Hi,

I recently acquired a pair of Sugar Gliders. A male and a female who have been together for 3 months, so the man told me that she was most likely pregnant? Anyways, I've a lot of questions, so please bear with me and help me out?

I was told it was OK for them to have fruit from fruit cups is this true?

How do I know if she's pregnant?

The male is very friendly and playful... she is not.

I've a large house, but am moving soon. Should I put their cage in the bathroom or something @ night, so that they can get out and play? I've 2 cats in the house so am scared to let them roam.

Really, I've not a clue as of what to do with them besides love and feed them... And before anyone fusses at me for getting these gliders I know nothing about, the story is... I sold my doberman and the man I sold her to was going to be $200 short, so he offered me the pair of gliders w/ cage, food, toys, etc. I've always found them interesting, so thought "sure". NOW WHAT DO I DO?

Shannon

okay first.. fruit cups a biiiiig no no to much syrup fresh fruit and veggies only also hir tummy may be a little bumpy, and i feel that her agression is another sign of her being pregnant because she wants to protect herself and the baby/ies I suggest starting them out on a diet like bml if they're not already on one and so yeah ill post morelater

Hi, Shannon:

My first suggestion to you is to take a deep breath. You will do just fine with these babies...read, read, read on this forum (and maybe Glider Central, too) to find out about their dietary needs, housing, playtime, etc. We'll be here to help you out, just read and ask.

Good nutrition is vitally important to gliders. And, getting good nutrition is not as simple as going to the pet store and buying kibbled food. Gliders are sap suckers, meaning that they get their nutrition by chewing up things, sucking nutrients out, and spitting out the rest. As such, the pelleted food is not only woefully deficient for them--it's downright harmful to their little mouths.

Some diets that have withstood the test of time are BML, HPW, Lucky Glider Rescue, and 50% protein/25% veggies/ 25% fruit diet. Keeping the optimal 2:1 calcium to phosphorus ratio is vital for gliders, whichever diet you chose. If your girl is pregnant, it's even more important to get these gliders on a good feeding plan RIGHT AWAY.

I would not give the gliders fruit out of fruit cups, because those tend to have too much sugar in them. Stay away from canned fruit, too. I give my gliders either diced up fresh fruits (like apples, melons, berries--occasionally a little orange--I stay away from grapes, because there's some concern that they *may* be dangerous for gliders).

If you do a search under "resources" and then "nutrition" at the top of the page, you can find more information about the diets I have listed. Also, you can just ask about whatever you are not finding on there.

Another thing that is necessary for you and your gliders is to find a good exotic vet in your area that KNOWS sugar gliders, and get them in ASAP for a glider wellness exam. The vet should give them a thorough exam, including a fecal float and smear to check for parasites and/or other infection. This is important! You don't want to be scrambling to try to find a vet that actually knows what a glider is in an emergent situation.

I have three kitties in addition to a dog and (at the moment) sixteen gliders. You absolutely want to keep the gliders away from the cats. Whatever room you decide to allow your gliders to hang out in, you'll need to go through and make sure it's glider safe. Remember that gliders cannot swim!!! Many gliders have crossed the "Rainbow Bridge" because someone forgot to close the lid of the toilet.

Gosh, there are so many more things I could type! I know that others will do so, too. Just keep reading and asking!~Wendi Harvey

NO fruit cups. as said above they are bad because of the syrups in them, sugars, etc. mine is on BML. as for her being preggo and health wise, i say vet check. u can never really know for sure yourself unless ur a exotic vet, or vet who can work on gliders. so i definatley recamend a vet check. again the diet, the cheapest for food and easiest to make is BML. if u dont know how to make it ill give u the Link.if she is pregnant, i would make sure i have rep-cal for her. and mealworms for protien. if u dont have rep-cal give her some yogurt, be careful with all the sugars in it. i got a low-fat strawberry yogurt and mine loves it!!!one of the most common frsh fruits is strawberries. grapes are not recamended. i wouldnt give her blueberries.i have tried banana. mine liked it. but i only gave her a sample. is that ok to give her guys? another thing. how big is your cage and what kind of toys did he give you?

and i noticed u said u have 2 cats? that makes it much more dangerous for you suggies. what would u do if they got out and you could not find them because ur cats decided they got hungry? not trying to be silly or mean. im dead serious. i have 1 cat is very friendly. but shes a cat. she is scared of almost everything but spiders. now i know shes sweet, but she is a cat, she may not get outside and hunt birds, but i know she would go into a hunting mode if she saw my suggie. so just wondering do u have a plan if u catch ur kittys trying to devour ur suggies??

quote:

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Originally posted by suggieluver02

and i noticed u said u have 2 cats? that makes it much more dangerous for you suggies. what would u do if they got out and you could not find them because ur cats decided they got hungry? not trying to be silly or mean. im dead serious. i have 1 cat is very friendly. but shes a cat. she is scared of almost everything but spiders. now i know shes sweet, but she is a cat, she may not get outside and hunt birds, but i know she would go into a hunting mode if she saw my suggie. so just wondering do u have a plan if u catch ur kittys trying to devour ur suggies??

