Hi yall! I just got a glider today and am still learning the in's and out's of him. He is 12 months old and I plan to get him a female companion here pretty soon.

So far he has been sleeping, I got him out once and fed him some edamame which he seemed to enjoy.

I am feeding him fresh fruits and veggies at night before I go to bed along with an exotic nutrition supplement that I freeze and give him a tablespoon of along with his meal. The supplement is called Wombaroo High protein diet "The HPW Sugar glider diet kit". Tonights dinner consisted of strawberries, fresh spinach, edamame beans, and his supplement.

When I got him out and gave him a snack he wouldn't come out of the pouch. Is he just nervous? I fed him while in the pouch. I wanted him to come out on his own time but he just kept running around in circles in the pouch. It was cute watching him eat but I'd really like to see his personality soon. It's 11pm here and he is still sleeping! Lol

So... Question is. Am I doing it right?

I also want to know if he is still going to be able to bond with me since he is already 12 months old and I have taken him from what he is used to.

Please help, I want him to be happy :)

Bonding with adults is fine. My first 3 girls were older than him, and I had an easier time bonding with them than I had with my additions that were 4-5 months old.

Since this is his first night, he has a lot to take in - a new owner, a new home, new smells, etc. so I'd be patient with him for a few days and let him come out on his own and explore his new teritory. If he isn't crabbing at you or trying to bite you that's a GREAT sign that he is friendly and you two should do well.

You should realize that unless it was done recently, he isn't fixed and you could have trouble introducing him to another glider (testosterone) and if it's female you will probably end up with babies. And fathers mate with daughters and sons with mothers and inbreeding is HORRIBLE so you need to make sure you have extra cages to deal with all that unless you plan to get him neutered before then :)

Bonding takes time. I second Okusandman all of my gliders are older and I am still bonding with one colony and pretty bonded to the other colony. You are going to want to get him fixed before adding a female in. If you don't have lineage there is a high chance they could be related.

I would let him be in his cage for a few days to ajust before trying to handle him. Sit and watch him. Talk to every time your in the same room even if he is asleep.

It looks like the bars of the cage in that picture might be a little dirty. Did he come with that cage? If so, it could probably use a scrub. I rub the inside and outside of mine from time to time with a paper towel wetted with rubbing alcohol. Gliders will pee on the sides of the cage and get the cage messy/smelly. Cleaning it up would probably be nice for him, but also nice for you, because his home will smell better. :]

That's really awesome that you're already planning on getting him a companion. My girls are so much happier now that they are together. I also agree that you should look into getting him neutered.

Does he have a glider-safe wheel? I have a Wodent Wheel right now, and I'm not super happy with it. I want to get my girls the Eco Raptor soon. But if he doesn't already have a wheel, I would suggest getting him one. I bet you it will be his favorite toy. Plus it's really great exercise for him, especially on nights when you can't give him as much time out of the cage for whatever reason.

It's important to keep a 2:1 ratio of calcium to phosphorous in glider diets. Go to the search tap at the top right of this page and search Gliderpedia and the old threads for info about calcium to phosphorous ratios in different foods. Then you can take that into account when you buy produce for him.

It's great that he's not crabbing, letting you hold him in his pouch, and taking food from your hand.. It sounds like you've got a real sweetie. I'm sure that with time, as he adjusts to his new surroundings, he will become more interested in interacting with you. Might I suggest letting him sleep in your shirt/bra? Mine just crawl in my shirt and sleep all day, but if he's not comfortable with that yet, you could let him sleep on you in a bonding pouch or in his sleeping pouch. That will let him get used to your scent while he's all snuggled up, sleeping and feeling safe.

Good luck with the little guy! He's sure a cutie!

Alright well it's almost 4 am here and I went to go check on him. HE'S ALIVE!! He doesn't make much noise and I didn't even know he was awake until I walked into the living room, but he sure was having fun running around his cage, so I opened it. I stuck my hand in there giving him the opportunity to come to me if he was ready... And sure enough in a split second he was on my hand then my shoulder, then my back, oh wait where did he go? The couch... onto the lamp... leaping to the chair... back to the couch again.. Oh wait here I am.. back onto me again up my legs onto my shoulder, running around my back. LOL.

I have a 5 year old son and he had been waiting for him to wake up all day... so I had to go get him up and show him our new furry friend. I got Foster to jump on "P" a couple times but it was mostly just a stepping stone to jump right back onto me.

I like this guy! I think we are going to get along just fine :).

And FWIW I am not sure what crabbing is? High pitched squeal when they feel nervous or threatened? I haven't heard it yet, nor does he make much noise in his cage when Im asleep.

