I would just like a round about estimate per month or week on food costs, I'm thinking of making one of these for glider expenses... I never keep track of how much we spend but I know it's probably on the high end. So I would just like some input from yall to get a decent estimate, thanks

Not including the original HPW and bee pollen or treats which I don't have to buy every month, I only end up spending about $35 per month on fruits, veggies and the honey for the HPW.

TY this is my rough draft...

I have no idea what I spend on glider food, Leela, but I love your 'rough draft'!

Ty, I'm not sure that is the picture I want to stick with but here is my second rough draft. Is there anything else I should add??

Don't forget: they can't be potty trained.

I will add it! Ty!!

And pee. LOL Lisle just doesn't think it's right for me to go one evening without a warm puddle of love. Even when I just reach in to pet her for a minute. Sheesh!

mine only do that when they are mad at me lol

ok a rough cost ( now this is for 6 gliders)
Critterlove hpw (1lb a month 38 + shipping)
fruit and veggies at least 100 bucks
snacks and such about 20

aslo her ea link I did back in febuary on cost of glider starting up ( again these were rough est
http://www.sugarglider.com/glidergossip/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=55721

I think I attempted to figure it out, but never followed through. I can't say what I buy each month for food. I can go up to about 6 weeks between getting fruits and veggies at times, occasionally I've bought less and it may have lasted about a month. As for the Nectar portion of the diet, I've not established if I'm going to continue with the CLP (Critter Love Plus) or go with the CLC (Critter Love Complete) for it's ease. Although the Plus is more economical, but then I have to keep stock of bee pollen and honey as well, still more economical, but more ingredients to have to keep track of as well as I'm hating my blender right now. I prefer to use my Cooks blender (like the Bullet) but too small for the bigger batches. Then I get Happy Glider pellets, but I just didn't keep track of how much it cost vs how long it lasts.

Honestly, I spend more than I need to by the time I pick up stuff for them whether it's food, toys, for toy making or cage accessories. I feel I'm always buying something for them.

Thank you all :) those figures are about what I thought. I know we spend about 30-40 on staple ingredients I can usually get 2 or three batches out of that though depending on the size jar of honey we get. That's the most expensive thing in my staple. Which will also be the topic of my next question lol Fruits and veg are a little harder for me to calculate.

A lot of times they get what ever veg we have for dinner,but I also keep a bag of mixed veg, okra, edamame, and avocado in the freezer for nights we don't eat veg or if I'm in a hurry.

Fruit we usually buy fresh but, we buy at a local farmers market and can buy just one instead of a whole bag or container so our cost is a little cheaper. I usually freeze the excess before it goes bad for emergencies or variety.

I would venture to say we probably spend about 100 a month on fruits n veg- for two gliders lol they share some of it with me too lol but my freezer is jam packed and gets rotated.

the initial purchase of supplies for a glider staple can be steep but you do not need to make future purchases of EVERYTHING all at once after that.

I did a cost break down for my glider's food a few months ago.

It costs just under $12 per batch to make my GliderKids Staple which will feed 2 gliders for about 2 months.

I do buy the Wombaroo High Protein Supplement 1 KG box at a time which is $69.25 including shipping but one KG last me 5 months and is a bit less expensive than buying the 250 gram small boxes.

I spend about $48 per month for frozen fruits and vegetables and the melons and papaya that I cut up and freeze myself but that is enough for 12 gliders for a month.

I did the math and the average cost for feeding 2 gliders using my GliderKids staple with a wide variety of fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables would be about $27 for two months supplies.

I feed BML, and I have 2 girls, so on average...

1 bottle honey = $1
Apple-White Grape fruit juice = $3
Egg = $3
Plain Yogurt = $4
Gerber Mixed Fruit Juice = $4
Herptivite = $8
Rep-Cal = $7
2x Chicken Baby food = $2
Wheat Germ = $10
Baby Cereal = $2

Total = $44, but the chicken baby food and the Gerber mixed fruit juice are the only monthly recurring ingredients that we don't already buy.

Fruits:
Honeydew melon: $3
Watermelon: $3
Cherries: $2
Blueberries: $2
Apples: $2
Mango: $2
Red grapes: $3

Total $17, all monthly recurrences.

Vegetables:
2x Frozen Classic Mixed Vegetables= $3, monthly recurring.

Treats:
Mini marshmallows = $2
Yogurt drops = $4
Cheerious = $2

Freaking treats last forever so rarely recurring.

Total monthly recurring cost to feed looks like about $30.
(Prices estimated but close)

Bottle of honey for a dollar...

Oh never mind...I just realized that must be the amount per month out of a bottle. Honey goes fast in our house...but, more from human consumption. It's not part of my staple and they aren't terribly fond of it. My little gremlins walk to the bark of a different glider.

yeh I was wondering where they shop lol I use Raw honey I think it's like 12 bucks for a mason jar, I think I can get 4 batches out of 1 jar but I use it for myself too lol.

