I'm new to the sugar glider family. I got my first two maybe a year or so ago and I've done so much research. I make their food - Bml mix. I give them spring water. I clean the cage often. I bond with them and they have toys and an exercise wheel. I got back from a two night vacation last night and immediately came to visit my gliders and noticed ones arm looked kind of funny. I told my boyfriend I thought something was wrong and he insisted otherwise. In trying to remove him from his pouch we discovered that his foot was hooked and twisted and I tried to stay calm but started shaking and we worked it off. He was really dehydrated and lethargic so I wrapped him up and called the vet and they suggested sugar water. Our vet isn't very experienced and I believe our nearest one that might be is an hour away. He only took so much (my mother pushed it) but I continued to give him regular water and later some water with a little apple juice in it. He ate maybe half a cube once it thawed out. I was feeling pretty good about it and thought that he was going to be okay. Nonetheless, I stayed up all night holding him and at one time be was really moving. He just couldn't move his back leg. Around 330 am he had been sleeping for a while and wouldn't take anything but I figured he would be exhausted anyway, so I held him and dozed off for a second because next time I looked in the blanket he was gone. I found him within a couple minutes. He was in the couch just looking at me when I found him. He was awake and doing alright. I folded his baby blanket much like his parachute bed and held him. He seemed like he does when he's just not wanting to be bothered or just tired and with it being easter I can't get him to the vet until Monday. I was going to, despite the price and I looked up the number to the vet and right before I was about to call I looked at him and noticed he just didn't look right and I roughed him up a little bit and he just wasn't moving. Then I noticed he wasn't breathing. This has been so extremely hard for me and I feel so bad. My boyfriend and I agreed now that they will go everywhere with us. they were fed and the food was eaten. I'm concerned now because I had two and now I have one and I'm not sure what to do. I love my gliders and I don't trust anyone to take care of them the way I have. I threw away the bed. I'm paranoid now about the beds. I'm really at a loss for words. I'm going to bury him soon. I just noticed though, right before I left I cleaned the cage and all the toys and the wheel has A LOT more poop than usual. Could it have been sick? It was much like diarrhea. Or rather, could my other glider have done that last night maybe because he's nervous. He's never been without his brother. If anyone has gone through this please provide advice. I'm looking to get another male glider but I'm unsure how he will deal with it. Is there anything I can do for now?
-I just heard there was a 30 day wait period. I've had him in the pouch with me since this morning. I plan to make sure he eats all of his cube tonight and witness him drinking water. Will he be okay sleeping alone?
-Also, my boyfriend went on twitter searching for information about the death and someone that had/has experience with gliders for a while said to put the body in the cage for 30 minutes or so to let him know that his brother is dead. Is this a good idea?

I'm so very sorry for your loss.
I've never heard of anyone putting the dead cagemate in the cage, and I do not think that is a good idea at all. If he was sick then your other glider could also get sick.

Your other glider will have to spend some time in the cage alone, but it's good you're trying to hold him as much as possible. I've heard they will miss a cagemate very much and can get depressed.

I don't usually read posts like this because they bother me so much, so I apologize for how brief I'll be.

For now, you should bring your glider to the vet to get checked asap.
Any pouches or materials in the cage should be checked for loose threads which can entangle limbs, and that sounds like what you mentioned.
You said you came back after two days...was someone watching your gliders?
How often do you clip their nails?
What kind of wheel do you have?

Yes, there's a 30 day quarantine. There's lots of posts on this forum about introducing a new glider to your current glider, you can type introductions in the search box to find some quickly.

Again, I'm sorry for your loss.

A problem you might encounter when searching a new cagemate is that, since he is not neutered, it might be really difficult to introduce him to another male (territorial issue).
2 intact males who grew up together can be maintained as a pair (it's quite common over here), but 2 unrelated ones are more likely to fight.

I'm unsure now what to do about a glider for my current glider, Moose. He's so sweet but they would often rough house and play with each other and I wouldn't want another male to take it as something it is not. Should I maybe consider a female or a joey? Would that make a difference? I too was feeling uncertain about the closure thing. I really feel like it would be more depressing than anything else. I still plan to take my glider to the vet just to get him checked out. My sister came over to feed them and check up on them and then my grandmother did it the next day. I used a wheel to trip their claws and I'm getting a perch that does the same thing soon. It's a Wodent wheel that comes with a track you insert. Thank you so much for the information. This is really hard for my boyfriend and I and we want to do all we can to prevent this from EVER happening again and providing the best life possible for our gliders.

http://www.mygliderwheelsandmore.com

I'm glad you've come to this forum for help! I've learned a lot from talking with the people here and reading the posts.
I've posted above a link for the raptor wheel. One of the first things I learned from this forum is that the wodent wheel really isn't safe, and at the time I owned three! Since then I replaced them with the raptor wheels. It was a great investment.

