Hi
So i just adopted my sugar glider :) She's 4 months OOP.
She sleeps... A LOT...
and I know bonding can take some time (which i'm totally fine with that, I'm pretty patient), I'm just wondering what approach I should be having.
Should I still hold her even when she's making that "CRABBING" sound? or should I let her come to me?
Should i use food? or should she get used to me?

When i go to pet her she makes that noise... so I do know that she's unhappy with me... but i'm wondering what approach I should be taking towards that.

I just really want to make this transition as comfortable for her as possible. :)

I would leave her alone for at least a few days. Ensure she has fresh food and water, it's dark at night, she's all alone in a room, and just let her get used to the new environment. Gliders freak out and are very very scared in a new place. All sorts of new smells and sounds- for these tiny creatures, it's scary. Just let her relax. You can hold the pouch on your person during the day while she sleeps to help her get used to your scent and voice after a couple of days. You can also put a worn clothing item in the cage so she has your scent in there. Also, make sure you have plans to get another glider very soon as her friend. Expect her to crab at you for a week or three. Each glider is different. Do not grab at her or make sudden movements or sounds while you're around her. Make her feel comfortable as much as possible. Also make sure she's on a good diet- what type of diet do you plan to use? Does she have a good glider-safe wheel to play on?

Congratulations and welcome

just a bit of info on the crabbing for the beginning. Before bonding gliders see you as a big scary animal that might eat them. Gliders don't have much to defend themselves with. What they do have is this loud crabbing sound that they use to seem tough, thus protecting themselves a bit in the wild. Stay calm when the crabbing happens. Try to fight that quick knee jerk reaction to pull your hand away. The importance is time and creating an environment that feels safe.

1. Be calm when approaching her
2. Use slow movements
3. Talk to her in a soft voice
4. Treats are a great tool, but don't chase her around the cage trying to give it to her
5. Daytime petting is good when they are sleepy but if petting causes her to become agitated: lunging or try to bite, stop and lessen the petting to only a few times through the pouch and waiting a while

In the beginning what you are looking for is the crabbing to shorten in duration, or become less loud.

GOOD LUCK

Thank you so much you two :)

I always make sure she has fresh water and food :) I am spoiling her to no end ha ha ha.
Don't worry, i'm still staying with in the 2:1 Ca:Ph ratio :)
I put an old shirt onto of her cage :)

I definitely am planning on getting her a glider friend. And in the mean time I have a friend who has one two... so I'm sure we can have play dates :)
I f I get her a male friend... with they start breeding? I don't really want babies... at least not now... I would like to get used to taking care of adults first ha ha ha.

Also, I have her on a HPW diet. with some live crickets every night. and some spinach :)

I'm am totally fine with her taking as much time as she needs to get used to me. I love her so much and I just want her to be happy :) (oh my gosh these emotes are so cute ha ha ha)

I totally understand how she could be thinking/seeing me. I'm HUGE compared to her.
I just want to make sure I'm using the right approach to getting to know her and her getting to know me :)

Thank to sooooo much astochd1 and vsJewl :)

Congrats!

From everything I have read "play dates" aren't really recommended for gliders, though it is a nice idea. Gliders don't always just "get along" with other gliders. They need time to get to know each other and even then they may not "like" each other and they can fight pretty aggressively, which could lead to injuries/death. If they do happen to like each other it's also not fair to them or very kind ( in my opinion ) to "let them play" together for a few hours then separate them again.

Then of course there is the medical side, if you'r friends gliders have parasites or any health issues it can be passed easily to you'r glider or vice versa. If you'r friend has an intact male glider you also risk your female becoming pregnant.

If you get her an intact male companion most likely they will breed, if you aren't ready for babies get the male glider neutered and keep them separated for at least 2 weeks after the surgery. It's my understanding their sperm is still live for up to two weeks after neutering. Most don't recommend breeding unless you have both the parents lineage and can breed responsibly without inbreeding.

When introducing a new glider it is highly recommended to keep them separate for a minimum of 30 days and have the new glider vet checked for parasites etc.
If you haven't kept them separated, and one has them they will both need treated.

There is a lot of information on here about the best way to introduce a new glider and neutering that explains it all in much more detailed than I have. Though I do hope this helps you.

Good luck!!

