I have been doing research for awhile about sugar gliders. I think there awesome and have decided to get one but i have a snag in my plans. I dont own a car and can only get a ride to the store once a month. I was wondering if anyone had any tricks to keep my sugar gliders food fresh. I know the meal i mix up and freeze i can make enough to last a month. But i am worried about fruits. I dont know how to make them last. Do fruits freeze well? I have also seen a sugar glider dry food at pet stores. Would this help in making my sugar gliders food last? Dont worry i dont intend to give him/her just a dry food diet i know it doesn't provide enough of the vitamins that fruit does. I was thinking of leaving it in the cage during the day just in case my sugar glider gets up for a midday snack.

I was also wondering if its possible to make your own sugar glider cage. Ive found many cages of the size i want but they are way expensive. I was thinking it might be cheaper if i make it myself and i can also get the size big enough for two gliders.

Thanks for your help.

I use mostly frozen fruits and vegetables.

The vegetables I purchase frozen are green beans, mixed vegetables, cut okra, collard greens or spinach, broccoli, peas & carrots, and sugar snap peas.

I buy mango, cherries, blueberries, and blackberries frozen as well.

I buy fresh cantaloupe, honeydew and papaya and cut them up in glider size pieces. I spread the pieces out on a wax paper covered cookie sheet and freeze the pieces. Once frozen, I pop them off the wax paper and transfer them to a zip lock bag. Pre-freezing them this way keeps the pieces from sticking together in a big chunk and the separate pieces are easy to serve my gliders.

I have 14 gliders and only buy their fruits and vegetables once a month.

If you choose to feed the BML diet - you will not need as many vegetables since that feeding plan only allows frozen mixed vegetables and a limited selection of fruits.

Most gliders do not wake up to eat during the daytime. I would not bother buying pellet food.

The bigger concern If you do not have a car would be getting medical attention for your gliders if they become sick or injured. Unfortunately, gliders that do get sick or injured usually need emergency vet care at night when they are awake and you notice the problem. You need to make sure you locate a vet in your area and find a friend or relative that can take you and the glider to the vet on short notice if something should require treatment.

There are many pictures and probably tutorials for building PVC cages and using the plastic landscaping mesh. We haven't done that but it would definitely be cheaper and you could make a really nice sized enclosure for two or more.

Candy always has great advice.

Only thing I would add is that you mentioned getting 'one'. They really should be in at least a pair. I know that's an added cost, but doing what is best for them should weigh out over what you're able to do financially. Prepare first and have your emergency vet fund so that all goes well for you and your new friends.

I would like to thank both of yo ufor answering my post. Both of your ideas will help me with my sugar glider research. I was wondering about an emergency sugar glider fund. Im not really sure how much a vet visit would cost for a sugar glider. Should i compare it to how much it costs for my dogs vet bills or aim higher. Also i was wondering about sugar glider breeding terminology. I looked at a cople of posts from local breeders and they always seem to have a couple of letters beside the name of the sugar glider. I assume this refers to there breeding but i'm not sure how to read it. Is there a book or website that can tell me about sugar glider blood lines. LIke a book for dummies or something. i know this can affect the cost of a sugar gliders and i want to understand what i am going into when i purchase my pair of sugar gliders.

Making a cage out of pvc pipe is an awesome idea im definantly goin to research that some more. But i was wondering about using the plastic mesh. Do sugar gliders knaw on plastic? Ive heard there like houdini and i wouldn't want them escaping. Do they make metal mesh thats coated in plastic or something that is safe for the sugar gliders.

I do want to get a couple of sugar gliders but I'm not sure if i am ready for babies if i get a bow and a girl. Do same sex gliders live well together. I was thinking of getting two females. Ive also noticed that people have sugar gliders that are finding new homes for their sugar gliders and the sugar gliders are between 2-3 years old. Is this an okay age to buy a sugar glider. Will they still bond with me. I only ask because i know they can die of depression and i wouldn't want them to die from missing their previous owner. And is it more difficult to bond with two sugar gliders versus one.

Sorry about all of the questions i just want to get everything ready for my suggies when they get here. Thanks again for all the help

For a glider vet fund it is a good idea to have $500-$1000(more if you can, the hope is that you will never need it)set aside in case of emergencies. (I just spent over $500 on treating a bite wound last week).
There is always "Care credit" that most vet accept now too.

What a Vet charges will very much depend on where you live and how many vets see exotic pets and sugar gliders in your area...not all exotic vets are even familiar with them.

Some have paid as little as $45 for a vet check and fecal test to over $150, so you will have to call around a get pricing from them.

Two gliders will actually bond quicker than having just one and then you don't have to deal with the whole 30 day quarantine and then the scent swapping to get your gliders used to each others scent and then the face to face introductions. Which can take up to 45 days.

If you are interested in breeding it is recommended that you own gliders for at least a year and work with a breeder(mentor)so you really know what you are delving into. If you choose to breed, gliders need to have "Lineage"(and breeding rights). That is the only way you will know for sure gliders are not closely related. There is a lot that can go wrong in breeding and a lot of expense in keeping extra cages and neutering males and such...

Older gliders are not any harder to bond with than getting joeys from the start unless they literally have never been handled.

With my Newest gliders I got last summer the male(former breeder and parent to 4 of my joeys)is the sweetest boy in the world and bonded to me immediately, he is more bonded to me than my first pair of his twins)

Then they can take more time an patience but each glider has it's own unique personality and some will take longer than others just due to that fact alone. His mate(the Momma) is not what I would consider bonded to me at all. She likes me fine(I think), but she is not the cuddly sort.

If you get two males, they should both be neutered to prevent any territory arguments. 2 girls or a girl and a neutered boy is fine too. My first pair are twin brother and sister and I had brother neutered at 12 weeks so he couldn't mate with his sister.

There are many gliders in need of homes(Check the "My glider needs a home" page...many people fall in love with these guys and then their life situations change and they can't keep them. So that's a great place to start.

For the PVC cages, some gliders are chewers but I have not heard of anyone having a problem with them chewing the land ware mesh. That is really the only safe material to use...anything metal is galvanized and it reacts chemically with the glider pee and the zinc is toxic. Even manufactured cages can be unsafe for gliders. Powder coating is what is approved and you have to make sure to check often to make sure there is not any rust.

here is the tutorial link:

http://www.justforfuzzies.com/Other_Stuff/Cage/index.html