I also learned to clip their nails myself. The wheel inserts and perches just weren't enough for my gliders, and I am terrified one of their claws will get snagged overnight. It's really not that hard once you get the hang of it. There are multiple posts about nail clipping here, too. We can give you more info on that if you're interested.

As for a new friend, you may want to consider getting your boy neutered so that you could either get a female cagemate or just improve the chances of him getting along with another male (also neutered). The introduction process can sometimes be lengthy, just FYI. I'm not sure a joey would be the best choice.

Sorry about your loss.

Wheel trimmer inserts really are not enough to maintain gliders nail lengths. They actually NEED trimmed about every two weeks or so. Wheel inserts just dull the tip a little bit, when I tried them I actually thought they made my females nails sharper. Then I noticed my pair would "hop" or jump over the sandpaper strips so it really did them no good anyways.

The wheel itself needs to be thrown out and replaced. It is NOT a glider safe wheel and has caused many broken tails and backs and deaths.

this is the most recent recorded glider death from that wheel. The pics are graphic but please have a look anyways.
http://www.sugarglider.com/glidergossip/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=55884

I took the Wodent wheel out of the cage immediately upon hearing this and I'm going to get him a Raptor wheel.

I will see about learning to clip his nails. Thanks! Is there a certain way that you guys find to be easiest for yourself and less stressful for the glider?

Also, I will ask my vet Wednesday what he suggests about getting him neutered.

Another question is, should I start looking for one now and purchase, then keep them in different cages and not try to introduce them until the end of the 30 days or should I wait to get one once the 30 days is over?

Your input really helps!

Oh, and I forgot to ask. Fleece is the best material for them to have in their cage, right? Are there any sites you would recommend? Any certain items?

Vets will usually trim their nails if you ask them too, maybe at your vet visit you can request him to do so and show you how they do it. Folks here use different methods for nail trimming. For me I usually use a nail trimming pouch




Others just use a regular fleece pouch and pick their feet up. Depends on what your most comfortable with I guess.

As for fleece, there are many folks that sell fleece sets for cages, from 20$ and up, shipping may cost you more depending where you live. I don't have any links on hand but I will look some up for you if no one posts any...

I'll look up the pouch. The people I got the gliders from initially told me to wrap them in a towel and take their hands. I tried that, but he just started freaking out and I ended up getting bit a couple times. I don't want this to be stressful for him.

Question about the raptor wheel - Is it worth getting the trimmer with it? Or no? I have vertical bars with occasional horizontal ones. Is it safe to have it mounted? Would I need a vertical mount or a horizontal one?

Thanks, you guys! I really appreciate it.

yeh no, towels are very easy for them to get snagged in because of the loops. Someone mentioned the guy that makes the raptor wheels has been ill, I forgot about that you may want to go with the stealth wheel to get it faster if there is still a long delay for a raptor.

Personally I did order the raptor with the trim tracks in them and used them once. It did nothing for their nails and I think they avoided the wheel for a while even so I took them out altogether.

Can you post a pic of your cage?

I'll probably go without the trimmer if that's the case. Thanks!

You would want a vertical mount for that cage and some toys!! especially now, your little guy will need some stimulating toys until he has a new cage mate. Toys don't have to be expensive, but they need things in the cage safe to play with like drinking straws, easter eggs, ball pits etc...

Thanks! I have a tube he runs through sometimes but it's being washed. I'm ordering toys as we speak! :) My boy loves tugging on straws. They weren't too fond of the ball pit. We put it in their ball since they didn't really like the ball and they'd just knock the ball over so the pom poms fell out and they'd have nothing to do with it. Then again, maybe the fun was knocking it over.

I'm sure we have some easter eggs around here somewhere! How would I let him play with the straws? Is that something that requires me to hold it or...?

yeh that is part of the fun, we call that a reset toy because you have to reset it everyday from them playing with them and dumping the pompoms out.

Easter eggs can be used for foraging treats but a couple treats inside and close the egg, not to tight or they can't get it open. I usually do a fleece braid and stick some straws in the braid for them to pull out, I also use a pencil sharpener to curl the straws and hang them around the cage.