Honey has been a recent question for my rescue lady. She has concerns that honey has been the cause of 2 gliders deaths, from the info she was given. Apparently there was an exam done and honey was to blame. They were not her gliders or her rescues but the information has her concerned enough to change diets to one without honey, the highlands diet. The creator of that diet suggests to not use honey as part of a gliders diet or even as a treat.

quote:

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Don’t feed honey. Honey is often contaminated with Clostridium bacteria spores. Since sugar gliders are susceptible to infection with Clostridia, we don’t recommend you feed it even as a treat.

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I have looked for any other information and can't really find much specific to gliders. Personally I think there is more beneficial properties in honey than there are risks... but without any test results or documentation it's as controversial as the great grape debate.

Anyone with any thoughts on this?

Candy actually has mentioned that only certain types of honey should be used. I can't recall all of what was said at the moment...mostly because, as I said, I don't use it for the gliders. I'm sure that honey comb was something she said not to give. I'm not sure if raw honey was actually the wrong type...because (I'm guessing) it might be more apt to be contaminated with these bacterial spores?

We know that what is fine and dandy for us has to be questioned for their little bodies. But, there are a LOT of people giving honey so I think there would have been quite a bit more debate if indeed it has been linked to health problems and the contaminates.

There are THOUSANDS of gliders fed a diet containing honey daily - if two gliders died, the honey in their food would not be the first source of a problem I would worry about.
Certainly not enough evidence to propose elimination of honey from our glider's diets.

Raw honey is fine to use for your gliders.

Many brands of grocery store honey has been so highly filtered that it contains NO POLLEN. The pollen in the honey is like its finger print - identifying the types of plants that the bees used to make the honey.

Without the pollen the actual source of the honey cannot be identified.

http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/04/lawsuit-can-stores-call-honey-with-no-pollen-honey/#.VRRWJPnF_ng

Eventually some products now sold as Pure Honey may have to be named something else since the removal of the pollen actually is a huge alteration of natural honey.

There was a recent show on CNN about Bee Keeping and part of the discussion was that much of the honey used in the US is now imported and often comes from countries where the honey may have been contaminated with chemicals or bacteria - but once the pollen is filtered out the country of origin for the honey - which is pooled with honey from many sources - cannot be identified. I am sure the show will be repeated - it is an informative piece.

I prefer to use locally produced raw honey. It is filtered enough to remove bee parts and honey comb but is still rich in pollen. Locally produced honey (and bee pollen) I feel are fresher than any grocery store honey that has been highly filtered, bottled, stored and shipped all over the country to warehouses before it eventually reaches the store shelves - where it might also stay for a long period of time before purchase.

That's pretty much what I was thinking thank you I haven't seen that specific show about the honey but I have read a bunch of stuff regarding pasteurizing honey that is why we switched to a local raw honey, it's a bit more expensive but omg it tastes so much better!!

And the thing about it being contaminated by Clostridium bacteria spores, those spores aren't just found in honey they are found everywhere.

quote:

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Foodborne botulism
Clostridium botulinum is an anaerobic bacterium, meaning it can only grow in the absence of oxygen. Foodborne botulism occurs when Clostridium botulinum grows and produces toxins in food prior to consumption. Clostridium botulinum produces spores and they exist widely in the environment including soil, river and sea water.

The growth of the bacteria and the formation of toxin occur in products with low oxygen content and certain combinations of storage temperature and preservative parameters. This happens most often in lightly preserved foods and in inadequately processed, home-canned or home-bottled foods.

Clostridium botulinum will not grow in acidic conditions (pH less than 4.6), and therefore the toxin will not be formed in acidic foods (however, a low pH will not degrade any pre-formed toxin). Combinations of low storage temperature and salt contents and/or pH are also used to prevent the growth of the bacteria or the formation of the toxin.

The botulinum toxin has been found in a variety of foods, including low-acid preserved vegetables, such as green beans, spinach, mushrooms, and beets; fish, including canned tuna, fermented, salted and smoked fish; and meat products, such as ham and sausage. The food implicated differs between countries and reflects local eating habits and food preservation procedures. Occasionally, commercially prepared foods are involved.

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From reading other forum posts ( old ones ) Most people believe the gliders immune system would have already been compromised before any ill affects came from the honey.

It does make me curious to know where the person from highlands gets her information from. Is it just a tactic to get people to use her diet? This is the diet with the added veg oil in it...

Actually the BML recipe says to not use raw or unfiltered or any fancy kind of honey. Just regular store brand honey, which is only $1 for the kind in a bear at Kroger.

That being said, down here in Semo the prices are lower than most because of the cheaper cost of living.

I don't feed bml, I tried but my pair just won't eat it. The rescue we adopted from swore by bml, but even the rescue gliders are not eating it like they once did.

I have a theory, that the fruits n veg list wasn't followed and the gliders are just getting to much calcium so they stop eating it. I think their bodies tell them it can't handle that amount of calcium so they avoid it and eat the high phos foods instead.

So she decided to try the highlands diet, I don't think she followed the recipe precisely but her gliders are eating all of it so far. So her decision to change diets was partially due to the gliders not eating enough bml and what ever the person told her about honey being bad for gliders.