I'm trying to learn everything I can to properly care for a new 9-month old glider I just bought on Sunday. We've only had him 4 days now and I'm worried because he is so very scared of everything! I don't think he was properly cared for... I got him at a flea market and they got him from a pet store. So I know he’s been passed around and hasn’t had any stability. He bites and freaks out when you try to take him out of his sleeping pouch. I'm worried. The poor little guy is so scared! Will he learn to trust and bond with us?

He'll come out of his sleeping pouch at night and eat and play in his cage but he's very timid when handled. There were two more gliders at the flea market and I'm thinking about getting another one (his sibling) so he has a companion but the others bite more then he does. So I don’t know if it would be a good idea to get the second glider.

Any advise on how to tame and bond with him? Have you ever had a similar situation? Should I buy the second glider?

Thanks for your help.
Lisa - Jacksonville, FL

WELCOME to the forum!

There are lots of links for help / tips on bonding.
http://www.sugarglider.com/gliderpedia/index.asp?bonding

PLEASE go get him one or both of his siblings, they are colony animals and are not happy alone!!

I would also suggest a vet visit ASAP, and getting males neutered.

What are you feeding him?

I'm sure you'll get lots of help here! Please read up on the stuff in the 'gliderpedia' section, very useful info.

you definetly should get another glider asap. Sugar gliders are colony animals, and yes he will learn to bond with you guys but it will be on HIS time!. You can not rush the trust process they will trust you in time every glider is different some take months some take years. I rescued a glider 2 months ago and he still bites and lunges at me. It just takes time. Also make sure you read on how to do intros.

Also, what kind of diet do you have him on if it is PELLETS THROW THEM AWAY! they have no nutritional value. read up on diets many people on this forum have their suggies on BML, HPW, Piscilla's Diet, blending, etc...

Get some bonding pouches and carry him around with you so he can get familiar with your scent, put a shirt that you wore on top of his cage, or cuts little pieces of fleece "blanket size" and put that on the inside of you shirt and at the end of the day put it in their pouches with them, so they can get familiar with your scent.

You can also try licky treats, put applesauce, yogurt, baby food on you finger and see if he licks it off, but be sure to move your finger before he licks everything off so he doesn't bite your finger trying to get more :)

You can also get mealworms and use those as treats. it may seem like a lot but don't get overwhelmed once you get going it will be like second nature. Also there are alot of people here that are great and will help you and who are more experienced than me that will give you more suggestions, and answer any questions you have.

CONGRADS ON YOUR NEW SUGAR BABY

You are probably going to feel overwhelmed with the flood of info,
there is a lot to learn about properly caring for gliders, but they are well worth it!

Get a second glider, no questions asked. They are colony animals and need to be around others! As for the trouble you are having, it's no reason to get too upset. I know he's cute and you want to play with him, but it will be a long road if he was't properly cared for. Remember, as you said yourself, he has been passed around a lot; he is scared and out of his element. Taking out his pouch in the day when he is sleeping is probably the best way to start. This way, he will get used to your smell without too much sress placed on him. When he gets better with this, offer him licky treats off of your finder like honey, jelley, or baby food (stage 1 or 2). This next thing will be hard, but I have faith in you! If he lunges/bites, do not pull away. If you pull away, he will think he has won and will just continue to do it.

I don't know what time period to give you, or even if there is one you should adhere to; all gliders are different. He could warm to you in a week, but it could take months as well.

I've had a glider that was neglected for the first 6 months of her life and she is just NOW coming around. If it gets to a point where you feel you've plateaued, contact valkyriemome for info on comando bonding; this is the only thing that has worked with my trouble glider.

Check out the rest of this site for great info on nutrition and diet! It's awesome!

Hi Lisa. You may find some helpful information here:

www.sugar-gliders.com/sugar-glider-info.htm

There may be useful tips under the categories, "Information for New Glider (or Potentially New) Owners" and "Bonding". Hope this helps:-)

quote:

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Originally posted by knd2m2

I've had a glider that was neglected for the first 6 months of her life and she is just NOW coming around. If it gets to a point where you feel you've plateaued, contact valkyriemome for info on comando bonding; this is the only thing that has worked with my trouble glider.

Check out the rest of this site for great info on nutrition and diet! It's awesome!

