Register Register New Posts Active Topics | Search Search | FAQ FAQ

GliderGossip
 Sugar Gliders
 Sugar Glider Biting to get His Way!

Note: You must be registered in order to post a reply.
To register, click here. Registration is FREE!

  Posting A Reply To: Sugar Glider Biting to get His Way!
UserName:
Password:
Message
Category:
 
Default, miscellaneousResearch InformationFood, DietHealth relatedLaws, Rules, & RegulationsScientific InformationJoeys, birth, parenthoodPicturesInformationQuestionOff topic chatHeated DebatesFunnyMemorial, Passing, RemembranceRescueNewsBehavior
Format: Bold Italic Underline Strikethrough   Horizontal Rule   Insert Hyperlink Insert Email   Image Tag Upload Image My Photo Albums   Insert Quote Insert List   Insert Movie  
Message:

* HTML is OFF
* Forum Code is ON
Smilies
Smile [:)] Big Smile [:D] Cool [8D] Blush [:I]
Tongue [:P] Evil [):] Wink [;)] Clown [:o)]
Black Eye [B)] Eight Ball [8] Frown [:(] Shy [8)]
Shocked [:0] Angry [:(!] Dead [xx(] Yawn [yawn]
Kisses [:X] Approve [^] Disapprove [V] Question [?]
Smile [^_^] Wink [^_-] Tongue [^,^] Frown [^=^]
Cheer [cheer] Bonk [bonk] Clap [clap]
Laughing Out Loud [LOL] Cry [cry] Wave [wave]
Gibbs [gibbs] Now I Get It [nowigetit] Cake [cake]
  Check here to subscribe to this topic.
 
    

T O P I C    R E V I E W
MooseAndSquirrel Posted - Jan 03 2019 : 11:25:06 PM
Um... just having a little difficulty with a sugar glider I've had for a month. He's a male and his name is Moose. He has a sister named Squirrel and they get along fine.

Squirrel is the sweetest sugar glider ever! She will lick you and cuddle with you, but she is not bonded to me, she is bonded to my sister. Moose, on the other hand, is a little crazy at times. He will happily lick yogurt off my fingers, but when it comes to running around freely on my lap, his only goal is to explore new, possibly unsafe, places, and he will do anything he can, including biting REALLY hard, to get his way. I'm just not sure how to handle his biting and how to help him to stop. Any suggestions?

Sometimes Moose will sleep in his pouch with me during the day, but sometimes he gets frantic (maybe from the cold or in a car) and will keep trying to pry the zipper open. He doesn't really seem like the pouch kind of sugar glider.

Moose and Squirrel have also been rehomed two times and had their names change from I think: Romeo and Juliet TO Moose and Squirrel. Could this be making it more difficult?

Another question I have is if one sugar glider can bond really well to two people or if it will just pick their favourite.
4   L A T E S T    R E P L I E S    (Newest First)
BYK_Chainsaw Posted - Jan 08 2019 : 10:34:06 AM
As I get used to our gliders, i use a scoop method, I put my hands around them then bring my hands together under them, to scoop them up like an ice cream scooper. I feel this leaves the top area above their heads open and they tend to not get as nervous, this also means if they really are freaked out instead of biting they can still just
jump out of my hands and run away. I can adjust the scoop to do quicker and pull them away from cage or stay in cage and see what they will do.

I think of a bite as really hurting or bleeding, I think of a nip as no blood and less pain, as the gliders get used to me picking them up the nips get less painful.

some of my gliders, my most bonded one gus, will still nip and groom and pull my hair on my head and arms and legs at times. A small bobo on the leg is something to
groom and eat into. the longer I stay in glider room with them, if they dont go back to sleep in pouch, and stay up with me, the more gus finds spots to clean and gloom and eat. so sometimes I have to really move him away, either just a push or I pick him up
and move him away.

I would use a piece of fleece on my hand if I handle a glider I think will bite hard.

I also get newer gliders I can't pick up to walk on my arm or hand by putting a treat, dried mealworm, just out of reach so they have to get on my hand to get their treat.

if moose is running around on you that is a good sign. he is getting used to you and your scent, keep it up as many nights as possible.
MooseAndSquirrel Posted - Jan 06 2019 : 04:33:26 PM
Thanks for the advice!

Yesterday when we took Moose out onto the couch to play in a blanket he got active after a few minutes so we thought he might need to use the washroom. We tried to move him to his cage with a pouch, but when he refused to go in and just went around it my mom picked him up! He did NOT like being picked up and repeatedly nipped/bit my mom! I don't think it was a good idea for my mom to pick him up. We recently had hamsters and I guess were just used to picking them up. With sugar gliders I guess they have to choose to come to you.

My sister has a closet in her room that has nothing in it, so we play with the gliders in there. Moose loves jumping from me to my sister and climbing on our heads! But then he will just randomly nip/bite one of us! Do you think he is cold, irritated, or just amused by our fingers? It seems like he just bites for no reason sometimes! We are now making a hiss/tsss/chus sound every time he bites. Has this helped other gliders in the past? I've heard that tapping them on the head when they bite (which is what we did with our hamsters and it worked) doesn't work on sugar gliders. Is this true?

BYK_Chainsaw Posted - Jan 04 2019 : 06:56:45 PM
i agree with sjusovare.
Our gus, gizmo, sophie are extremely friendly with both me and my wife. gus and sophie are friendly with just about anyone.

you have glider for one month, very short time, you say he is adventurous and
runs freely on your lap, so I'm guessing you have to grab him to try to stop
him, this would lead to a bite or nip by many gliders. I have 5 I can pick up
out of 11 that won't bite. I have one that freaks out if I try to pick him up.

I would suggest a glider safe area he can roam and you can slowly try to
handle him, so he can get used to you and won't need to bite. keep the room
darker will help him out. I would keep bonding pouch to use in the house for
now myself. as he gets used to you, then you could go outside with him IN
THE pouch.

I think the names dont matter, we have renamed most of our gliders.
sjusovare Posted - Jan 04 2019 : 05:28:43 AM
When he is bitting, are you actively holding him? I ask this because many gliders, even the tamest and best bonded ones, simply hate being held (or picked up) and will bite no matter what to get rid of the hand. You may have more luck by distracting him from the object of his attention than by "force".

I would think that he gets stressed inside the bonding pouch by sounds and smells he doesnt know without being able to see the actual perceived danger, which may be why he is trying to open the pouch
I've personally never been a fan of bonding pouches, if they might help in some cases, I feel it has no beneficial effects most of the time and can even slow down the bonding process if it is not well perceived by the animal.

Gliders can bond with several persons, they are colony animals and their colonies have more than 2 members ;)