Sugar Glider
 

:p I was just wondering if anyone has ever owned a sugar glider? I have been wanting for a very long time to get a red/grey squirrel or southern/northern flying squirrel but it costs so much to take the courses and to get my exotic animal license so a friend of mine mentioned that I should consider a sugar glider. And my reasoning for wanting one for a pet is bc I love the way that they bond with you. My friend Adams' boss rescued a grey squirrel and she is so sweet and never wants to part with her. She goes everywhere she goes and is litter trained. :eek: Now as with all my other pets I put A LOT of thought and consideration into them before I bring them home. I know that they do NOT do well with dogs or other pets (there are of course exceptions as always) but in general only want/tolerate contact with you. And I know that they need large TALL cages to be happy and since I can't find tall enough cages in my area I found a website that shows me exactly how to the perfect one. So, my biggest worry is about their diet. I know you can get sugar glider type kibble but just like with dogs, ferrets and other animals this diet can not possibly be enough nutrition for them to live a healthy and happy life. So I'm wondering just how high maintenance is their diet? I have tons of other questions but I'll shut up for now to see if anyone even has had/has one! lol

You love animals...I saw the Sugar Gliders on animal planet, cute, but from a far.

We've never had a sugar glider but our cousin has a pair. They're cute little boogers. Back in high school, I took in a rescue squirrel. Her eyes weren't even open. They are amazing pets...if you get them young. She hated men, though and would attack my dad. Too funny! I can still hear him cussing! We ended up keeping her about a year and gave her to someone that had 3 squirrels. They had a HUGE cage that covered one wall in their den.

I have 2 sugar gliders!!
 

I have 2 little girls! They are so cute!!!! I love having them, they are so easy to take everywhere with you... due to the fact that they'll just sleep in a ball in your pocket, or a bonding pouch.

Their diet is a tricky thing. The breeder who I got them from has a diet plan that is great. My girls seem really healthy compared to some of the other gliders I have seen, (and the vet said the same thing :p ). It is a super simple diet too...

SunCoast Diet
1-fruit and/or veggies
2-a protien source (bugs, yogurt, chicken baby food, hard boiled eggs ect...)
3- Zookeepers secret (a staple food--like a moist kibble-- that stays in the cage all the time).

You should look on my breeders site. She is AWESOME!! And even sends out a Sugar Glider e-Newsletter once a month, even if you don't buy through her. She has a ton of information on her site. And sell the zookeepers secret that every sugar glider LOVES!

Soncoast Sugar Gliders

If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask me anything!

Just thought I'd share a pic of me and Emma-- she is in "her safe spot". She dives there any time she gets nervous...

Emma

LOL Since I'm not at all familiar with Sugar Gliders, I was expecting the safe spot to be a perch up high somewhere so nobody could reach her!! My guess is nobody's going in after her in your safe spot either!! :D

They are cute lil boogers arent they! :p See that's exactly the situation I wanted to fall into where I could raise a young squirrel up and bond with him/her but I know that you are required to have an exotic animal license and it's really expensive and long process.. My friend Adams boss found hers in her yard under a tree where apparently it had fallen out. And she just happens to have a very understanding vet who looks at her squirrel for her and doesn't ask akward questions about licenses. She's very lucky! :D

Thanks ever so much for all the info! Don't be suprised if you start getting pms bugging you about these little fuballs from me! :p

That's so sweet! She knows where she's safe alright.. see that is exactly why I'm so interested in adding one to my family. I have a ferret who is by far the most hillarious little guy I've ever encountered but ANYTHING but a cuddler! And it costs me A LOT of scratches and sore fingers if I try to hold on to him for more than 30 seconds! lol That's just who he is, he'd rather be tearing around my room dragging my clothes, slippers and socks under my bed than be snuggling up with his momma! :p I know how much they really do bond with you and I LOVE the fact that they can go with you nearly anywhere. :D

:D You are right! No one is going after her there!!!! She is a smart little stinker, because that really is one of the safest spots she can go. She knows I'll keep her safe.

They are adorable!!! i LOVE them!! sad story time...my aunt was baby sitting one time when she was my age. they had a flying squirrel and she was terrified of it. they didn't keep it locked in a cage so it was jumping around her all night. it went into the bathroom so my aunt closed the door. when she went in to check on it it had drowned in the toilet. :(

PM away! I have had them for almost three years and have done LOTS of research. And I could talk about them forever.

