Hi,

We had a horrible accident yesterday where my son came downstairs with one of our sugar gliders and our dog got hold of her. We have a major rule about no dog in the house when the sugar gliders are downstairs, but I wasn't in the room when he came down and it happened. We were not the type folks to believe that a cat or dog could live harmoniously with a hyper little animal and attempted but failed to keep them separated.

We immediately took her to the vet as her leg appeared to be injured. The vet told us there was nothing wrong with her, that she just had slobber on her. I expressed concern that her leg looked injured and he told me nothing was wrong. No x-ray performed. Told me to take her home and place in her cage and let her rest overnight.

This morning I noticed that it was one leg but both legs were immobile. She is basically dragging herself around.

I took her to a different vet who did do an x-ray. He couldn't find any fractures but did a test with tweezers to see if she responded to pain in her rear feet. Nothing. He says that she is paralyzed and that he just can't see the fracture and that I need to euthanize.

I really am struggling with this as she is fully alert and beyond dragging her legs acts as if all is well. No barking, biting, etc.

Do I simply follow the vets opinion or is there something else I could possibly do?

I'm so sorry, it's a tough predicament to be in. I think if it were me, I'd wait a little bit, and get another opinion, unless of course she seems to be in a lot of pain, she may be able to heal and be ok. If another vet says nothing can be done and she's in pain, then euthanize her so she doesn't suffer.

That's the dreadful part. Second vet that says she's paralyses said she's not in any discomfort. But logically explained that standard of living for a sugar glider that's paralysed would be not be good.

I'm a reasonable person but I'm finding it tough to take her tomorrow while seeing her as alert as normal... You just kind of wonder if maybe she'll start using her legs... Even though realistically that's most likely not going to magically happen.

If she's not in discomfort, I would do some research on quality of life for handicapped gliders. I don't know, I personally wouldn't feel right, knowing there isn't suffering without looking into the possibilities of life. It is your decision, but what is the hurry if she's not in pain? You can always decide to euthanize later if the quality of life is poor, this could be days, weeks or months depending on her.

Contact Val Betts (Something to Believe In). She runs a sugar Glider rescue and can give you tips on dealing with your glider's handicaps. She had Jackie Chan for many years. He was also paralyzed.

The best way to reach her is through her forum - the Sweet Spot - register there and send her a PM.

http://thesweetspot.forumotion.net/

Tried Val, of course it was at midnight so understandable.

I guess I'm going to try a third vet.

If she isn't in misery, which she shows no indications of.... I don't want to put her to sleep if she can live this way. I dont know which is fair.

Glad to hear. I was hoping you'd give her a chance, you never know, she may heal up and be able to move her legs again. If not, pending every other function is normal and she's happy, she could still have a quality of life.

Please let us know how it goes.

I'll post after tomorrow's visit.

Also for the unfortunate event that nothing can be done and she needs to be put to sleep... We have just aquired an 8 week old female that has always been with other gliders. They seemingly bonded "mother/daughter". Zippy is 11 mos.

I have to step away from the emotional aspect of Zippy and think about Marty. What is the process for transitioning to single glider or should I be searching for a partner? I hate asking it that way but I don't know how else to ask. Any forum link would be great.

This is so unfortunate, I'm sorry for you guys.

I would like to keep hope in the thought that there is no fracture and that the paralysis is temporary due to swelling pushing on the nerves...possibly something like a herniated disc in humans. There may be some hope of recovery from nerve damage. Some gliders have recovered very well, although missing a limb or being paralyzed. If your choice is that she can live with a good quality of life, given her situation, you can make changes to her cage to make it easier for her to get around.

Losing a cage mate is very difficult on a glider. You will have a needy glider on your hands to help ease their confusion and depression. Looking for another glider will be the best recommendation (in the case of loosing Zippy). Finding a glider of similar age and size and take sex/nueter into consideration. Even after finding this glider you will have the quarantine time of 30 days (check in the gliderpedia for details) and then scent swapping and an introduction process which sometimes can take longer than others. There is also info in the gliderpedia on the introduction process.

Please keep us updated on your progress. Best of luck to you all.

I do NOT think there is any reason to euthanize an animal if they aren't in pain and can function. This definitely needs another vet analysis, but if she is not in pain, I believe you should allow her to learn to adapt to her situation, and it is POSSIBLE she will stop being paralyzed at some point. It happens to humans, I don't know anything about it, but she may slowly recover or suddenly recover. If not, she will probably be able to learn to live this way and still be happy. If she cannot climb you might want a horizontal cage rather than a vertical one, you can put a bunch of diagonal ladders in there and levels which will allow her to climb/drag herself up and get to higher areas. It is a disability, and it does not mean she should be euthanized at all. See how it goes. If it is a bone fracture that is pinching a nerve or something that will probably heal. If her motor neurons are severed from a dog bite or something, they could possibly grow back or may not. I think there is a chance that she could heal from the paralysis, but I don't know. She should be able to adapt to her disability though. Good luck. If she isn't in pain then don't worry about it. Spend time with her and make sure she has her glider buddy.

Ending an animal's life is something that animal has no control over and cannot agree to and thus is NOT a light decision and should only be done if they are in untreatable pain or cannot function. She may heal, the vets don't even know what is wrong. Many causes of this are treatable. Animals can adapt very well to things, please give her a chance. It is possible to have a disabled glider, you just have to change things up a bit to accommodate them. The glider may want to continue living despite this disability.

Zippy took a turn for the worst and is barely moving around. She appears to have finally reached a point of fatigue that I don't think is fair to her. As she is unable to even move without struggle it's time to give her peace.

Thank you for your help and advice. Sadly, another sugar glider pays the price for reckless human behavior.

I am very sorry for your loss. It was an accident, please don't beat yourself up over it.

May you find peace and comfort in your memories of him. Glide Free Little Angel

I've read this thread a couple times now and I just wanted to let you know that I am sorry for your loss.

I am so so sorry to hear of your loss. I was hoping for a better outcome for all of you. There comes a time when letting go is the most loving thing to do. You can't control everything, and there is no reason to feel guilt, things happen despite our efforts.

I'm so sorry for your loss. Take comfort in knowing that she is gliding free.