Our rescue is filled to the brim with victims of "home show," "Cowboy Christmas" and flea markets hit-and-run slimy glider hawkers.

It's just inhumane to palm these animals off as easy-to-take-care-of trinkets. All too many of the gliders bought on impulse at these shows end up dead, neglected or in terrible condition.

Now PETA is on to this lousy practice. Gail spoke to PETA about this and told them all about how these these hit-and-run trade show and flea market scallywags "dump" gliders on clueless pet buyers.

Here is the URL to the media alert PETA put up after speaking to Gail:

http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/sugar_gliders

We can testify to the fact that over half of the gliders in our rescue were purchased "impulse-wise" at these shows. People simply do not know what they are getting into when they buy these animals as the "cool trinkets" they are sold as. As a result many are abandoned, malnourished, ill-treated and live in terrible conditions. And many more die.

Just this past month, a glider was abandoned in a house here vacated after an eviction. The landlord carried the cage to the curb as trash. Luckily a utility worker passed by and heard something. He said to the landlord - hey I think there's something alive in there. So the utility guy took the glider home and he and his wife came to the rescue and we trimmed its nails fed it and gave them a short course on glider husbandry. With luck the couple will be able to care for it. If not, it'll end up here.

This summer, another was found on a doorstep - having been "let go" by some heartless ass. The little guy is in good health and up for adoption. (That's Lucky who is now cagemates wtih Todo and Frodo - you can see photos in the albums here) His mate who was found outside later was not so lucky. She was housed temporarily in a cat carrier on someone's porch, but it got away and probably died in the 110 degree heat of Vegas' summer.

Five more came in last week - victims of yet another clueless hobby breeder who found herself "over her head" with dozens of sick, inbred gliders. (Chuck, Larry, Tom, Jerry, Jimmy - also in the album here). We can't count the number of people who have started breeding these poor creatures thinking they were gonna make money and then dumped them for free or sent them to rescues after getting in too deep.

Just last week our Dr. K. had to remove a necrotic eye from another glider who came in from NM. (That's Makudo also in the albums here) This one had been neglected by a kid who had to run off to college. Mom tried to intervene but by that time the infection killed the eye and an absess formed. We could go on and on...

Although we love these animals and do what we can to save their lives, they are not for everyone. They come in faster then they adopt out. This despite our open houses, Meetup.com networking, advertising and begging people to adopt. Yet people think nothing of buying too-young joeys at these stupid flea markets. The bottom line is it takes a special family to care for them properly. We neuter all the males that come in to the rescue so we can keep more "off the street." We have a special animal husbandry course to teach adopting families how to care for these special animals. But unfortunately, this does not stem the tide of greed the mill breeders have nor does it slow down the cynical sale of these poor creatures at trade shows. It is just plain WRONG to sell them in an impulse venue. These sellers downright LIE about how easy they are to take care of and show pictures of them on dogs' heads and say all kinds of vile and stupid things to get people to buy gliders. Then six months later they are on our doorstep giving them up. It's just awful.

Please share the PETA URL with people you know who are animal lovers. If anyone is dead set on obtaining gliders, please beg them not to buy them at a show or pet store. That just lines the pockets of mill breeders and glider death merchants who don't care about how so many die. Instead, tell them to adopt if the *have to* own one. Unfortunately the more someone is "dying to have" a sugar glider, the more likely they are to dump it. So better to steer them away if you can. Many thanks.

i personally dont really like peta but at least they are a big organization and can possibly get something done about this. They bring attention to this problem and can hopefully stop it! Thanks for the info and for your hospitality!

I despise PETA, but if they can help stop glider mills, then Im all for helping out. Hopefully, now that they are aware of this atrocity, they have shown up at the Sands Hotel to protest.

Thank you, Ed & Gail, for all you do to help these little animals. It has to be overwhelming at times.

Please, if you MUST get a glider, go to a reputable rescue organization and adopt.

Just curious...what dont yall like about peta? i've always heard nothing but good about them.. maybe yall know a side about them that i just havent heard of?
i dont mean this as going against yall or anything like that but just wanna know what i dont already.

