I want to tell you guys, about my glider story..

Joey and Jolene, an unhappy love story

Here they are, eating some dried lovely fruit

In December 2011, I lost my beloved rats, and I had in some month, read and seen movies with gliders. I was totally in love with those little barking sweet creatures.

I did contact a pet store, and they would help me, find a pair of gliders, because the man in the store, knew a breeder personally. Awesome!

I waited, and waited, and suddenly he did call me, that they had a pair for me, and I could come and buy them.

Me and my mom rushed to the pet store, to get them, and when I got there, they were in a birdcage, and hiding in a little cardboard box, with toilet paper. So sweet..

When we came to the car, they came out of the box, and looked at us. Jolene did start crabbing.. Scared perhabs, but she did run around while doing it.
I got them home, and they lived in my very big birdcage.

Some days later, I noticed that Joey did look alot different than her.. I was thinking, that it maybe was another breed. But his tail was thin and hard, he got stuck in everything, and he had problems with pooping. I did contact the pet store, and they actually didn't want to hear what I was telling.. I did call them 10 times last winter. They promised me, to call the breeder, to see if he had a new one I could get. Fine!
I called the vet, and they said it could be dehydrating, so I gave him lots of waterfull veggies.

Time went by, and he became slightly better. He could now poop normal, but the other things, would just be how Joey was..

Then one day, when they were up for their "night" snack, I saw something strange dingle from his butt. My mom was in my room too, and we was like wtf? Then I saw his willie, and it was his small balls that was hanging! So that would mean that they have mated. I was happy that she didn't just pull him away, due to his strangeness.

I waited, but nothing happened. Jolene was not pregnant, so either Joey was unable to do it, or they simply just didn't mate.

I was told on facebook, that it was SO MEAN of me, to have them together, if he wasn't fixed. They yelled at me, and was actually very rude. I just told them about it..

Then in the start of December this year, I bought them a very nice new expensive royal suite cage. Joey did live so much up, he was running in the wheel everyday, he didn't get stuck so much anymore, because the fence was different. He had speed on his small feets.

When I came home from school, he did wake up, and came to me, so I could give him a little fruit treat.

Then the 18th of December, Jolene was up early. She did run around like she use to, and barked a bit. Then it came to feeding time, and it was kinda odd, that Joey didn't come out as he used to. I did put my hand in their favorite sleeping bag, and felt his little feet. No reaction..

I came into chok, his little leg was stiff. I ran to my moms room, and said "I think Joey is dead!!, I'm too scared to open the bag"

She then came in, and opened it. And true.. He was there, dead.. He had slept in, because his eyes were closed, and his little tail was curled up. He layed like he had hugged with Jolene, as they used to do, when they were sleeping.

We then had to put him in the freezer, because I had to call the petstore, and maybe they wanted to see that he actually was dead. He is there, in his beloved sleeping bag tho.. They never contacted me, as they promised. The boss did apologise, but said "You can't just come a year after, saying its dead, when you just called one time last year, but we will give you a new" .. The hell? I did call MANY times, but Jolene will get a new friend after new year.

I hope that he will be as sweet as Joey, and hopefully be in perfect condition, than my poor Joey was.

R.I.P my dear Joey..



Merry Christmas every one!

So sorry to hear of your loss. Do you have any idea what happened? does the petstore have his body?To bad you didn't come earlier like right when it happened so we could have told you that you need a necropsy to be sure whatever he died from does not also take Jolene.

I think that he finally got peace, from his odd little body. The vet said that he maybe would die, because he did actually vomit in summer, but he didn't die that time tho. But now he slept in.

He wasn't sick like with a cold, breath or anything. The night before he died, he was very hyper, and I know it can go like ZOOM, but I just simply think he slept in.

He got a little fat to the last, maybe he had something with his inside?

Jolene is 100% fresh, I had her to the vet, and it was nothing .

His body is still in my freezer, till I go get the new one. I never know if they want to see it.

He don't have blood or anything out of his nose or mouth. He just looks like he is sleeping. So I'm not worried.

I would not get another glider from that pet store. You're glider needs to have a full check check fecals and urinalysis at the vets to make sure she doesn't get the new glider you are getting sick.

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Originally posted by Wolfinden

I think that he finally got peace, from his odd little body. The vet said that he maybe would die, because he did actually vomit in summer, but he didn't die that time tho. But now he slept in.

He wasn't sick like with a cold, breath or anything. The night before he died, he was very hyper, and I know it can go like ZOOM, but I just simply think he slept in.

He got a little fat to the last, maybe he had something with his inside?

Jolene is 100% fresh, I had her to the vet, and it was nothing .

His body is still in my freezer, till I go get the new one. I never know if they want to see it.

He don't have blood or anything out of his nose or mouth. He just looks like he is sleeping. So I'm not worried.

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You should be worried - whatever affected him could end up affecting her to. Inbreeding, poor diet, parasites, genetic defect, etc. Sounds like your vet isn't very knowledgable about gliders. What tests did they run? Fecals(what kind - snap, direct smear, float?)? Urinalysis? And if they still found nothing than x-rays and bloodwork.

Something was obviously wrong before he got it but once you chose to purchase them(and a pet store is really a horrible place to buy from - chances are there is no "breeder" - its a mill they are a broker for) it becomes your responsibility to help them or get them to someone who can if you aren't able to.

Most people here are not going to commend you for trying to breed two gliders from a pet store - chances are they were brother and sister or other close relatives. Chances are they did produce joeys that just didn't survive to the point that you'd be able to notice.

Please be sure when you find her a new friend that you quarantine - both should get repeated fecals and tests done to help ensure they are healthy and also give them time to adjust to having a new friend. I hope you reconsider getting another from the pet store - it only encourages them to sell sick gliders and condemn their parents to lives of small cages, poor diets, and a sad life.