So I know the ratio of calcium and phosphorus in a glider diet needs to range between 1.5:1 to 2:1, but does anyone know exactly how many milligrams of calcium a sugar gllider needs each day?

I have balanced a diet of fruits and vegetables, calculating the ca:p ratio to a 1.8:1, but I feel like I should calculate exactly how much calcium and phos in milligrams is in each tablespoon or fruits and veg and figure out how many milligrams of calcium they need every night to truly know if I need to add calcium powder to their diets.

Keep in mind that the ratio needs to be calculated INCLUDING the staple you are feeding in addition to the fruits and vegetables.

Be sure you are doing the ratio calculations based on the mg amounts in the quantity of each fruit and vegetable you included in your feedings. Many people attempt to do the calculations by adding the ratios of each food - not the actual mg amounts.

Are you feeding one of the widely used glider staple recipes as a source of protein, vitamins and calcium. Some staples contain enough calcium that you do not need to calculate the ratios for the fruits and vegetables fed with the staple.

There are no specific guidelines for the specific amount of calcium gliders need daily.

A number of years ago I calculated the nutrients in all of the then widely used glider staple recipes and developed my own feeding plan to provide an amount of calcium that was mid range between the highest amounts found in the BML recipe and the lowest amount found in Original HPW. My Glider Kids staple recipes provide about 20 mg calcium and 10 mg phosphorus in a 2 teaspoon per glider portion. This amount allows me to feed a wide range of fruits and vegetables without having to calculate the feeding on a daily basis.

You can see the nutrient values for my GliderKids Staple recipes on my web page. There are also links to several other widely used feeding plans if you want to look at those recipes and feeding plans.

http://www.gliderkids-diet.com/Staple-Recipes.html

What I am trying to also if come up with my own diet. I was making a blend of fruits and a blend of vegetables, adding calcium powder and freezing one on top of the other in ice cubes trays so I have meals prepared for multiple weeks, Vitakraft pellets specifically for sugar gliders, a couple meal worms and a portion of an egg a couple times a week. The frozen blend I finished off last night and last night.

I made lists of fruits and vegetables and their cal:ph ratios and then I looked up how many milligrams of ca:ph is in 100 g of each fruit and vegetable and multiplied it by 2.5 so I could use 250 grams of 3 fruits and 3 vegetables. I then calculated the ratios for the fruits, then for the veg, then calculated them both together to come up with the overall ca:ph ratio, the one I made tonight was a total of 1.8 ca:p. I did not blend this time, instead I diced the fruit and mashed the vegetables together. This veg mix is kale, butternut squash and sweet potato, tomorrow I am going to make another with different veges and different fruits so the oxylate levels between all the cubes are more balanced, and so I will have two selections of veg cubes and two of the fruit that I can change every couple nights.

My biggest concern is the protein intake because people use all this leadbeaters and HPW, but the leadbeaters recipes I have come across strike me as odd, some say use honey but I don't want to feed my glider crappy sugar clover honey and I read all over the place not to feed raw honey. Like I said, I do a couple meal worms, the pellets which say 19% crude protein and egg every couple nights. I looked up the HPW so I could feel more comfortable about the protein and the only legit looking one I have found comes from Aussie and it is like 36 bucks before S&H not including bee pollen, money wise, it is not realistic for me to order something like this every couple moneths. I tried finding the actual ingredients in the wombaroo powder so I could look into making my own protein supplement but I am having no luck.

Really, I just want to find a way to give my gliders the best balanced diet I possibly can by staying local, making it all on my own and knowing exactly what goes into it.

Also, the veg cube set I made tonight is kale, butternut squash and sweet potato. After making enough for the next two and a half weeks I read kale and sweet potato are high oxylate, preventing a portion of calcium from being absorbed. Is there a certain amount of calcium supplement I should add to this mixture to compensate on the nights they get this meal?

The glider pellets also have all the vitamin, calcium and phosphorus levels listed as well.

I'd scrap trying to factor anything listed in the pellets as a portion of your ratios. They are not easily digestible for gliders, in fact they contradict the specific nature of the gliders anatomy and process for deriving nutrients from their food.

Candy is a veteran in the dietary department. She has given and can give more advice per your requests.

I would only add that you use one of the approved diets while you continue to research and put together something you think is suitable as a side project instead of guinea pigging them. BML is an affordable one and can be locally sourced as is TPG/Priscilla Price with the exception of her supplement which must be ordered from her website. That supplement is affordable given the small amount that is needed, depending on the number of gliders one has. You will not, however, find out any information on what precisely she has in her supplement as she keeps it as proprietary.

I understand what you are trying to do but I strongly suggest that you not try to re-invent the wheel.

I honestly did over 6 months of research comparing the then available sugar glider feeding plans to try to get a grip on the nutrient content of those diets.

I felt BML had too much calcium - requiring a restriction to high phosphorus mixed vegetables to provide balance. It was also very high in protein and the baby cereal in the recipe brought too much Iron to the mixture.

Original HPW has about a 0.96:1 ratio and everyone at the time was frantically trying to offer fruits and vegetables that would boost the overall calcium of the feeding - which was almost impossible to do because most fruits and vegetables - with a few exceptions - are very close to a 1:1 ratio.

as for the cost of making a staple using Wombaroo High Protein Supplement - even though you may spend what seems like a lot to purchase the WHPS - keep in mind that you will be using that purchase for MANY batches of the staple you choose. a 250 gram box of WHPS makes 9 batches of HPW using 1/4 cup per batch. My Glider Kids recipes use 1/2 cup per batch but the recipe makes 120 servings of the staple (2 teaspoons per glider each night)

A 250 gram box of Wombaroo High Protein Supplement is $17.95 + S&H here:

http://www.thepamperedglider.com/supplements.htm

I purchase bee pollen and raw honey from a local organic grocery store. Raw honey is fine as long as it does not contain the honey comb. I feel these are fresher products than the bee pollen you could order on line or honey sold in grocery stores(which is often ultra filtered and looses the natural bee pollen honey contains)

Calcium is not your only concern in creating a balanced staple for your glider. I created a spread sheet to do the calculations for protein, calcium, phosphorus, sugar, fat, fiber and iron in all of the ingredients used for the staple so I could write a recipe that had values mid range between BML and HPW.

Gliders do not need a lot of protein. Too much protein will increase the odor of the glider's urine and long term can be very hard on their liver and other organs.

As for adding calcium supplement - sprinkling is a guaranteed way to OVERDOSE your glider. Even the large dosage in the BML recipe - 2 teaspoons is divided into a month's worth of food for 2 gliders - 60 portions. It is almost impossible to 'sprinkle' 1/30th of a teaspoon of calcium supplement. Any more than that would be an overdose.

Vitakraft pellets may be sold in pet stores specifically for sugar gliders but it is loaded with FILLERS and will not meet your glider's nutritional needs long term.