Explain the tail first, because it tells the story
A fat-tailed gerbil, also called a duprasi, stores fat in its thick tail, and that one fact shapes most of what your sitter needs to know. Write at the top of the notes that a plump, smooth tail means the gerbil is in good condition, while a noticeably thinner or wrinkled tail after your trip is an early sign it has not been eating properly. Tell the sitter to glance at the tail at every visit as a built-in condition check. Also explain that this desert species is calmer and slower than a Mongolian gerbil, often active in bursts with long naps, so a quiet afternoon visit finding it curled asleep is expected behaviour.
Feeding: measured seeds, limited rich extras
Fat-tailed gerbils gain weight readily on oily seeds, so your notes should give one exact daily measure of gerbil mix and a short list of what can be added. Name the occasional plain extras your gerbil accepts, such as a small piece of carrot or a few dried insects for protein, and state a firm limit on sunflower seeds and similar fatty treats even when the gerbil begs at the glass. Explain that an empty-looking bowl is not an emergency, because duprasi forage and stash food in their bedding. Include where the food tub lives and a clear instruction never to refill early, since overfeeding a fat-storing species shows up in the tail and waistline within a short stay.
Keep the enclosure dry, deep, and diggable
Duprasi come from dry desert country and do poorly in damp housing, so the habitat section of your notes should stress dryness above tidiness. Describe the deep layer of digging substrate and ask the sitter to remove only the soiled toilet corner, replacing it with dry material, and never to wash the whole tank or mist it. The sand bath deserves its own line: it keeps the coat in condition, should stay in the enclosure or be offered daily, and should be sieved rather than replaced wholesale. Note the gnawing supply too, plain cardboard and wooden chews, and ask the sitter to top it up, because a gerbil with nothing to chew will work on the enclosure fittings instead.
Handling a docile but delicate small gerbil
Fat-tailed gerbils are generally docile, but your notes should still explain how little handling they need. The sitter should scoop your gerbil from underneath with two cupped hands if it has to be moved, never lift by the tail, and keep sessions short and low over the enclosure so a wriggle cannot become a fall. Mention whether your gerbil lives alone, since duprasi are often kept singly as adults and can fight with cage mates, so the sitter should not attempt any introductions. Add that hands should be washed before and after, and that a gerbil asleep in its nest should be left undisturbed rather than woken for a cuddle.
Signs to act on and the numbers to use
Finish with the short list that means the sitter should phone you or the vet promptly: a fat-tailed gerbil that has stopped eating, a tail that has gone suddenly thin or has a wound, discharge around the eyes or nose, a hunched and fluffed posture that persists into its active hours, or droppings that turn loose. Put your number, a backup contact, and the exotic vet's details on the same page, with permission to act first. Keeping the whole handover in KinsLe's Care Pass means the feeding limits, the dryness rule, and the emergency numbers travel together to your sitter instead of sitting in your notebook at home.