My pair had joeys, they came oop a week ago but i'm a little concerned... Ive read that dad is supposed to stay with them when mom is eating etc, but that hasnt been the case. I went in to check on them tonight and the babies were crying (crabbing?) but mom was in the wheel playing and didnt seem too interested... should I pull them? she was doing so well with them a few days ago! Ive read Suz's site and ordered a rejection kit but I'm not sure what I should do... she does go check on them but dad seems to be completely done

If both parents leave the joeys all alone for more than 10-15 minutes at a time and do not respond to their crying, they are likely rejected. Examine the joeys for any facial scratches, do the tent test to check hydration, see if their tummies look full, and make sure they feel warm. Young joeys can die of hypothermia very quickly because they 100% rely on mom or dad for body heat. If they are being left for more than 10-15 minutes they are probably getting too cold. If the tent test looks like they are dehydrated give them some water in an eye dropper or syringe now, and get unflavored pedialyte and start using that instead. You must be extremely careful when feeding small joeys, do not shove anything into their mouth or they can inhale it and die. You put liquid on their lips and wait for them to lick it up. If you pull them you will have a very rough time for the next month, and it is always better to simply supplement feed and babysit them if the parents are being nice, but just tired. If they are truly rejected and you don't pull them, they are more likely to get hurt or killed by a parent though. Sit in the dark with them for an hour or more and have enough light that you can see which parent(s) are out but NOT enough to disrupt their playtime. Be quiet and observe; if the joeys get left for more than 10-15 minutes, reach into the pouch and feel them. If they feel at all cold, that's bad. The main concern is that they stay warm, hydrated, and fed. During the day the parents will keep them warm as they all share a pouch. Oh, I would remove all extra pouches and hiding places, so that the parents' only option is the pouch with the babies. The general rule is that if you see wounds on the babies faces they are probably rejected. All four joeys our mom has had have had the exact same sore next to their eye in the exact same place at the exact same age- curious, right? It went away with antibiotics and was not related to rejection. So, use your judgement. If the joeys are warm, hydrated, and fed, and are not injured or being ignored, you should be good. Keep a close eye out. First time parents often make many mistakes, but that doesn't mean the joeys are safe if they make the wrong mistakes.

I went ahead and decided to pull them... I'm going to feed them tonight and then reunite them with mom tomorrow morning then see how she is with them tomorrow evening, is that a good plan? I currently have them in a bin with a fleece blanket and a heating pad set on low and have been getting them to eat about every 1.5 hours... its hard to get food in them though and if I had to guess I'd say I've gotten about .1cc in them, not the recommended .3 so I really hope she takes them back tomorrow

If you keep the joeys away from mom - her milk supply WILL decrease and she will very quickly loose the supply needed for them to nurse. Keep them with the parents as much as possible - as long as the parents have not scratched or injured them. Check the joey's bellies - if they are nursing well you will see a bulge in their belly indicating their stomach is full.

If the joeys cry, try putting one of the parents in the pouch with them to see if they will attend to the joeys rather than just taking the joeys out.

If you keep the joeys away from the parents you are committing to round the clock feedings for the next 4 - 5 weeks until they begin to eat on their own. You also need to stimulate them to pee and pooh. Be sure to study the rejected joey information on Suz's web site.

Check them frequently for dehydration. If the heating pad is too warm it will contribute to dehydrating the joeys.

I wouldn't have pulled them yet unless you see physical damage on them. If they are not being injured by the parents, but the parents aren't doing the best job, you should simply supplement feed if needed and frequently check to make sure they're warm and hydrated. For now I would simply feed them unflavored pedialyte until you determine if mom is feeding them. Pulling can be a huge mistake if it isn't the right thing to do. There are so many things that can go wrong and it's scary. I would put them back with the parents now. Tonight when they are up, sit there and monitor them for a few hours. How long are the joeys left alone for, how many times does mom feed them, etc. Hand raising joeys is really hard and they won't grow up the same as normal gliders because of the lack of interaction; at least they have each other though. It's hard with the heating pad because it can lead to overheating and dehydration. They should not be directly touching it. You should have them on fleece and the heating pad off to one side, so that they can choose to crawl to or away from it. If the pad is warm or hot to you it may be too warm; gliders body temperatures don't go above ours, they are slightly below. So if they are trapped with a heating pad that is too warm that can kill them too.

We lost one of them a few days ago... I'm pretty sure he just got too cold. The dad wasn't staying in the pouch with them to keep them warm. I had been taking them at night, feeding them, and keeping them warm then putting them back in the morning, everything was going great! Well we went out of town over the weekend and my dad forgot to turn on the space heater for me and we had our first cold front :(

My question is, will the Dad develop better instincts in the future? It was his first time and I think mom did great but he didn't feel the urge to keep them warm, maybe thats something he will grow into? And if he doesn't what are alternative heat sources I can use?