differences between hamsters guinea pigs and gerbils

Let’s start with size: Guinea pigs are the largest, reaching up to 10 inches (25 cm for all you non-Americans) in length and 2.5 pounds (1.1 kg) in weight.

Hamsters are smaller, with dwarf hamsters reaching up to 4 inches (10 cm) and Syrian hamsters reaching up to 8 inches (20 cm).

Gerbils are also relatively small, reaching up to 5 inches (13 cm) in length.

Now let’s talk about appearance: Guinea pigs are stubby in appearance with a large round head and rump and are tailless. They also mainly have short hair, but certain breeds can have fur that can grow up to 20 inches (50 cm) in length.

Hamsters have more rodent-like features with small heads, slightly pointed noses, and usually gray fur and vary in size and shape depending on the species.

Gerbils: have long, thin tails and relatively small ears. Gerbils are also quite slender and elongated, with a rounded head and pointed snout, and are often just brown.

Gerbils are also often mistaken for mice, so here’s a bonus to help you.

Comparison to Mice

Some key differences between gerbils and mice include:

• Tail: Gerbils have longer, furrier tails than mice, which have shorter, hairless tails.

• Ears: Gerbils have smaller ears than mice.

• Body shape: Gerbils are more slender and elongated than mice.

Behavior: Guinea pigs are quite curious animals and often come to sniff or lick your hand. They usually don’t like to be handled too often but can be very cuddly, while hamsters are timid and prefer to hide in their tunnels and aren’t the most cuddly animals but can benefit from regular handling. Gerbils are similar to hamsters; they prefer to run around and explore.

be handled but can sometimes enjoy handling

So there you have it! In summary, guinea pigs are the biggest, and the roundest hamsters are the smallest with slightly pointed noses, and gerbils have large ears, a furry tail, and pointed snouts.

Thank you for making it to the end! Here’s a bizarre fun fact about gerbils: Gerbils do something when they are caught by a predator, which is called a tail slip. It is very painful but will distract the predator long enough for them to run away.