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Meerkats are appealing, burrowing animals, that live in large underground networks with multiple entrances which they leave only during the day. Meerkats are highly social and live in packs consisting of up to 3 different family groups. The pack is known as a mob or a gang and a gang can contain up to 40 individuals.

Meerkats form large gangs as this provides a better chance for survival due to the greater protection of the group, a sharing of resources, and a division of labor. Most Meerkats in a group are all siblings or offspring of the dominant pair.

The members of a Meerkat gang will each specialize in specific tasks such as sentinel or guard duty, babysitting the young or foraging for and sharing of food. Meerkats mainly eat insects, but will also eat lizards, snakes, spiders, plants, eggs and small mammals. Meerkats forage for food during the day and whilst the majority of the group are foraging one or more adults will stand sentinel to look out for predators or other danger. If a predator is spotted or other trouble arises, an alarm is sounded by the sentry and the gang will band together in a mob for safety and take appropriate defensive actions. Meerkats will most often flee to a burrow if an attack seems forthcoming from a bird of prey.

Although Meerkats are social animals within their own group, they are intensely territorial and will drive away intruders. The boundary of the groups territory will be marked by the dominant male and they will protect their boundaries ferociously against other gangs.

The majority of young born to the group are the offspring of the dominant pair and the lead female will monopolize the breeding rights of the group for up to 10 years during which time she will produce around 17 pups who will survive the most dangerous first year of their lives. The whole group assists with raising the pups. The male pups will usually leave the group when they reach adulthood to find or take over a group of their own.

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