My opinion only, I think they are too radical.

I don't know much about PETA in general but the cause is good if they can help so my letter is done and sent. Thank you for the oppurtunity to take a part in helping these beautiful creatures.

Thanks for that info, Ed!!!

I think a radical move is whats needed at this point. If you belong to other forumss, please post this link there. The more people that write the better! Thsnk you Ed and Gail for all you do!

thanks guys we are reaching out to many different organizations. PETA was the first one to put their supportive words into action. I like the way their form reads on the web site. It allows people to fill in the blanks and communicate with whomever they wish via email. They even provide contact info for show management. It also gives people ideas of how they can write a formal letter.

Yes PETA is known for being "radical" but I was impressed with the instructions on the form. It states the facts but also encourages supporters to: "consider writing, calling, or faxing polite comments..."

Like Rita said, despite our individual sentiments, we are all for an initiative that benefits our little suggies. They need all the help they can get. many thanks to all and please encourage people to use this outlet. Perhaps this is an example other organizations can learn from.

im not a big peta fan sense i saw that they said animals are better off dead instead of being put in a rescue..
but if they are wiling to help the little gliders more power to them..
i hope they get it so they cant sell the glider i feel bad for them cause they are going to go to unprepared parents..
i hope people keep stumbling upon thos site..
i did when i got mine and it was the best thing for me and my little babies..

PETA was responsible for "rescuing" hundreds of dogs from no-kill shelters then euthanizing them and dumping the bodies.

They feel that any animal is better off dead than being kept as a pet.

I wouldn't trust them with our gliders! Next thing you know, they'll be turning on *US* the glider owners, for keeping exotic animals.

Too radical isn't the right word for it. Think of it this way: Radical Muslims want to destroy America. Are all Muslims radicals? No. But ... there is no negotiating with a radical. They are not "on your side." They are on the side of their mission.

PETA scares me ... they are capable of anything!

I agree
Peta scares me as well.
They believe that No animal thould be a pet. That the animal is better off dead than being a pet.
If they were to somehow to confiscate gliders from a Glider Mill, it hurts me to think about what they would then do to all the gliders.

thats what i was just thinking about while i was working around the house..
what o you think they are goint o do with them..
do you think that that they would put them in a rescue or what..

Woah, wait a minute. Just so everyone understands, "they" are not going to do ANYTHING with the gliders at our rescue. We take care of them and work diligently to adopt them out and provide educational workshops to prospective adopters. PETA just put up a form so people could send out letters to show owners asking for them to ban the sale of gliders at these shows.

Yes, of course with the word "PETA" in the subject line of this post, it was somewhat predictable that would be a lightning rod for anti-PETA sentiment. That's OK. And that's why I chose the "fire" icon knowing full well this would happen. Go figure.

To keep it all in perspective, PETA is but one vehicle for media outreach to trade show venue owners and show management. Not THE vehicle. So for all of you who have a disdain for PETA but are still interested in "getting the word out" it would be helpful and instructive if you could post alternate ideas for our little media campaign. We have used local TV and newspapers as outlets but maybe something more grass roots would be even better.

So far PETA has lent a sympathetic ear and there has been no indication that they intend to send people here to kill our gliders. (I will fight them off with fists, pots, pans and anything I can grab if they try to do that).

To erase any doubt, what PETA have done so far is to put up a web landing page for us so people could send letters and other communications to people who own venues or produce shows in which exotic animals are sold to impulse buyers. That so-called "campaign" is directed at Shelly Adelson and Chris Woodruff who own the venue and show, respectively of the gift show where Steve Larkin of Pocket Pets of Dallas sells gliders. Larkin (formerly associated with Custom Cage Works) also sells joeys at the Home Shows all over the country and also here in Vegas.

After reaching out to dozens of organizations to ask for help in getting the word out on sugar gliders, PETA were the only ones to take action. The ONLY ones to do ANYTHING.