Also... if you bond them to you early on you will probably never get bit. (But I can't say that strangers to them wont... They can be very picky about who they want as friends).

Another thing they are picky with is food! It is funny, my girls HATE kiwi, strawberries, honeydew melon, and get sick of apples on occasion... BUT LOVE avecado, watermelon, bell peppers, pea pods, cucumber, sweet potato baby food. I know other sugar gliders who love honeydew melon and hate bell peppers...

That is sad, that is an EXTREMELY common way for them to die. We NEVER leave the toilet seats up, just in case they decide to break free sometime. (And trust me if there is a way out they'll find it!)

Okay CUTE story about them getting out then I'll be done...

My dh and I were visiting his sister and we took them and their cage to her house with us. Well we went to sleep not knowing we didn't secure the cage. After being asleep for a while I feel a little something on me, she crawled up to my face and started trying to open my eye with her tiny hands. ISNT THAT CUTE!! Instead of just wandering off in a new house and getting lost, she tried to wake me up to play. Layla (our other glider) was not far behind her and was climbing on my bed.

Our local exotic pet store has sugar gliders. They are very sweet all though I know they can be aggressive. It depends on the way they were bred and raised, I was told. You definetly want to get one that has been hand fed.

I want to get one someday too :p

See, I REALLY want to avoid buying one from any of my local petshops for the simple reason that I am sure they come from "sugar glider mills" just as there are puppy and kitty mills.. Even though I LOVE the people who own my fav local pet store I still don't want to have to get pets from them bc of this reason. I plan on questioning them about where they get their gliders and if they can provide me with a number and an address where I can meet the real breeders then I might consider buying from them one day.. But so far Sun Coast Gliders has been the best in my eyes. (I've seen the site before when looking around and was very impressed..) Am I right in thinking that pet shops get their gliders from "glider mills" ??

not sure...but I've been avoiding getting another hamster because I'm worried they get them from rodent mills. :eek:

I went by one of my local petshops to pick up a feeder mouse for my snake Jada and I decided to ask about their sugar gliders. I asked a TON of questions and bugged the you know what out of the owners lol But amazingly he and she never stopped smiling and had no trouble or problem with answering all my questions. They get them from a local breeder (gave me their info etc so I could check them out) and bc they only buy from one breeder they don't have a lot and said there's usually a list. There was a man there who wanted to buy his 9yr old son a sugar glider for christmas and wanted to hold one.. I was just behind him checking out their ferrets when I heard him yell and turned around to see the poor little baby mid air gliding from his shoulder to the nearest cage so I just instinctively reached out and caught it and put it in my hoodie pocket and all it's crabbing noises stopped and it just calmed down. The poor thing was sooo scared. He/she had bitten me A LOT but only broke the skin in one place when I took it out of my hoodie pocket and put it back into it's cage. I was so irritated that the guy just opened the cage, grabbed the closest gldier and was mad when it bit him! I would have bit too! Firstly, the poor thing was asleep, it had never smelled him before and was very young. Needless to say the owner was VERY angry with him for just removing the glider without even asking permission and was extremely thankful that I had caught him/her without it getting hurt. And now I know EXACTLY what the crabbing noise is! hehe it's such a silly noise! They are sooo soft and I felt so bad for the little guy/girl.. :(

sorry girl...I have never heard of them.

I have one! Its a boy. Not too hard to take care of. I simply give him a little bowl of babyfood(fruit medely-only thing he likes) and a few unsalted peanuts everynight before dark when he comes out. He also has these little pebbles that have vitamins or something, but he wont eat them unless hes out of food for the night. Then everynow and then, I go to the pet place and buy some meal worms. He will get one or two a day till they are gone. I dont get them often though cause on the otherside of town. Its like a snack. Males stink more than females because of the gland on head. you have to clean cage once a week at least, and make sure cage is big enough to let him jump around and have toys. I am scared of his crabbing noise he makes so I havent ever picked him up yet! Its been a year. Freaks me out! And afraid he will bite, even though its probably not that bad. He is fun to watch in his cage though! Good luck!