Hello guys,

I pick the title as it is happening to me, i dont use it to insult glider keepers. I know sugar glider is a lovely pocket pet, i saw it from my friend, youtube, and you guys. So i decided to adopt it.

So i got it, it's name is Shooboo, male and 6 months old. It is a captive breed, healthy, no hairloss until know, and eats a lot. But, there is 1 thing that makes me start to hate this sugar glider now. I feel like a slave, spending my money for it's food, and then what i got? It always ignore me all the time! Bites me and scratches me, and i don't know how much plaster i took to cover my wounds so my friends and my family can't see it.

It got mad when i try to trim its nail, so... Okay, you can have that damned nail but be nice to me... and you know what? It still act like a king and i'm it's slave. Bonded is just a dream for a people like me, who can't get a joey, i think. How can we get bonded if it never get handled by me? Because of its nails? Because it bites?

I am frustated. a lot of my friends and my family member asked me, what is the point to have a pet like mine? There is no profit of keeping it. I tried to explain them, and stand up for my glider. And now, i'm sitting here, starting to think that they're right.

Anybody's solution will be apreciated.

it can be hard but it not impossible. How long have you had Shooboo? This can be what the main issue is is time. also do you have other pets ( cats and dogs ) cause some gliders feel threaten by the scent of the other pets, heavy perfumes as you never the same smell. I have found that if a new glider is left alone ( outside food and water checks the first 3 days. then I start with (him/her) in the bonding pouch they come around easy and with in a few weeks they are starting to bond to me( to point I can leave pouch unzipped) then after that I can pretty much carry them in a pouch all the time. treats are your best weapon/friend when bonding too. ( glider will put on some weight in all my cases lol. but it will melt off after a while if need to)
As for his cage how is it set up? lots of fleece to climb and mark , toys a Wheel ( major need and loved item in most cases )

Welcome to the forum.

First - Take a deep breath and relax.

It sounds like you were not fully aware of the care sugar gliders require before you chose to make this little guy a member of the family.

One thing sugar gliders teach use is patience. Bonding with them is a gradual process that requires you to move gradually to build the glider's trust of you and your hands.

You did not say how long you have had your glider or where you purchased him.

I am assuming you have had him a short time - few weeks, maybe a month or two?

Anyway, just start from the beginning to bond with him. He may have had little or no experience being held or handled by his prior owner so start as if he has never been held.

Gliders are very scent driven. Get some fleece and cut several 3-4 inch squares and either tuck them in your clothes for a day or sleep with them in your pillow case for a night. This will put YOUR scent on the 'blankies' so you can tuck them into your glider's sleeping pouch for him to snuggle with as he sleeps during the day. This will help him identify you as a safe place to be.

Sit by the cage and talk to him quietly - if you have nothing to say - read him a story. This is to get him used to YOUR voice. Always talk to him before you open a cage door or touch his sleeping pouch to let him know that it is YOU and not a predator entering his space.

Treats are your friend. Use small pieces of fruit or yogies (available in the small pet section of most pet stores) to show your glider that your hands bring yummy things.

You can offer treats through the cage bars at first any time he comes toward you. Once he learns you have goodies to offer - put a treat in your open palm - and allow him to come to you to get it. At first he will grab it and run off to eat it. Eventually he will sit in your hand to eat the treat and look at you for more.

If you have a bonding pouch, put a few treats in the pouch and let him go in on his own. You can then zip it closed and carry him for a few hours each day. Try to do this when you will be sitting quietly - gliders may be upset by a constant bouncing or movement of the bonding pouch.

Gently pet him through the bonding pouch - his crabbing will get less and less each time. Eventually you can open the pouch an gently slip your hand in - with a treat - and leave your hand in the pouch with him so you can pet him gently.

Keep interacting with your gliders - calmly and slowly and he will gradually come around to seek you out for attention (and treats).

Bonding takes time, effort on your part and lots of patience.

After he is used to you - take him in a small glider proof bathroom or a screen tent so that the space is a controllable area that allows him to run around and explore. Soon he will be climbing all over you - you will become his favorite tree and a safe place to be. Use treats to reinforce this each time he comes to you. Keep the room dark using only a night light or very dim lamp to encourage him to play. Gliders will hide when the lights are on if they are awake and active.

As frustrated as you are with your glider, your glider is as equally frustrated with you.