So if you do not want to do anything under the auspices of PETA but still want to do something, you can contact the people and companies in question directly and urge them to ban the sale of exotic animals at their shows:

[Christmas Gift show where Steve Larkin sells gliders]
Chris Woodruff, President
Group W Productions
6211 Southwest Blvd., Ste. 100
Fort Worth, TX 76132
817-566-8800
817-566-8806 (fax)
info@groupwproductions.com

[Owner of venue where gliders are sold]
Sheldon Adelson, Chief Executive Officer
Sands Expo and Convention Center
201 Sands Ave.
Las Vegas, NV 89169
702-733-5556
702-199-5568 (fax)
info@lasvegassands.com

Perhaps a post on just PETA is appropriate at this point. PETA does in fact advocate euthanasia if animals are suffering, but so long as animal cruelty or suffering is not in the equation, they advocate life. Lucky Glider Rescue & Sanctuary is a "no kill" rescue and sanctuary. That may put us philosophically at odds with organizations like PETA because they regard the notion of "no kill" as naive. But even with our differences, they saw this campaign as a worthy ideal.

FOR THE RECORD, and to ensure that everyone reading this post understands the position of Lucky Glider Rescue & Sanctuary, let me address the notion of "no kill."

To put our convictions into a "real" light, consider our actions last week when little Makudo had his eye enucleated. Going in, we knew that if the doctor had found deeper skull infection or tumor behind the eye, she would probably have euthanized Makudo to avoid his suffering. Nonetheless, at a cost of $600, we gave the go-ahead to operate. But we were ready to have him euthanized on the doctor's say-so if she felt - in the middle of the operation - he was going to suffer. Now had we NOT spent the money and just kept him alive in that awful state, with a raging infection and necrotic tissue all about the head, THAT would have been cruel. And if we did not have the funds to do a humane operation, I am quite sure PETA would have advocated "kill." And if we did not have the money to do the operation, the fact is his death would have been imminent and it would have been painful, with infection reaching his brain and poisoning his little body. So yes, we would have euthanized him had we not been able to secure the funds to operate. This past year, as an alternative to euthanasia, we have always sought to dig deep into our pockets to do expensive operations. Eyes, tails, open sores, etc. - all amounting to thousands of dollars in fees - even though we get a discount. So for the record, we are a "no kill."

But being a "no kill" does not mean an animal will never be euthanized. Being a "no kill" means euthanasia is only a last alternative and is only used if the animal will suffer otherwise. And in most cases, the distinction comes down to MONEY.

There are all too many occassions where rescues become over-run, understaffed, and have raging infections and diseases running rampant. Animals suffer in those circumstances. Here in NV, there was such a situation a year ago where a "no kill" shelter fell to such disrepair and mismanagement that virtually every animal in the shelter (mostly cats) had to be euthanized. Yes, a no-kill shelter where euthanasia became the final word because the animals where suffering.

So we advocate "no-kill" and that's one of the reasons why the word "sanctuary" is at the end of our name. But just because we are a "no-kill" does not mean we will keep an animal alive if, in the opinion of this staff and our vet, the animal is indeed suffering.

Now to bring it full circle, none of this suffering, euthanasia, and neglect would happen if it weren't for the sale of these animals in the first place. Worse, the sale of them as "Christmas Trinkets" in impulse-buy venues - and sold by people who outright LIE about how hard it is to take care of these animals properly.

Soi on this post, I am hoping we can share information along the lines of contact information and media campaigns advocating the ban of exotic animal sales at shows and flea markets.

Simly put we want the sale of exotic animals at these shows and flea markets to be banned. (Yes pet stores are bad too, but at least they are there the next day to account for themselves and not off in a van travelling to the next show).

Our sentiment stems from the fact that over 50% of the animals in our rescue were sold by these impulse buy vendors at these shows.

So we are passionate about getting the word out to stop selling gliders at "impulse buy" venues.