Here is his cage, he came with it. Where would I put him while I was cleaning it?

lol just be careful letting him lose. If you have other pets, electric cords, holes in the wall, any type of soaps lotion or the like will hurt him or make him sick. Make sure all tollet seats are down they will drown. Also gliders can be kinda scary for a young child (except mine who don't seem to be scared of anything). Their nails can be sharp and scrach them and if they poke or squize or startle him he may bite. It can hurt a lot and if one of you gets bit and it is deep please go see the dr. It can infect like a cat bite and be very nasty.

Other then that sounds like he is a happy camper and its very good that he is already jumping around on and to you! Looks like you should have a great time bonding!

Your son may not get much time to enjoy your new glider. Gliders are nocturnal and usually do not wake up until after sundown. You may need to plan your son's schedule around an hour or two of supervised 'glider time' in the evenings.

You can wake a glider in the evenings for a play time. If you are consistent with the time you get them out of the cage the glider will get used to the schedule.

Please do have your little guy neutered before you bring a female glider home. He should also be seen by a glider knowledgeable vet to make sure he has no health or parasite issues.

Read up in the Gliderpedia section (button above) about the 30 day quarantine you should observe when you bring in a new glider.

Wellll....

Carried him around all day while running errands and even stopped by the vet to get his nails trimmed. He didn't even crab at the vet, she said that she is always getting crabbed at when cutting SG's nails. Does anyone have a hampster ball they let them run around in? We bought one for him.

We also were lucky enough for him to be awake this morning around eleven and we played with him a bit. He likes to leap and bound! My 5 year old is actually fine with him, although his nails were super sharp we dealt with it while he was jumping around. They like to jump out of no where dont they? My 5 year old was a little surprised when Foster jumped on him and screamed like a little girl, he's over it now and knows what to expect. Also about letting him loose, he doesn't seem to really run away... He stays pretty close to me in the living room and always migrates back to me after jumping on a few things. Toilet lids and bedroom doors closed ;).

Here are some piccies.


LOL at his face

Nice looking little guy there. Getting him neutered will make that bald spot on his head disappear...at least I'm pretty sure it will and it will keep you from having to deal with joeys all the time. While they are precious, it can be quite stressful for you and the gliders to have multiple joeys so I'd neuter before you get a female. If you get a male, make sure it is neutered as well. And they both need fecals before the quarantine to be sure nobody is sick and at the end of quarantine to be sure no parasites evaded being detected the first fecal. And Welcome aboard! Oh, you may want to get him a suggie-safe wheel. They need to burn off energy. I am partial to custom Cruiser because I have one. I know some use the Stealth wheel, raptor wheel. Don't know of any other safe wheels.

Hamster balls are not safe for a variety of reasons and are also unsanitary. Gliders have broken hands and fingers/toes in them. They are also arboreal so running on the ground is generally not something they enjoy.

Did the vet check him out other than the nail trim? Fecals?? Urinalysis? His coat is very cracked - hopefully that will improve with a better diet, but he should also be checked for parasites or other potential health issues. Does your vet do neuters? After-hours emergencies?

The hampster ball thing worried me too with all the holes in it that looked like Foster could get his hands caught up in it, that is why I asked.

I am not sure about the after hours emergency care, and I did not have him checked for anything else other than a nail trim. He seems and looks healthy to me... Not that that matters. What could a cracked coat mean? He is eating and drinking normally. Last night I fed him spinach, strawberries, and his special mix. Tonight he will be having blueberries and brocolli along with his special mix and mealworms. Like I said I am new to this so I am trying to do the best that I can... Does that sound like a balanced diet? He also has a full supply of water that he drinks out of and I refresh everyday. I really did not think about him have an "exam" since I was told that SG's do not carry any known diseases and are rarely seen by a vet other than the routine nail trim.

I will be getting him neutered though with my current vet, they do exotic animals.

I don't. Use the same diet you use .. but I try and give mine at least two different fruits and veggies a night plus a protein and something with calcium.. this is just what I do :)

Oh and btw.. your little man is adorable!!

By the way what bedding do you have at the bottom of the cage. I can't for sure in the pictures. If it is any of the wood shavings. Get it out! It isn't for any small animals. A lot of us use puppy pads, fleece, newpaper to name a few.

Just to add my two-cents worth, I would be cautious about feeding soy-related products like edamame. Soy contains a chemical similar to estrogen. Even small amounts throw my cycle way off. I don't feed it because I worry what it would do to such a small animal.

Okay. I really appreciate all the advice. THe shavings at the bottom are the consistancy of a used paper towel roll... like an empty one.