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I think that is why she is here asking questions, so she can get knowledge from people who are more experienced. As for the cat issue there are lots of other people here that are pet lovers and have many pets. A lot keep their suggies in a room where other pets are absolutely no exceptions not allowed in so that they don't have that problem.

mine is in my bedroom, my cat is not allowed in any bedrooms. only the kitchen(where her food, and box is) the bathroom and living room. so they never have contact. i know people hate this but. there are many if's we must consider.i am trying to help u. i just wanted to know about it. right now im curious about cage size, and the types of toys u have.

I have a cat an she was fine just checking out the new additions she checked them out an could care less so please don't say cats are DANGEROUS any animal is DANGEROUS even humans so don't be so fast to judge I would never leave an suggie around a cat nor any animal that is just good judgment. Good luck hun with your babies :) you will get the hang of it in no time as there seem to be plenty of WELL knowledged people that have had suggies for years :) Also hehehe Wendi i haven't read about grapes being harmful could you fill me in i've been giving them 1 cut up grape a night along with cauliflower and mealies course they have yogurt an their treats an some pellet type food from exotic nutrition. They had a tad of eggs this morning an went nuts it was so cute! we also have 4 suggies at our zoo i can't be there currently so i know they aren't getting the attention they need just read up shannon an you will do just fine :)

Swilt there is speculation that grapes could be harmful to animals. It's been shown in dogs to cause kidney failure, so some people are a bit skeptical about feeding grapes to their suggies.

It's sort of a feed at your own risk ordeal. Luna gets grapes on occasion because she absolutely loves them.

ahhh i see well nala loves them so i guess 1 isn't to harmful thank you for telling me i honestly hadn't read that always ready to learn something new!

mollysmom,you said grapes are dangerous 4 the sugar gliders?? in what way?? coz my glider loves grapes.so i have to know why?

Hidebeat I just posted why.

Do a search up top for the words "grapes" and "toxic". The old posts should come up. I can't do it from my phone because I don't know how to copy and paste on this thing. If no one posts it, I will a little later when I'm on a real computer.

To answer your question about putting the cage in the bathroom at night so they can come out...

Any time your gliders are out of the cage to play they should be directly supervised by you. In a bathroom there can be many hazards that need to be checked carefully. Check for openings between cabinet units = they could crawl in and get stuck or have access to holes in a wall you cannot see.

check around the plumbing for holes.
check the space under a door - they may crawl out and get into the rest of the house.

One of my gliders, Sassy, went under a pocket door and into the wall (through a bracket 1.5 inch wide and .75 high) It was a tight squeeze but she came out the way she went in to get the mealies I was tempting her with.

Metal shower door frames can also be a hazard. Mine has a corner post that is hollow and open at the top inside the top frame. Sassy showed me that hazard too.

Out of cage time is a time for you to bond with your gliders by giving the a chance to explore you on their own terms.

I was siotting here reading thru this tread and was shocked it took so long for someone to say something about the whole being out of cage thing...maybe i read it wrong, but did you ask if you should put their cage in the bathroom at nite, so they can run around and play? If that was what u meant then no no no. As candy said it can be dangerous. But just remember anytime they are out, ANYTIME, then you need to be right at there side, watching like a hawk. Both my boys are wonderful, tame, and very bonded...but oneday my boyfriend had them in their pouch and the dorrbell rang...so he put the pouch down, answered the door...a situation came up so he left....without remembering the gliders were out....opps...I came home later the afternoon with the cage door open and no gliders in sight. I thought he had them with him...until i saw my one boy running across the floor and staring at me...as if to say..."look what daddy did...isnt he in troublle..hehehehewe...." Anyway it took me HOURS to find the other little bugger. (I found him in my bed under the covers....lmao) Long story short...anything can happpen. and they can get away much faster than you could ever imagine. I suggest getting a small tent for you to sit in with them at nite. Zip it up, and enjoy. Its gliderproof, they get to explore, and you can sit and watch them, without the worry. good luck, and dont worry.....as long as you read and educate urself, then u'll be just fine. I think everyone on this forum is still learning so we all just help each other. GOOD LUCK, and enjpy ur new babies!!!!

Sorry if this has already been brought up for I haven't completley re read through all the post, but I would schedule a appointment asap to get the male neutered. Joeys can happen faster than you can blink almost. They will keep breeding and keep breeding if given the oppurtunity. If there are any sons born you will have to do the same. Good luck to you and your precious babies.

My only suggestion is: Be prepared for having a joey! I exagerate: BE PREPARED! Even if they're not BEING PREPARED can't hurt!