As scared of your glider as you are, your glider is doubly afraid of you.

And I hate to be the one to break it to you but you are indeed, his slave He is forced to live in a cage and depends on you for his everything. That includes your time and patience and quality food. I spend as much as food for my gliders as I do on our food sometimes more and I don't require anything in return for it because that is my responsibility as a glider owner. Do I still get bit occasionally for my efforts? absolutely

Bonding is not a "dream" for any glider owner unless the glider owner doesn't put in any effort to "bonding" with the glider.. "Bonding" merely means your learning to trust each other nothing more nothing less.

I've had one 2 yr old female for six months, and were still not as "bonded" as I am with the others, even her original cage mate is "bonded" to me. She is my biter, she doesn't like hands, she didn't like to be touched, she didn't like my skin or being near my skin, she didn't like me touching her cage mate....I never once thought "she doesn't like me" and she got over most of it. She was just scared and didn't understand what I wanted from her because no one bothered with her before, now she knows I don't want anything from her, I just want her to feel loved. I listened to what she told me, I kept my hands away or covered when near her face, I only pet her when she is sleepy or giving treats because her mouth is to busy chewing to bite me. I don't try to pick her up, she comes on me of her own choice. All of that took time, 6 months of working with her at her pace. Saturday night she had some major progress and decided she didn't want in the bonding bag anymore and went in my shirt and curled up in my bra for the first time ever. For HER that was hugeeeeeeeee, for my other gliders well the 3 girls do it all the time the boys only once in a while. They all have their own fav "mom spots" and their own rates of progress. I can't compare her to your glider or even to my other 5 gliders, she is her OWN glider and will progress when she is ready to.

I think part of the problem new owners face is seeing pictures of all these "bonded" "sweet babies" sleeping in someones hand, or bra or hearing people talk about their successes and major progress.

What the new owners aren't seeing is the 450 pictures in their phone it took to get that ONE adorable, sweet, loving, pic of the glider in the hand or bra. Not to mention how many times that owner got bitten and the weeks or months or even yearssssss it took to get to that point where they could get that ONE picture.

Like this one below, This is Leela I have had her the longest and she was the youngest when I got her. I only have about 4 pics of her in my hands like this and only ONE of them she was awake. For this pic that I'm posting I had to sit here with her and my hand in the pouch and pet her until she went to sleep( about an hour ), then turn her gently over into my hand. She stayed in my hand for a total of about 4 minutes before she woke up and wanted back in her pouch. I have 6 gliders right now and no pictures of the other 5 sleeping in my hand. So just because you see pics like this in the forums and facebook or where ever you are it really does not paint an accurate picture of the time and effort and patience it took or what they had to over come to take that ONE picture.


You shouldn't be trying to make that "YOUR GOAL" or expect to have the same thing you think you are seeing in that sweet picture. Gliders aren't like other pets they literally have to get to know you and learn you to ACCEPT you and you need to do the same. Accept the fact he is going to bite you and learn WHY he is biting you so YOU can change what YOU are doing, which in turn will change how he is reacting to you. Stop putting expectations on him and START working with him more. The more you interact with him the more your confidence will build they can sense your fear, anxiousness, scared and they absorb that. They also absorb when your relaxed, brave, confident it lets them know they can be confident IN YOU..

He is also probably quite lonely by himself and would benefit from a cagemate of his own kind.

If you have no intentions of putting some serious effort into this glider then Please consider rehoming him to someone that will. Don't keep him only to resent him that is not fair to him, HE did NOT chose to be your pet or in your care, YOU chose HIM.

Very well said Leela, I love it! So true!!!

quote:

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Originally posted by mechnut450

it can be hard but it not impossible. How long have you had Shooboo? This can be what the main issue is is time. also do you have other pets ( cats and dogs ) cause some gliders feel threaten by the scent of the other pets, heavy perfumes as you never the same smell. I have found that if a new glider is left alone ( outside food and water checks the first 3 days. then I start with (him/her) in the bonding pouch they come around easy and with in a few weeks they are starting to bond to me( to point I can leave pouch unzipped) then after that I can pretty much carry them in a pouch all the time. treats are your best weapon/friend when bonding too. ( glider will put on some weight in all my cases lol. but it will melt off after a while if need to)
As for his cage how is it set up? lots of fleece to climb and mark , toys a Wheel ( major need and loved item in most cases )

