Molly's son, Tommy, is fifteen months old. He's been with me since he was OOP, and handled every day. He's a big, beautiful boy--I haven't weighed him lately, but I would have to say, he's 130 grams, about the same size as his mom. He's a chunky monkey, but he's also just BIG, from a skeletal standpoint. Anyhow, Tommy's just a big sweetie. I don't know how to say it any other way. He's an amazingly sweet, wonderful boy! Elvin, we believe, is Tommy's daddy and roommate. We had to separate these guys from the bigger colony, because Elvin seemed to get extremely food defensive and hissy with everyone else in the bigger colony during mealtimes, once the colony got bigger.

Anyhow, today is nail cutting day. A day I dread, but it's a necessary evil. I really don't get bit by anyone, but it's just generally a stressful struggle for me, now that I need to wear bifocals, and my gliders would much rather dive down the front of my blouse than have their nails cut. Elvin was wonderful. He chirped and chattered (but didn't crab at all) at me the entire time I cut his nails. It was like wrestling a glider to get him done, but I gave him a mealworm between each paw, so he was great by the end. Mind you, I had to keep his head covered while I was doing it. I was able to finish up with him fairly quickly. I took the cage pouch out that Tommy was in next.

Tommy is very used to being handled, and has only ever bitten any of us when he's mistaken fingers for mealworms. I've never heard him crab that I can remember.

Elvin quickly went back into the cage pouch with Tommy. I thought,"Hmmm, he's been great in the past with nail trimming...I wonder how he'd react if I didn't cover up his head while I cut his nails?" I picked up one of his hands, which he held very still for me, and sort of petted it for a second. Then, he calmly watched me cut his nails! Molly doesn't even do that!!! He did this for all four paws! I gave him a mealworm between each paw. What a good boy!!!I love my Tommy so much!

I wish I could report that out of thirteen gliders, all thirteen were that cooperative. I dread cutting Dot's nails today...she DOES bite me!

That is so awesome!

That's awesome!! I need to learn to cut nails.....but....you can just come over and do them for me instead. How about that?!

What a sweetheart!

That is awesome! I know to make life easier for me, I would always play with their feet when I am petting them, or putting my hand in the pouch. So this is not such an abnormal feeling for them.

Obviously, you have a WONDERFUL little boy! It MUST have SOMETHING to do with being a wonderful Mommy!

Ahhhhhh - yes. That wonderful nail clipping wrestling match! Dont ya just love it!

Thats so awesome he is allowing you to do that with no struggle. Makes nail clipping so much easier for all.

My gliders do let me clip their nails, but like yours - not without a little struggle and always with hands pulled out of the pouch and heads covered. Weasel will nip me when Im clipping someone else's nails. The little stinker!

Wendi, that's just so incredible. I don't have a single one that I don't have a struggle with. Boys anyway ... Rita: Weasel doesn't care who's nails you're cutting, she just wants you to stop!

That would be wonderful! Congratulations!

I hate cutting their nails and they hate it too! I am always terrified I am going to hurt them.

Oh, that is too cute! He's connected letting you handle his feet to getting a mealworm. I wish my boy was that easy to trim!

Wendi, have you tried trimmer tracks for your wheels? Or at the very least making one? I did that for the first time a few nights ago. I picked up some 400 grit wetproof sandpaper ($5 at home depot and it's enough paper to make four or five tracks) and put together a strip of it to insert into my wodent wheel and it worked like a charm for Luna and Lilo! One night their claws were sharp enough to bring blood, and then after just one night with the homemade trimmer track their nails were nice and short (but not too short!) and I didn't even have to do a second night. I gotta say, I'm tickled with how well this worked! I utterly DESPISE trimming nails. Unfortunately, LittleBit isn't interested in the wheel, so I still have to do his. Little stinker. I'm tempted to seal him in the darn wheel until he learns how to use it! Lol!

I've tried the trimmer tracks. I've never made my own, but am gonna try it one of these days. I do think the natural wearing down action from running/jumping on a rough surface is preferable to cutting the nails, if you can get them to use the wheels enough.

One time, I forgot that I had a trimmer track in Dot and Billy's cage for several days. One night when I took them out to play, poor Dot couldn't even stay clung onto my woven blouse! Her nails didn't her me, though.

Well, my girls nails were really in need of being trimmed, but I was very nervous about trimming them, so I tried the homemade track idea and it worked wonders in just one night. But their nails weren't too short. They could still climb and grab fine, but they could no longer scratch or hurt me. I definitely wouldn't leave one in for longer than one night though.

You are such a good mommy!! Of course Tommy trusts you that much- and !!!!

Ahhh...How sweet :)

he sounds like a great little glider!

I stark contrast, I cut Dot's nails today! She's not a bad girl, she's just very tiny, and had a pretty tough life before she came to live with us. Her previous mom was great with her, and rehomed her because she lost her longtime mate. Anyhow, Dot was, to put it in a "PC" form of an old phrase, like an intestinal gas bubble in a mitten...an old phrase my parents used to use in a much less "PC" manner. She's tiny, and squirmy, and crabbed and snapped up a storm at me. I did it while Madelyn, my daughter and their new mama, cleaned their cage. Lucky for me, Dot didn't seem to hold a grudge when I set her free...the way she crabbed, it sounded like she was gonna bite the crap outta me when I let her go! LOL!