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The gerbil is a small animal, with a body length of about 12 centimeters A bushy tail adds another 6 to 12 centimeters. Usually, the male is somewhat bigger than the female, and weights from 52 to 133 grams. The gerbil's body is slender, and its skin is quit tight. His head is short and broad, with a pointed nose. The ears are rather small and covered with fur. 
The original colour of the Mongolian gerbil is what we call agouti. The dorsal hairs have a grey base, a yellow center band and black tips. The belly and paws are beige or white. The claws are black.
The fur should have a silky shine. This shine is caused by an oil-like substance, excreted by a gland at the gerbil's belly. Both sexes have such a gland called the Harderian gland. They can spread their odour to objects or to each other by rubbing against it. In this way they spread a substance, which contains pheromones. Pheromones are smelling hormones, giving each gerbil its own unique odour.
The gerbil's body temperature is 37.4 to 39.0 degrees Celsius, the respiration frequency is 70 to 120 times per minute, and its heartbeat varies from 260 to 600 times per minute. The average life expectancy is 3 years, with a maximum of about 5 years.
The lower abdomen of the female is usually a bit rounder, and the anus and vagina are closer together than the anus and penis in the male. In an adult or almost adult male, the testicles are clearly visible at the base of the tail.
Click here to see pictures of the different sexes.
Gerbils are often mistaken for mice, but there are some clear differences between these two species. Gerbils dig, and mice don’t. Gerbils have shiny black (or red) eyes, that are bigger then the eyes of a mouse. The gerbil's head is shorter and wider, like a squirrel's head, its hind legs are longer than its front legs, whereas the legs of a mice have a more equal length. Gerbils also have a long, hairy tail with a tuft at the end, while mice have almost naked tails. 
Another difference which is harder to see, is that the upper incisors of the gerbil have a narrow groove at their anterior surface which mice don’t have.
Speaking about teeth, like in all rodents, the incisors of gerbils never stop growing. By gnawing at things, they keep their teeth short enough to eat properly.
A nutmeg gerbil eating some chicory.
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