Feathers are also a favorite here, as well as plastic bracelets... mine will take their favorite things into their sleeping pouch lol lil hoarders

This is what my cage looks like, and some of the stuff they hoard in their sleeping pouch

I'm in the process of washing the ball. I'll get more pompoms tomorrow at the store. I dumped them out yesterday.

I've been giving them baby yogurt melts from Target. Is that okay?

My boyfriend and I found a site that has a bunch of DIY fleece toys and we're going to make as many as we can!

They don't chew on the feathers? Plastic bracelets are easy to get. I can grab some of those tomorrow and maybe link them together with cage clips. Or do they like having them at the bottom of the cage?

I like how wide your cage is! I wish mine was a little more spacious so they could run around a little more. I let Moose out of the cage to run around on us and on top of the cage every now and then.

those are fine mine aren't chewers really they just play with the feathers. I hang the bracelets most of the time, my female is a tail carrier and she likes the challenge of getting them down my male plays with them on the floor some but he usually gets the ones Leela drops

Awesome! I guess I should do a mix of the two and see how that goes to know what he prefers. How often do you clean all that? I usually wash mine with Dawn and warm water. Is that what you do?

ty we just did the cage like that last week and we all love it! There has only been one issue and that was tonight.

I had to put a piece of fleece in on the floor of the cage, and Leela came out which is nothing new but she was climbing on the cage and there is a two inch gap between the cage and the wall. Of course she decided she needed to explore it, Much to my horror all I could think was how the F* was I gonna get to her back there there is no way to just move the cage or us to get back there really.

I was almost going into panic mode when she decided to come back out the same way she went back there thank God! lol she got herself a butterscotch chip as a reward for coming right back then Darrin scooped her up and put her back in the cage Phewwww!! I was so relieved and so proud of her, she has always been very good about coming back to me but it still puts the fear of god in me when she gets out of my sight lol

I usually use dawn dishsoap vinegar and water, when the cage was it's original size. Now I will be getting a steam cleaner to make my life easier The drop trays I wipe out about every other day, the fleece in the bottom of the cage helps to keep food from dropping down so much, I usually shake that off everyday flip it over then after a few days put a clean one in. Helps the bottom grate from getting sticky too...

That's a pretty good idea. I'll have to take note of that one. My glider drops his food pretty often. When I'm in bed and I hear it drop I practically run to the cage to keep him from reach through to the drop tray and getting his food back.

I find myself having the same issue with my glider. For a matter of fact, I've been keeping a close eye on him tonight and spending time with him whenever he's out and about and I let him come out for a second. My boyfriend was playing with the straw. He wasn't interested at all and he went between the cage and the wall. IHe was barking earlier. I'm starting to think maybe it's settling in that his brother is gone. He has been eating a little and I've seen him get some water twice. Do you think he is alright or should I hand feed him?

I forgot mine was on my shoulder once and I went in the closet and he jumped on the hangers and MY GOD, that took forever to get him out of there. that's about the worst place, I swear.

Good morning!
I hope Moose is dealing with the tragedy as best as he can. I'm glad you and Leela started talking...she's so helpful! She has so much good advice to offer.
Yes, I would keep careful track of whether he is eating. When I first got Luna and she was stressed, I started counting how much food I gave her (i.e. 10 peas, 10 carrots, etc) and sure enough she wasn't eating. So I did hand feed her for a few days until she perked back up again.
As for cutting nails, there are so many ways! I hope you have time to search some posts here because I think I remember one post where TJones09 provided pictures and a great description of how she does it...which is kind of how I do now, too! I just use a regular fleece pouch. I put a bunch of dried meal worms and yogurt drops in it with the lucky glider. Keep cornstarch nearby in case you accidentally cut them for bleeding. As he or she munches away, I take a paw out to clip- I hold the pouch closed except for the little paw I'm holding so they can't see what I'm doing. Hold the paw firmly...sometimes they try to snatch it back! Clip just the very edge of the nail because they have a quick like cats and dogs do. If you're not sure if this will work, practice everything except the nail cutting...put him in a pouch of treats, gently pull one paw out at a time, and just examine his nails. See how he does, and tell him he's a good boy as you do it! I also bought a pair of lighted glasses from the pharmacy to help me see their little nails better.

For fleece: any craft store with a fabric section should have fleece. I go to Walmart and get a yard for a few bucks and I can make toys or cut little strips for blankies.