NEWSFLASH

Gail just sent me a note she got back from Best Friends Animal Society: Best Friends Animal Society (5001 Angel Canyon Rd, Kanab, UT 84741, 435.644.2001, www.bestfriends.org). They had some suggestions too:

If you're going to influence the 'Demand Side' (the buying public) of the problem you have to educate them and this means you have to be very knowledgeable not only about Sugar Gliders but also about the laws regarding the sales at trade shows. If you're to create public awareness then you should be prepared to write letters to the editors, or to the trade show organizers, or to your legislators...etc.

If you want to promote adoption so people won't buy Sugar Gliders then you have to provide them with contact information about rescue groups. Is it possible for you to form a coalition with other rescue groups &/or individuals in order to create a 'presence', a 'face', a 'point of contact'?

Here is the link to the Best Friends' "The Truth About the Pet Trade" community. Under the 'resources' tab you'll find many articles and tips about how to influence the situation. In particular, I've attached three PDF documents for you -- the last one outlines Best Friends general strategy -- Unite, Educate, Create a Model Program, and Assist Other Organizations.

In addition, check out "Tackling the Supply & Demand" -- http://network.bestfriends.org/truth/news/30069.html

no i didnt mean the gliders at your rescue.. SORRY
i was meaning i have heard storys about them letting dogs out of cages and stuff..
i didnt mean them coming to your rescue..
i was just thinking about what they have done before.
but if they are just going to send them emails and stuff then i think they are doing the righ thting..

Ed - we all know the good you and Gail do. And we also know you would NEVER allow any harm to come to any glider - especially a glider in your care.

Im so sorry if some thought you were turning your gliders over to PETA. Everyone - please rest assured that Ed and Gail would NEVER do that.

Like Ed said, PETA wrote the letter and gave the addresses of who to contact to protest allowing gliders to be sold on their premises. Now, Ed has given those of us who do not want to be associated with PETA another option.

Glider Rescues all over the country are overwhelmed with homeless little furbutts. But people keep purchasing gliders from pet stores, fairs, flea markets, malls and convention centers. We all know what happens to the majority of these gliders. Only a handful of very fortunate gliders end up with owners who do research to give them loving homes. Other fortunate gliders will end up in a loving rescue like Lucky Glider. But most of them will end up as Ed described - unloved and passed from home to home, malnourished, sick, mistreated - and dead.

We all sit around wondering what we can do - well, letter writing IS something we can all do. That is all Ed is asking of us.

Thank you, Ed - for letting us know what we can do - and making it simple for us. Im so sorry it ended up something other than what you intended.

Im writing my letters this afternoon.

quote:

---

Originally posted by LuckyGlider

PETA does in fact advocate euthanasia if animals are suffering, but so long as animal cruelty or suffering is not in the equation, they advocate life.

---

"December 13, 2008
Exclusive: PETA Killed More than 90% of the Animals in its Care in 2007
PETA’s 2007 Euthanasia Records Available Only at PetaKillsAnimals.com

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, a group that complains bitterly when animals die accidentally in horse races or intentionally in slaughterhouses, killed more than 90 percent of the adoptable animals in its care during 2007."

If you want more information, just Google "PETA Kills Animals".

I'm not saying the Mill Breeders should not be stopped. I am saying I don't want PETA knowing too much about gliders or glider ownership! Since they have actively ADOPTED animals who were healthy and could have been placed in a home, only to then euthanize them within a few hours, I don't think it is at all accurate to say they advocate life.

I certainly wouldn't let anyone from PETA adopt from your shelter, if I were you!

Right now - Ed with Lucky Glider Rescue is only asking us to write letters to the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas to protest their allowing millers like PPP to sell gliders on the hotel premises. And for those of us who do not want to be associated with PETA - we have been given another option.

Write your own letters. The names and addresses of those we should write to have been provided in Ed's post. You dont have to e-mail the form provided by PETA.

THAT is something we can all do to help.

I started another thread so those of us who want to flame PETA can do so. Lets not Hi-Jack Ed's thread. He has very good intentions and only the best for all sugar gliders at heart.

Thanks Rita.