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Commando bonding? That's a new one for me. What's that?

http://glidergeek.weebly.com/index.html

also if he was with his siblings before you got him...he is very depressed/scared because he was bonded to them and you are not supposed to separate bonded pairs....i have a glider that i have had since jan. and she is still scared all the time...she doesnt bite as much or crab as much so you can tell she has made improvements but she still has a long way to go to be the way my other one is. so it can take a long time for a glider to recover from its "previous life" so to say because if they were mistreated and stuff like not getting the attention they needed and not fed right then yeah it might take awhile to overcome that. it has taken a long time for my girl to be the way she is and she still has lots longer to go...oh and if you reach in the pouch and he is aggressive he might be pouch protective and its probably not a good idea to grab him out ever just let him come out on his own

quote:

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Originally posted by Dahlia_2020
ut the rest of this site for great info on nutrition and diet! It's awesome!

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Commando bonding? That's a new one for me. What's that?
[/quote]

Here is what Valkyriemome told me to do:

"I have a bonding method I call "commando bonding." It seems to work with really hard-core cases. I have found that some gliders will just never get close enough to get it through their heads that you are ok. For those, you have to apply some convincing. While the suggested "norm" is that you ONLY go at the glider's pace, I have found with some, you have to very gently push their comfort bubble in order to break-through a bonding plateau.

Here is my method:

- Take her out during the day in her sleeping pouch. Yes, she will crab.

- Use your hand on the outside of the pouch to gently restrain her so that she can't maneuver into her "bear" stance. Now slide your other hand (inside the pouch) up along her back, with the heel of your hand on top of her head, and your palm on her back. Your fingers can gently and slowly rub her haunches from time to time.

- Once your hand is on her back (again, inside the pouch - actually touching her), you can let go with the other hand. You are now applying very very gentle but consistent, comforting pressure to her. Kinda make her feel that she is at the bottom of a glider pile. You'll find she'll quickly stop crabbing. BUT - every time you move your fingers or hand, or talk to her, she'll crab again.

- So - you watch TV! You very occasionally use your fingers to gently stroke her haunches - and when she crabs, you softly "click" at her. Don't tell her "shhh" - think about it! The last thing you want to do is sound like a snake! So ... just softly click. She probably won't stop crabbing until your fingers are still, in spite of the clicking.

-Do this EVERY SINGLE DAY for about 15 minutes twice a day. If you can't do it twice a day, then once a day for 30 minutes is ok, too

Eventually you can stretch the time. It usually takes about 4 weeks of consistent work for there to be any kind of break-through."

This is WORKING for me!!!

Thank you everyone!

Sorry I missed daddyglider at the Jacksonville show. I couldn't check my email over the weekend. I did however buy the second sugar glider this weekend and I can see a difference already. I was sad to see that the flea market had MORE gliders for sale because I don’t think they are being well cared for. They look thin, have poor temperaments, and one had bloody nails from being pulled off his cage by the guy trying to sale him to me!

I’ll be working with my new gliders and taking your suggestions. I’ll post more later and I’ll contact valkyriemome if I need commando bonding.

Thanks again everyone. I’m grateful to have received so many helpful responses!

-Lisa

quote:

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Originally posted by fire-eyez

you definetly should get another glider asap. Sugar gliders are colony animals, and yes he will learn to bond with you guys but it will be on HIS time!. You can not rush the trust process they will trust you in time every glider is different some take months some take years. I rescued a glider 2 months ago and he still bites and lunges at me. It just takes time. Also make sure you read on how to do intros.

Also, what kind of diet do you have him on if it is PELLETS THROW THEM AWAY! they have no nutritional value. read up on diets many people on this forum have their suggies on BML, HPW, Piscilla's Diet, blending, etc...

Get some bonding pouches and carry him around with you so he can get familiar with your scent, put a shirt that you wore on top of his cage, or cuts little pieces of fleece "blanket size" and put that on the inside of you shirt and at the end of the day put it in their pouches with them, so they can get familiar with your scent.

You can also try licky treats, put applesauce, yogurt, baby food on you finger and see if he licks it off, but be sure to move your finger before he licks everything off so he doesn't bite your finger trying to get more :)

You can also get mealworms and use those as treats. it may seem like a lot but don't get overwhelmed once you get going it will be like second nature. Also there are alot of people here that are great and will help you and who are more experienced than me that will give you more suggestions, and answer any questions you have.

