Hello!

I have two gliders Lilly and Lulu. I got them in February so I've had them for about 8 months now. They're about a year old. Lulu has bonded really well. She likes to come out of her cage and hang on me while I do things like put clothes away, clean the house (etc). Lilly on the other hand doesn't really like to come out of her cage, if I put my hand out she will bite my fingers (she will bite REALLY hard, she draws blood). I'm worried that Lilly doesn't like me and will never bond like Lulu did. When I open it for them to come out, Lulu comes out right away while Lilly hangs out in the back corner of her cage.
I decided that I would try something new. Today I put Lilly in a pouch and took her to work with me. She is in her pouch now on my lap as I type this. Every once in a while I will open the pouch and pet her.
Does anyone have any other suggestions on what I can do to make Lilly feel more comfortable? Am I doing something wrong? I really want her to bond with me.

Thanks for the help!
Amanda

I know how frustrating it can be to want the little boogers to accept you. I have one little girl that was terrified. Every time she would hear me voice, see me, or even take a treat from me, she would crab and do the Mr. Miyagi. I had suspicions that she was taken from her mommy too soon and even that her eye sight wasn't developed fully. It took a very long time for her to even accept another glider, and luckily I had one who was patient enough to bond with her. After a while of being with her new friend, she seemed to learn from him. He calmed her down a lot and I always kept them together during bonding. At first she would eat live mealies (she thought they were gross)but once she learned they were good, they were the best weapon in my bribery arsenal. I took them out and held them in their sleeping pouch(this eliminated stress of transferring to bonding pouch, but keep it closed) and held them under my shirt against my skin. Let them sleep this way for a few hours per day and give lots of mealies. It does take time, but if you nail down a routine, it will help tremendously.
I have 6 gliders and still have struggles with my newest adoptees. Hope my personal experience helps some.

About how many hours a week where you doing pouch bonding time with them/her? If you weren't doing it before, or not more then a few hours a week, then this will probably help a lot.

Thank you so much for both of your responses. BennyNace your experience was helpful, it is really nice to know that other people are going through the same things.

Scoot, I used to do bonding time in the pouch for a couple of hours each night. Once Lulu became more bonded it was hard to do pouch time because she would much rather hang on me be then be cooped up in the pouch. Lilly on the other hand did not really like anything I tried. Lately I have been taking them both out at night and I let them run around my room. I think I am making progress with Lilly because she doesn't hide as much and will even willingly jump on me. The only problem is if I move she freaks out and runs away. With Lulu I could do jumping jacks if I wanted and she would still prefer to be on me lol

I hope she continues to warm up to you. It sounds like you are making progress, but it is just taking her more time. It almost sounds like she wasn't handled regularly before you got her if she is biting hard and drawing blood. I would say to ask who you got them from about it if you want to follow up on that (but there really isn't anything you can do about it now). It is strange that one would be more receptive to handling if they are from the same place.

The pouch at work time with occasional petting sounds like a good course of action. I don't have any other advice really, so I'll just say good luck :D

Hello! I too am having the same problem...just it hasn’t been 8 months. Actually, it’s only been a few days...heh. I got them last Saturday. My ring tailed girl, Venus is very social and nice, although she likes to nibble and bite, we already did tent time with her! Luna, my cremino, is very crabby. Our breeder did say she was crabbier than Venus but not as bad as this. She stands in the back of the cage while we socialize with Venus and privately plays with toys. The poor thing is always watching us precisely and jumps at the slightest of movement. Luna was actually just ready to be away from her mother when we bought from our breeder. Our breeder said that she would just grow out of the crabbing and become more social once she has grown some more. Is this true? (This is my first pair) But as for you, all I can say is based upon my months of research...some gliders really do take a longer time and don’t loose hope, be patient. I know it’s probably aggravating by now but, it’s like training a toddler. I’m sure she will warm up to you and realize that you are a kind and gentle creature. I hope this helps! (Please feel free to answer my question it would mean a lot if someone did!

[quote]Originally posted by Ballistic_Glider

Hello! I too am having the same problem...just it hasn’t been 8 months. Actually, it’s only been a few days...heh. I got them last Saturday. My ring tailed girl, Venus is very social and nice, although she likes to nibble and bite, we already did tent time with her! Luna, my cremino, is very crabby. Our breeder did say she was crabbier than Venus but not as bad as this. She stands in the back of the cage while we socialize with Venus and privately plays with toys. The poor thing is always watching us precisely and jumps at the slightest of movement. Luna was actually just ready to be away from her mother when we bought from our breeder. Our breeder said that she would just grow out of the crabbing and become more social once she has grown some more. Is this true? (This is my first pair) But as for you, all I can say is based upon my months of research...some gliders really do take a longer time and don’t loose hope, be patient. I know it’s probably aggravating by now but, it’s like training a toddler. I’m sure she will warm up to you and realize that you are a kind and gentle creature. I hope this helps! (Please feel free to answer my question it would mean a lot if someone did!

Oops! Sorry! I just signed up and didn’t mean to select the “heated debate” for my first comment. I tried to fix it and well...that didn’t work!

Yes ballistic, being that it has only been a few days and Luna was just taken from her mommy, it will take some extra time to adjust. My Luna was very young and I believe their eyesight takes some time to develop. When they're young they just can't see as well yet and combine that with the fact that she misses mommy, and you're so very big and strange. Keep letting her do her own thing and she will come around. My Luna has been with me for almost a year and she is still the most independent/timid (if that makes sense) glider I have. I have 6 and every single glider has a different personality. If u can get her to eat mealies it will help greatly :)

Thank you Benny! I have read that they haven’t developed all eyesight around this age but it was on the internet so who am I to say it’s true? I have already fed her some mealies but she crabs after I give them to her through the cage bars. Being patient is hard for me to do but I think I’ll have to when it comes to these guys :) thanks again!

Thanks all for all the help! Luna still crabs a lot (everyday) but she actually has gone a LOT down and I’ve noticed a huge change in her behavior. She is still nervous and hides but is becoming a lot more social. Her hiding is only if I scare her by accident usually. I have my two in a bonding and she didn’t crab at me when I checked up on them!!! Woohoo! She even let me pet her. Hehe, I like when they are sleepy #128521;