We created a public relations issue for LGRS with this PETA letter-writing initiative. We weighed those risks in favor of saving a few gliders' lives by stopping their sale at these shows. You can call the letter writing initiative with PETA a detente in the face of two separate and sovereign missions between us.

For the record, we feel compelled to draw distinctions between LGRS and PETA so there is no ambiguity for those of you who do not know us as Rita does.

Here I will attempt to do that so there is no misunderstanding of our intent here at LGRS.

But first let me recognize what we know about PETA:

A. They represent the animal rights radical element.

B. When animals are taken into their "care" they are often killed.

Rest assured I would fight to the death before giving up our animals to PETA. Or anyone else if we felt the animals whould be in danger or put to death outside of our very clearly artilculated policies on "no kill."

Clearly our mission and PETA's mission are wholey separate and sovereign from the other. However, there is one thing PETA advocates that I do agree with even though they are generally against our "no kill" stance - and that is the inhumane treatment of animals. And perhaps becuase that is the one thing PETA has so in common with so many animal lovers is the biggest reason why they still exist.

HOW THIS WHOLE INITIATIVE GOT STARTED

LGRS is not the last organization nor will it be the first to advocate the ban of live animal sales at trade shows and flea marekts. In fact it is illegal to do so in some counties and states.

Anyone who has seen Steve Larkin (Pocket Pets of Dallas, formerly associated with Custom Cage Works) beckon his nine-year-old male glider called Shakespeare to jump from your upheld hand to his shoulder at a trade show cannot deny the emotional swoon that washes over the crowd who watches. And then he launches into his pitch of how easy they are to take care of. And how sugar gliders can ride on dogs' heads. And how they can eat out of a cat's bowl next to a cat. All with the intent of getting you, the animal lover with dogs and cats already in your house, to go home with a glider. And he tells you to feed them pellets and apples (what we call the "death diet"). And he tells you that the cage he sells you - that conveniently fits into the trunk of your car - is big enough. And he sells you 6 week old joeys - not neutered - to add insult to the injury - so you get stuck with more and more animals you will probably give away or give up to a rescue when you figure out you don't want to be pooped on and bitten, etc. Look folks, this is just plain cynical and disingenous poppycock. He knows these animals are not for everyone. He knows he is withholding information about what they are really like. He knows dogs and cats will eat them most of the time and not peacefully co-exist. He knows the pellets are crap as a diet and just a cage staple. He knows a lot of them will die or be given up. But he doesn't care. And his grandfatherly cooing obscures the fact that he is a stone cold liar. So you and dozens of others buy these precious, innocent little creatures and take them home. And woosh - he's off to another town, another show. Then woosh, months later they are dead, on Craigs list or in rescue.

Clearly, it is ihnumane to sell these animals in a trade show or flea market venue. It is inhumane because the sellers' practice to LIE about the diet and husbandry guidelines of sugar gliders. Their lies lead to the DIRECT mistreatment and death of these animals through malnourishement and neglect. They know very well these animals are not so easy to take care of properly. Yet they foist them on people as if they were domesticated hamsters. All too often people come to us with a cage of gliders and saying: "yeah they keep dying on us." And there the remaining but close-to-death ones sit -- skinny, malnourished, with metabolic bone disease and often having self-mutilated from the stress associated with a slow death. A more typical scenario is they are passed from one family to the next, each as unsuspecting and ignorant of proper sugar glider care as the other, which leads to stress, and often death. Another typical scenario is they end up here.

RESCUE IS NOT ALWAYS A 'LAST RESORT' - IT DEPENDS ON THE RESCUE

Many people think a rescue is a "last resort." I don't think so in our case. In our case, we are strong advocates for the safety, health and rehabiliation of these animals and of course the eventual re-homing of them with the right family. Now look at this and compare it to news about PETA "rescue" initiatives:

10 RESCUE AND ADOPTION STEPS AT LUCKY GLIDER RESCUE & SANCTUARY:

1. Animals are surrendered. They are dropped off or we go get them.
2. We administer emergency care. (syringe feeding, ecollars, etc.)
3. We take them to the vet and get operations done, etc.
4. We get the males neutered (NO BREEDING HERE!!!!!!!)
5. We get them stabilized on the LGRS diet and rehabilitate them
6. We pair them with cagemates if possible
7. We handle them and do our best to tame them so they can be adopted
8. We advertise and use media outlets to attract adopting families
9. We interview adoptive families and introduce them to animals
10. Adoptive families are educated on best practices in husbandry, diet

All of this is done with the oversight of APHIS/USDA. We get regular visits from the USDA animal care inspector and have a veterinary care program in place as well.