Yes, when you adopt a new glider you will have to have a separate cage for him/her for at least 30 days plus as much time as it takes to do scent swapping, so say 2 months. We have a small cage for that because it's only temporary. After 30 days and a good fecal check you can start scent swapping for a few weeks to help them get used to each other's scent. There's a bunch of other things you can do too. I'd be happy to tell you all about what I know! I've been working on introducing two single gliders for quite a while now (long story short lol). Let me know when you're ready to know!

http://thelittleredladybug.com/category.php?id_category=83

I like this site for fleece cage sets. Just FYI though another member here had some trouble with the site and if I remember right couldn't get a refund after an order was lost, but I never had any trouble and I love her sets.

Good morning! Moose actually did pretty well last night considering it's technically his second night alone. We let him out twice last night and at first he was kind of isolating himself and didn't want to play but the second time we let him out, he soared from my boyfriend's shoulder to the bed and ran up the side and when it was time for him to go back to bed he'd wait for my boyfriend to get right on him and he'd dart off. He really made it a game and it was quite funny to watch. He'd run up to him and turn and dart off. So cute!

I'm new here as of yesterday so I'm extremely appreciative of all the help I'm getting - Leela especially has been so helpful! Thanks, Leela! I'm really going into unknown territory so having a guide is helping me and making the process 100x easier. Thank you!


As far as eating goes, he did eat all of his BML mix but left a couple pieces of lettuce, which he usually does anyway. Neither one of my gliders were ever really fond of veggies, fruits, or even mealworms. The things they love aren't things they can have all the time. Ha-ha. For example, their most favorite - avocado.

Moose is so jumpy and moves so much but I'll try the fleece pouch idea with the yogurt drops.

I'm going to go to walmart today and see about getting some fabric and make some toys. If not, it may have to be a couple day's wait since our nearest craft store is 45 minutes away.

Regarding a new glider, should I start looking or completely put it off until the end of the 30 days? I'm in college and I'm on spring break this week so I felt like it would be a convenient time to get one this week and have everything set up and be able to bond with the new one before I go back to school. I don't want to confuse Moose though. I have a very small travel cage but I have a feeling I may end up with another one if I go searching for one because usually they want to sell the glider, the cage, the accessories and everything along with it!

The vet that I'm taking Moose to but WAS going to take Moose and Bear to, to get neutered advised me that he had no problem with doing it but it's not a simple procedure. They have to be really careful about anesthesia and such because of his size. That scared me away and I never got either one neutered. My boyfriend and I are really uneasy about getting him neutered but we don't want him to be alone? Do you think there's any possibility that he will get along with any glider?

I'll check that site out for fleece cage sets! :) Thank you!

Awe ty Kferg And gmornin laraashton I'm glad Moose did well last night and your finding advice and suggestions helpful

When your shopping at walmart look for not only fleece in the craft section but fleece blanket deals too. Sometimes those cartoon or movie themed blankets for kids are really good deals or the plain fleece blankets that are sort of rolled up into a bundle. When ever I see those for 3 or 4 bucks I buy them just to have extra fleece.

Avoid the plush fleece blankets that are thicker I found my male gets snagged on those very easily.

Avocado is a fav here too lol they get a serving about once a week lol with bml it's hard because the fruit veg list is so limited but very much needed with that staple.

Lighted glasses!!! what an excellent idea! Ty Kferg I will be getting some of those I bought reading glasses to help with nail trimming but I didn't think about lighted ones!! I keep telling Darrin I need 4 more hands for nail trimming lol that will def help!

These pics may help you with nail trimming too, I still refer to them myself now and then.





This last pic with the diagram is very helpful for over grown nails. However the last pic on the bottom right corner diagram 6 is a little to short for a glider, this was meant for dogs I believe but the same concept works with gliders, just don't trim the nail that short for gliders.



If it were me, I would start looking for another glider now. The new glider will also need the 30 day quarantine and fecal testing done. Depending where you live it could take a while to find a glider available.

I see a lot of gliders needing rehomed on different groups on facebook and have matched up a few people looking for cage mates with gliders in their area, if you want to let us know where you are at and maybe we can help locate one for you.

Either male of female you will probably want to get Moose neutered. If we knew your location we may also be able to find a more knowledgeable glider vet more comfortable with doing the procedure.

With him being intact, with a female they will likely breed, and you could still possibly require neutering for any male offspring, and without lineage on both "parents" breeding isn't advised. Without knowing both gliders family tree you run a very good chance of inbreeding.