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Hello, mechnut. Thanks for your reply. I have Shooboo for just only 1 week and 2 days. I know it's nothing, but getting a lot of bite and scratches in just 1 week is annoying. I don't have any other pet, except my sister's rabbit, but since Shooboo never want to go outside from it's cage, they never interact. I dont use perfume, and i like to give Shooboo a treat, but it just only take the treat from its pouch and eat inside the pouch, if i'm lucky. Shooboo prefer eating from the spoon than take treat from my hand. Whenever my finger get closed to its pouch, with or without food/treat, Shooboo will bite me. Its cage has a lot of toys, and Shooboo's favourite toy is wheel and hanging wood.

quote:

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Originally posted by Candy

Welcome to the forum.

First - Take a deep breath and relax.

It sounds like you were not fully aware of the care sugar gliders require before you chose to make this little guy a member of the family.

One thing sugar gliders teach use is patience. Bonding with them is a gradual process that requires you to move gradually to build the glider's trust of you and your hands.

You did not say how long you have had your glider or where you purchased him.

I am assuming you have had him a short time - few weeks, maybe a month or two?

Anyway, just start from the beginning to bond with him. He may have had little or no experience being held or handled by his prior owner so start as if he has never been held.

Gliders are very scent driven. Get some fleece and cut several 3-4 inch squares and either tuck them in your clothes for a day or sleep with them in your pillow case for a night. This will put YOUR scent on the 'blankies' so you can tuck them into your glider's sleeping pouch for him to snuggle with as he sleeps during the day. This will help him identify you as a safe place to be.

Sit by the cage and talk to him quietly - if you have nothing to say - read him a story. This is to get him used to YOUR voice. Always talk to him before you open a cage door or touch his sleeping pouch to let him know that it is YOU and not a predator entering his space.

Treats are your friend. Use small pieces of fruit or yogies (available in the small pet section of most pet stores) to show your glider that your hands bring yummy things.

You can offer treats through the cage bars at first any time he comes toward you. Once he learns you have goodies to offer - put a treat in your open palm - and allow him to come to you to get it. At first he will grab it and run off to eat it. Eventually he will sit in your hand to eat the treat and look at you for more.

If you have a bonding pouch, put a few treats in the pouch and let him go in on his own. You can then zip it closed and carry him for a few hours each day. Try to do this when you will be sitting quietly - gliders may be upset by a constant bouncing or movement of the bonding pouch.

Gently pet him through the bonding pouch - his crabbing will get less and less each time. Eventually you can open the pouch an gently slip your hand in - with a treat - and leave your hand in the pouch with him so you can pet him gently.

Keep interacting with your gliders - calmly and slowly and he will gradually come around to seek you out for attention (and treats).

Bonding takes time, effort on your part and lots of patience.

After he is used to you - take him in a small glider proof bathroom or a screen tent so that the space is a controllable area that allows him to run around and explore. Soon he will be climbing all over you - you will become his favorite tree and a safe place to be. Use treats to reinforce this each time he comes to you. Keep the room dark using only a night light or very dim lamp to encourage him to play. Gliders will hide when the lights are on if they are awake and active.

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Hello Candy, i will take points from your reply.

It sounds like you were not fully aware of the care sugar gliders require before you chose to make this little guy a member of the family. Yes, i gather information from Indonesia, and the longest bonding process i ever seen is 2 months, and even a WC can be bonded by Indonesian gliders hobiist here.

You did not say how long you have had your glider or where you purchased him. It's been only 1 week and 2 days, and i purchased Shooboo from another hobiist, and he said this glider is rarely handled, but it can be bonded to me if i often handle it.

Gliders are very scent driven. Get some fleece and cut several 3-4 inch squares and either tuck them in your clothes for a day or sleep with them in your pillow case for a night. This will put YOUR scent on the 'blankies' so you can tuck them into your glider's sleeping pouch for him to snuggle with as he sleeps during the day. This will help him identify you as a safe place to be. Done since the second day, but i have stopped because i don't see any progress here.

Sit by the cage and talk to him quietly - if you have nothing to say - read him a story. This is to get him used to YOUR voice. Always talk to him before you open a cage door or touch his sleeping pouch to let him know that it is YOU and not a predator entering his space. Done, but it will just sleep or ignore me.