What's now established about Lucky Glider Rescue & Sanctuary:

A. We are a "no kill" rescue operation and only euthanize for strictly humane reasons when an animal would suffer otherwise.

B. We have a rigorous outplacement policy that would not allow animals to knowingly fall into the hands of anyone who would do wholesale killing of animals.

In fact, other shelters, including city and county shelters here in NV send their gliders to Lucky Glider Rescue & Sanctuary. It does not go the other way around.

There are two ways gliders leave this facility (not including death of course):

1. To an adoptive family who takes on a pair or a family of gliders.

2. To a foster care family who takes on a pair or a family temporarily.

In both cases, multiple interviews are required in addition to the completion of a dietary workshop and a 3+ hour course on sugar glider animal husbandry.

THE UNEASY DETENTE: LETTER CAMPAIGN WITH PETA

Now despite this very clear distinction between our beliefs and practices and those of PETA, we did nonetheless seek PETA as an outlet for media influence and we accepted their help in posting the letter form.

Once again, for those of you who have a philosophical aversion to having anything to do with PETA, we urge you to write your own letters or faxes or emails to the owners of venues wherein sugar gliders are sold in an "impulse buy" context.

We also encourage you to wrtie letters to pet stores, breeders (mill and hobby) and anyone else who proliferates the overpopulation of these animals. We have an epidemic of unwanted gliders on our hands - especially now during these hard economic times when people are forced out of their homes - along with their gliders.

Ask any rescue that has dozens of gliders up for adoption. Ask Jaimie in Colorado, ask Angie and Debbie in Texas... Between us we literally have HUNDREDS of unwanted pets that are healthy, beautiful, innocent animals that need homes.

Now with hundreds of animals in rescue, why in the world would we need more breeding of these exotic animals? C'mon we need more breeding like we need a hole in the head. Please spread the word that adoption of neutered animals is the most humane option.

please

I never meant that Peta would confiscate the sugar gliders in the care of the rescue.
I was thinking of what Peta's topic is about , the gliders that are sold at the fairs, flea markets, show's etc.. The places that PP goes to, to sell gliders to the unknowlegdable public. What if Peta goes to these places and confiscates the gliders from there, or right from PPP? What would happen to all those gliders then?
I know I am just throwing what ifs up in the air so I cannot really put up much of any argument or statement at all about it. WHat I do know is how Peta feel about domestic pets, they say that No animal should be kept as a pet. And I kow they have done horrible things so that animals do not wind up in home as a pet, which they feel is cruel.
I applaude everyone who rescues sugar glider or any animal, I speak from experience. It's hard and tireless work, but does have it's own rewards.. the health and safety of each rescued animal you help. I agree, I would fight off any Peta person who would dare to take away the rescues. I just have no faith or trust in Peta. I wish other organizations would take action and help out with stopping glider mills so Peta can be kept out of it.
This is merely my own opinion. everyone has a right to their own and can speak it freely as I have. I never meant to disregard or or belittle any rescue, I am one myself. I apologize for making anyone feel this way.

it's nice that they are trying to stop glider mills but i don't like peta. I think instead of spending all of their funding on huge fridges to store dead animals that they should open an animal sanctuary. I know that they want to help animals, but I think they go about it the wrong way. Personally, I believe that they aren't too radical. If you want something changed then you have to protest it and get people to know what you are about. By doing "radical" things then at least they are getting someone's attention and they might change some people's minds. I'm really not sure if I could back them, I did for a long time and I just don't believe in what they stand for anymore.