I have 2 young suggies around 4 months old for a little more than 3 weeks now. Effie and Ellie. Ellie is the fidgety from Day 1, maybe due to her history, but she's getting better.

Effie is the mild one, timid and hardly crab unless disturbed during sleep. She won't come to me when i'm near the cage, nor have the desire to come out of the cage when i offer my hands. But when I take her out, she looks comfortable on me and has no desire to back in the cage.

During the first few tent time, she'll jump around exploring, jumping from my hands to her toys repeatedly and looked like she was having a blast. However, in the last 2 tent time, she totally lost interest in her climbing/jump off toys and likes to stay on my shoulder, either zoning out or 'eating' my hair. she nibbles my neck sometimes and my ears. She's not so fond of my palms, but has no problem climbing up and down my back well, her most preferred spot in on my shoulder playing with my hair.

Qs.
1. Does it seem like she likes to be out or not like to be out?
2. Is she ok with me or not ok with me?
3. Should I encourage her to play or run around more? How do I do that?

Effie sounds like my glider, Lilly. The fact that she is just comfortable hanging out on your shoulder means she doesn't have a problem with you. Some gliders prefer not to be in hands, mine doesn't like sitting on my hands or coming to my hands in the cage, but when I open my shirt she jumps right in (I have raised her as a bra baby). She didn't much like hands when I got her from her previous owner either, I don't know if it's that she's been grabbed to much or she doesn't like how many different smells hands have or the residual smell of soap or what, but she's fine otherwise.
This early on, it's not abnormal for behaviors to change. Don't worry about it too much, it sounds like Effie is just getting used to her home.

1. on your shoulder just hanging out enjoying the view. sounds good.
2. same answer as first Quest.
3. ours play, naps, hang out, play, nap, hang out. sounds like she is fine.

Hello BYK_Chainsaw and applejack, thanks for your replies. Sometimes I wish what's going on in their lil minds, especially when thy're zoning out. hahaha

quote:

---

Originally posted by Effsan

Hello BYK_Chainsaw and applejack, thanks for your replies. Sometimes I wish what's going on in their lil minds, especially when thy're zoning out. hahaha

---

after I have sophie for while I put her back in cage, she just sits there frozen looking like a poor lost puppy. So I try to put her back at pouch entrance, then she will go back into pouch usually and not look so sad.

The whole point of tent time is to let them explore YOU and get used to you on their own terms in a safe contained space.

Toys and wheels and things in the tent in the beginning is just a distraction and really kind of taking away from the intended goal, which is to get them comfortable being on and near you.

So I would say your making some great progress with that, since the one prefers to stay on you rather than explore and play.

I just recently got a mesh tent, I always used the bathroom before. I spent a good hour with 3 gliders in my sleeve sitting in the tent yesterday In itself this doesn't sound unusual however 2 of the 3 don't settle down n stay in my shirt long so for them it was unusual and awesome! In the bathroom, they always explored, the came back to me then off to explore, then when they had enough they would march back down to their cage and put themselves away. In the tent, I'm much calmer, and not worried about where they are, so they are also calmer and more content to just stay on me.

Out of my 9, there is really only 1 glider that thoroughly makes the most out of his time in the tent, he climbs and jumps and just has a blast, He is also my only intact male. The rest pretty much just hang out on me, or right up next to my butt.

The only thing I bring in the tent for the gliders is a water bottle and treats. They have toys n wheels in the cage, the tent is my time to interact with them.

The zoning out thing, is most likely due to the lights being on or the room is to bright when you put her away. When it's bright gliders will "freeze" and appear to be zoning out.

They are trying to be invisible because they feel exposed and a predator maybe near by wanting a good lunch. When their eyes adjust enough or the lights are turned off they will make their way to the pouch. This can put them under a little stress, to avoid it, put them right up to their pouch or in the pouch when you put them in the cage.

Yesterday....

They're so cute! Thanks for the video Leela, and the effort to reply with such detail.

I find the "march to their cage and put themselves away" so funny and adorable.


This is Effie on her favorite spot. Sorry it's abit dark, we keep the light kinda dim.



This is how we normally find Ellie in the morning. Chilling with head pops out. For some reason, she's very fidgety at night and tend to be on alert 'stance' often, but very welcoming and pet-able early morning.