Treats are your friend. Use small pieces of fruit or yogies (available in the small pet section of most pet stores) to show your glider that your hands bring yummy things. Done, but it prefer to take treat from spoon. Whenever my fingers get close, it will bite me.

Gently pet him through the bonding pouch - his crabbing will get less and less each time. Eventually you can open the pouch an gently slip your hand in - with a treat - and leave your hand in the pouch with him so you can pet him gently. The less crabbing, the more biting. It doesnt like to crab, but it like to ambush and bites my finger.

quote:

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Originally posted by Leela

As frustrated as you are with your glider, your glider is as equally frustrated with you.

As scared of your glider as you are, your glider is doubly afraid of you.

And I hate to be the one to break it to you but you are indeed, his slave He is forced to live in a cage and depends on you for his everything. That includes your time and patience and quality food. I spend as much as food for my gliders as I do on our food sometimes more and I don't require anything in return for it because that is my responsibility as a glider owner. Do I still get bit occasionally for my efforts? absolutely

Bonding is not a "dream" for any glider owner unless the glider owner doesn't put in any effort to "bonding" with the glider.. "Bonding" merely means your learning to trust each other nothing more nothing less.

I've had one 2 yr old female for six months, and were still not as "bonded" as I am with the others, even her original cage mate is "bonded" to me. She is my biter, she doesn't like hands, she didn't like to be touched, she didn't like my skin or being near my skin, she didn't like me touching her cage mate....I never once thought "she doesn't like me" and she got over most of it. She was just scared and didn't understand what I wanted from her because no one bothered with her before, now she knows I don't want anything from her, I just want her to feel loved. I listened to what she told me, I kept my hands away or covered when near her face, I only pet her when she is sleepy or giving treats because her mouth is to busy chewing to bite me. I don't try to pick her up, she comes on me of her own choice. All of that took time, 6 months of working with her at her pace. Saturday night she had some major progress and decided she didn't want in the bonding bag anymore and went in my shirt and curled up in my bra for the first time ever. For HER that was hugeeeeeeeee, for my other gliders well the 3 girls do it all the time the boys only once in a while. They all have their own fav "mom spots" and their own rates of progress. I can't compare her to your glider or even to my other 5 gliders, she is her OWN glider and will progress when she is ready to.

I think part of the problem new owners face is seeing pictures of all these "bonded" "sweet babies" sleeping in someones hand, or bra or hearing people talk about their successes and major progress.

What the new owners aren't seeing is the 450 pictures in their phone it took to get that ONE adorable, sweet, loving, pic of the glider in the hand or bra. Not to mention how many times that owner got bitten and the weeks or months or even yearssssss it took to get to that point where they could get that ONE picture.

Like this one below, This is Leela I have had her the longest and she was the youngest when I got her. I only have about 4 pics of her in my hands like this and only ONE of them she was awake. For this pic that I'm posting I had to sit here with her and my hand in the pouch and pet her until she went to sleep( about an hour ), then turn her gently over into my hand. She stayed in my hand for a total of about 4 minutes before she woke up and wanted back in her pouch. I have 6 gliders right now and no pictures of the other 5 sleeping in my hand. So just because you see pics like this in the forums and facebook or where ever you are it really does not paint an accurate picture of the time and effort and patience it took or what they had to over come to take that ONE picture.


You shouldn't be trying to make that "YOUR GOAL" or expect to have the same thing you think you are seeing in that sweet picture. Gliders aren't like other pets they literally have to get to know you and learn you to ACCEPT you and you need to do the same. Accept the fact he is going to bite you and learn WHY he is biting you so YOU can change what YOU are doing, which in turn will change how he is reacting to you. Stop putting expectations on him and START working with him more. The more you interact with him the more your confidence will build they can sense your fear, anxiousness, scared and they absorb that. They also absorb when your relaxed, brave, confident it lets them know they can be confident IN YOU..

He is also probably quite lonely by himself and would benefit from a cagemate of his own kind.

If you have no intentions of putting some serious effort into this glider then Please consider rehoming him to someone that will. Don't keep him only to resent him that is not fair to him, HE did NOT chose to be your pet or in your care, YOU chose HIM.

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Hello Leela! Nice story there with... Leela too...

I'm surprised that someone there has a kind of gliders like this. Your story inspired me, thank you!!! Sorry i can't say much, i want to go to bed, but your story : it is great!