With him being intact, with another male there could be some territorial issues and fighting for territory rights. Your 2 boys that you had were together a long time in glider terms. But introducing a new male to an intact male may pose some problems, which will stress you and them out.

Hey! I forgot to mention to clip his nails in the morning when he's tired, that might help.
I want to clarify just in case...the 30 day quarantine starts when you get the new glider, it's for the new one. I know you'll want to get Moose checked out too, but the 30 days is for the new one. I wasn't sure if that was clear. So you could start looking whenever you're ready.

As for a vet, is yours one experienced with sugar gliders? If he/she is, then the neuter should be fine. I've had two boys neutered and the third is getting done on Wednesday! It also helps with the smell, just FYI. If your vet is not experienced with gliders, maybe Leela has the link handy for vets to help you find a different one?

Haha you're welcome Leela! I love my lighted glasses! (Even though I look like a real old fogie!)

Thank you for the advice about the fleece. I'll keep an eye out today for the blankets and see if I can't find something that's not too thick.

The pictures are REALLY helpful. If he would just stay calm, I surely feel like I could do this with ease.

I have been looking but haven't pursued any offers on getting another sugar glider because I wasn't sure if it was too soon. I would really appreciate some help! I found maybe 5 or 6 around me that I may be interested in but the closest is an hour away. I live in Thomasville, GA.

I've been trying to find a vet, but with the vet locator on this site, I saw there was one in Tallahassee, FL. Northwood Animal Hospital is the name, I believe. I've heard many bad things about the place though. I'm really protective of my gliders and I went in there personally a couple months ago and asked how often they see sugar gliders and I really felt like the girl was being really sarcastic and the customer service wasn't all that great. I'm not going to hand my glider over to someone who I don't feel I have a connection with. I was referred to Dr. Pliskin at an animal clinic in Tallahassee and I talked to him and felt really comfortable with him, but he did say he would just have to look at them to see what they would have to do for surgery (for free). He seems like his heart is in it and he cares about his patients on a personal level. I'm just going to get Moose check-up on and I'll talk to him about this. Maybe he can refer somewhere else as well if he feels a certain way.

Have any of you had your boys neutered? What was your experience like? Were there any complications? How fast did it heal?

I'll attempt to clip his nails now!

I'm glad you cleared that up. I thought there were two 30 day periods. One for mine and one for the other I may get.

Also, about Dr. Pliskin, I went into a random office, just searching around random places in Tallahassee that may see sugar gliders and when I brought them up this girl just lit up and that's when she referred me to Dr. Pliskin. I asked him and he said he has seen quite a few. I may try Northwood again just to see if maybe I had a bad experience with just that one person. I couldn't seem to get a vet to call me, even though I asked. I will attempt again.

I wear contacts that are bifocals but I still had a hard time seeing their nails good enough to feel confident cutting them. I figured wth I'll try readers, I was so shocked at how much they helped! Now I find I am using them a lot more for other things too like sewing or threading needles or any fine work on the coconuts Lights on them would be fantastic!! You should see me trying to hold my cell phone with the flashlight app on I've tried everything even used my bra strap to hold the cell in place so I could see lol

Another method I forgot about is the bra trimming method I discovered lol when the gliders are in my bra they tend to stick a foot out when they are sleeping well. I found if I hold my cell in one hand, clippers in the other I can get a whole foot clipped with no fuss while they are sleeping. Then I pet them for a minute which makes them get readjusted then they stick another foot out I did all of Leela's nails like this one day and she didn't even know it! Simon wakes up after the first foot is done lol but for Leela it's the best way so far.

I tried to do her nails this weekend with the clipping pouch. With her I have to pretty much be naked, otherwise she just dives in my clothes. So I stripped down, and tried to get her into the mesh pouch, she was not having it. After 5 unsuccessful attempts and feeling defeated I put my sweatshirt back on and let her in. At this point she was wide awake and fired up!

THEN I thought well she loves my sleeve. If I stick the cuff of my sleeve in the mesh pouch I can sort of funnel her into the mesh pouch. So she got in my sleeve finally, and I took my arm out and held onto the sleeve above where she was at, and worked her down the sleeve into the pouch

Then Velcro'd the pouch top shut whit her a$$ in the pouch It WORKED!! I got most of her nails done much to her dismay lol and the velcro addition on my pouch kept her in there lol I don't need it with Simon he could care less but if there is any gap at the top as big as your thumb nail she will get out I'm not sure if the same tactics will work twice but I was super proud of myself for finally outwitting Leela