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And in the mean time I have a friend who has one two... so I'm sure we can have play dates :)

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Play dates are NOT recommended for sugar gliders. First - they can be very territorial and just putting two (or more) gliders together without several days of gradually getting them used to the other glider's scent can result in fighting which could leave one or more gliders with severe injuries requiring immediate (and expensive) vet care.

When you do get a second glider, you will need to maintain a 30 day quarantine (no contact between the gliders, cages in separate rooms and good hand washing between handling each) which includes a vet check at the beginning to make sure the glider does not have any illness or parasites that would be passed on to your current glider - followed by a second fecal test for parasites at the END of the 30 day quarantine to make sure no parasites that were dormant the first time are now active.

Your current glider should also have a well check up and fecal testing done - and the fecal testing repeated in 30 days.

If you are following the HPW feeding plan, you need to be feeding a WIDE VARIETY of fruits and vegetables each week along with it. Spinach alone will not meet the nutrition provided by a wide variety. Each fruit and vegetable is rich in some vitamins and minerals and poor in others - feeding a wide variety covers all the vitamins and minerals gliders need very nicely. You can offer small amounts of several fruits and vegetables each night (totaling about 2 TBS) with the HPW or you can feed one fruit and one vegetable each night but different ones each night so that your glider gets at least 6 or 7 different fruits and 6 or 7 different vegetables each week.

forgot to mention size, it's suggested( again from what I have read ) and someone correct me if I am wrong, that you shouldn't introduce say a 2 week oop joey to a larger more mature glider until they are fairly the same size. I don't recall where I read that but I was doing research when we were debating on getting a rescue glider or a joey for a companion for Leela. We decided on a rescue named Simon He will be joining us in a few weeks after his neuter/recovery.

Leela wrote:

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you shouldn't introduce say a 2 week oop joey to a larger more mature glider

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I hope that "a 2 week OOP joey" was a typo. Just so future readers of this thread understand - Joeys should never be separated from their parents before 8 weeks OOP - it is even better for their development if they remain with their parents until they are 10 to 12 weeks OOP so they have more time to learn from their parents how to be a glider.

Size of two gliders being introduced is more important than age. They should be close to the same size so the younger glider can defend itself if the older one is more dominant.

oh crap!! yes typo on 2 weeks oop. I posted prior to coffee and yes I was trying to say size was important when introducing not so much the age.

oh. ok I never thought about "play dates" like that.
So no play dates.

And As for the food. I am changing up the fruits (grapes, papaya, strawberries, apples, banana)
I'm using the spinach to make sure the Ca:Ph ratio doesn't go below 2:1.
Are there any other veggies that are equally as good??? I can definitely go out and buy those.

She has calmed down nicely.
I'm actually holding her :)
Don't worry ha ha all the lights are off, and the curtains are closed :)

thanks everyone :)
keep the advice coming :)

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I'm using the spinach to make sure the Ca:Ph ratio doesn't go below 2:1.

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Don't worry about the ratio - it is nearly impossible to find any combination of fruits and vegetables that will have a ratio at or above the magical number of 2:1.

Most combinations of fruits and vegetables will fall in the range of 1.5:1 to 1.7:1 which is fine if the Staple you are feeding has adequate calcium.

Most people do not understand how to calculate ratios for combinations of foods. The RATIO a food has is a comparison of the mg AMOUNT of calcium to the mg AMOUNT of Phosphorus - high ratio foods do not always have additional calcium - they are generally just lower in phosphorus.

If you do want to understand the math involved this may help:

http://www.gliderkids-diet.com/RatioExample.pdf

Here is a list of fruits and vegetables that includes amounts of calcium, phosphorus and other nutrients in 1 TBS glider portions to help you see the amounts not just the ratios.

http://www.gliderkids-diet.com/FruitVegLIST2011.pdf

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Don't worry ha ha all the lights are off, and the curtains are closed :)

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During the day time there is no need to darken the room. Gliders actually NEED light during normal daylight hours to help regulate their awake sleep cycle.

They are nocturnal and will probably not interact with you if you leave lights on past the time they usually wake up.

During the Daytime most gliders prefer to sleep undisturbed in their sleeping pouch. Some are OK with being carried in a bonding pouch during the day if you are not overly active while carrying them. It is a good time to pet them gently through the pouch and gradually work toward putting your hand into the pouch to let them sleep in your hand as part of the bonding process.