Hello, I just got a 2 month old male sugar glider and am looking for help on how to bond with this little guy. He has been home with me for 3 days now. The first day he was very nervous so I let him just take in his new surroundings. On the second day he let me put my hand in the cage and he ran up my arm and crawled around me for a good hour but then he bit me so I put him back in the cage. Now on the third day he is constantly biting my hands when I go to pet him and he wants nothing to do with me. He still loves to come out of the cage but when he does he sits on the back of my neck and doesn't move at all and then bites me until I put him in his cage. Is this normal? Did I piss him off in some way?

He's still young, he's learning who you are and one way he learns his surroundings is with his mouth, like a true toddler. He could be scared, you could taste good to him (fruit-scented soap or shampoo?), or he could even be grooming you. Instinctually, gliders use their bottom teeth to scrape and remove bark off branches, so the urge to bite and chew to get food is quite ingrained.

I suggest offering him knuckles and a closed fist instead of fingertips, and spend more time with him in his bonding bag, where he can't bite. Put some you-scented fleece scraps in his bondin bag an sleeping pouch, so he learns your scent. Offer treats by hand. All these things will help increase his comfort level and he won't be as scared. Until he is more bonded, it's not really too great to give him too much space, especially if he hides behind your back and bites when you try to remove him. Keep him in a zipper bag, cup him through the bag, and get him comfortable with you before you start giving him free reign.

I also suggest you don't put him away when he bites. If he's biting out of fear, you're training him that biting = being put back into his cage, so he will quickly learn to bite you when he's had enough playtime.

Instead, try this: When you see he is about to bite, or when he bites, make a TSST noise, short and quick. That is gliderspeak for "no!". You could also say "NO" in a sharp voice. If he persists and ignores this, a quick breath of air to his face while you're saying no or tsst might get his attention. Keep on it, and you'll train him out of this behaviour. My gliders, when they groom me a bit too roughly, get the TSST noise and instantly recoil in shock. It's quite effective.

In my experience younger gliders go through a biting/testing stage, even if they're normally sweet. It's sort of their way of testing their limits, seeing what they can get away with. Since he's a single glider, he can't learn how to behave from interacting with a cage mate, and won't learn what is "too rough", because he doesn't have a buddy to keep him in line. It's up to you.

Speaking of buddies... You should also consider adopting a cagemate for him, ideally another young neutered male. He will feel more comfortable with a glider companion, they will teach each other, and he will warm up a lot quicker than he would on his own.

But it's still early. Don't fret, keep working with him, especially with vicarious bonding methods such as the bonding bag and scent blankets. You'll get there :)

Congrats on your little guy!!!

I would strongly suggest getting a play tent for the two of you! I got one when I was first bonding with my girl and it was the best decision!! It allowed us to bond in a safe place and have fun.

And I definitely agree with Glideit, don't put him back in the cage every time he bites you. It sucks but you have to teach him that biting is not the way back in the cage.

Another thing I would add is treats worked very well for me when I was bonding with my glider. Whenever I would take her out of the cage I would put her in the bonding pouch and get her a treat. I would sit and watch tv or whatever and just hold her through the pouch so she gets use to my presence and feel.

Hope this helps :)

Thanks for the tips! I will definitely be putting them to use and looking into getting a play tent. My brother also got one so would it be better to keep mine at his house and make daily visits there?

As long as they both go to the vet first to get checked out I don't see why not! Just be careful though with gender... Did your brother get a boy or girl? You might want to get your boy neutered

My brother also has a male and both his and mine are not neutered

Gliders are colony animals so they really will do best together. Putting them together and separating and reuniting daily will cause stress; it's better that they live together in one cage.

Two intact males can get along, but there's always a higher risk of territorial issues cropping up, especially as they mature. One will need to be the alpha, and if they both want to be alpha they can fight viciously for the title. The alpha boys testosterone will muffle the non-alpha boys, so if you introduce them young they will hopefully sort out their roles before maturing. But as they figure out their roles, dominance wounds and bites can occur. They would need to be checked daily for wounds and may require immediate vet treatment if injured.

It would be safest to neuter one (ideally both) if you want them to be together happily. Neutering will also cut down on their manly stink as they mature, they won't have the urge to scent mark as heavily and they'll be more docile and chill overall.

If you don't neuter one or both, make sure you do NOT ever bring a female glider into the house; if they smell a girl around it will trigger their testosterone and they may fight to the death for breeding rights. It's not uncommon for two intact males that were living together without issue to turn on each other once another girl is introduced to the household.