CONGRADS ON YOUR NEW SUGAR BABY

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fire-eyez pretty much said it.

Just check the Gliderpedia and Resources tabs for info and diets and ask questions when you one, there are plenty of glider slaves that will be glad to help...yes, you are now a "Glider Slave" like the rest of us, but it is a good thing!

How do you see a difference already? They shouldn't just be placed with each other right away. If it's from the same person, I suppose quarantine isn't necessary, but the introduction period is still quite necessary.

I placed them together since they came from the same place and they already knew each other. I hope I didn't mess up by placing them together too quickly!!! I’m new at this. The original glider perked up as soon as he saw the new one and they seem to be very close. Always snuggling together. They have two pouches but choose to stay in the same one together. The first glider I bought is not as scared anymore and even comes out of his pouch and only crabs a little when we put his harness on. The second glider I bought bites hard! I’m taking the bonding process slower with him. Honestly, he scares me a little because he bites so much and so hard—drawing blood. He’s pretty mean. I also suspect that he is older then the guy said. Have you ever had a glider that bites really hard? I’m bonding with him using a pouch right now because I don’t know how to get him out and get his harness on w/o getting bitten. Otherwise, he is very sweet, but he’s a bit of a bully too.

What do you mean harness,is it like a leash if so DON'T USE IT ANYMORE. You can can really hurt your glider: ( and if goes around the neck you could even snap the neck. Also I have a suggie that draws blood and bits and shakes his head side to side like a pitbull. But that's because he is scared and doesn't trust you. Is he neutured? That can be a factor to his aggression I would suggest neuturing him, mine is in surgery now; )

Oh Yes, it’s a leash. The guy who sold the gliders to me said I’d need it. He probably just wanted to sell me more stuff!! I’d rather not use it anyway I was just doing what he told me. I’m learning so much on this website. Thanks for letting me know about the leash.

If he told you to use shavings in the bottom of the cage don't do that either. Nor should you use a heat lamp or a heat rock.

Sorry I missed meeting you in person in Jacksonville over the weekend.

Throw the leash in the garbage it is not needed and is dangerous to suggies.

As for bonding, these suggies are very new to you and your house. You need to move slow and let them see that you aren't a threat to them(at night), be patient and talk softly every time you approach their cage. You can use a certain noise or phrase that they will get use to before you open the cage.
During daytime you can take them out in their pouch and sit still with them and pet them or lay your hand over the top of them from the outside of the pouch. But you have to be comfortable and calm around them for them to feel secure. If you are scared of them they camn sense it or if you are jittery in handling them. If they really throw a fit about daytime pouch bonding you may want to back it up to making contact with them while they stay in the cage. Justc walk up talk to them and eventually touch their pouch from the bottom a few times a day, then open and look in as you touch the pouch. It all depends on how they act and try to keep crabbing and lunging to a minimum or not at all. Sometimes diff sounds set them off or diff tones of your voice are more soothing to them and less upsetting and more of a comfort to them.

Let them decide when they are ready to move forward by listening to them and watch how they behave. Whether they hide from you or stay in the corner of the cage, offer them a treat through the cage bars but if they don't come to you put it in a treat dish and back up or leave, the treat will have your smell on it, so don't push them into having to come to you for the treat right now.
Use a large scent blanket with your smell rubbed on it and put it in their sleeping pouch area.

I would not recommend "commando bonding" at this time as they are just scared of you and their environment. If they don't respond to "normal bonding" then you may need to push them a little later on.
Art

quote:

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Originally posted by barbi

Hi Lisa. You may find some helpful information here:

www.sugar-gliders.com/sugar-glider-info.htm

There may be useful tips under the categories, "Information for New Glider (or Potentially New) Owners" and "Bonding". Hope this helps:-)

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Barbi it would be much better if you answered people's questions on the threads in this forum rather than providing links to another site as an answer. Reeks of advertising rather than assisting anyone.

Ko, Ive noticed this lately and couldnt agree with you more. It really does smack of advertising. And advertising belongs in the Classified section.

Sorry - didnt mean to hijack this thread.