Sugar Glider info?

also i forgot to mention that they will and can eat small mice as part of there diets.

You should only feed your glider an approved diet.

www.sugarglider.net

That site is to sugar gliders what this site is to reptiles (except the sugar glider people seriously treat their gliders like their flesh and blood children).

I really wish you would have joined that site before you got your glider in the first place, because you are in for a REAL committment. Gliders bite just like snakes do. Gliders bond by scent (your sweaty armpits). Gliders need massive enclosures to excersize their patagia and keep it supple. Do not, under any circumstances, even consider buying a glider leash. Your toilet lid must now be closed at all times, forever. Your cats are your glider's worst nightmare. Your snakes are your glider's second worst nightmare. Dogs and ferrets can do some hideous damage too. Your glider should be monochromaticly gray with a black stripe and a light belly. If your glider is brown, he has been fed an unsuitable diet. Veterenary care for gliders is expensive, and annual checkups are absolutely needed. Your glider cannot eat hard corn or hamster food, which contains aflatoxins, which will kill it violently from the inside out. Your glider needs constant access to water. Your glider will keep your entire family awake every night. Your glider is capable of self-mutilation due to stress, which is extremely likely considering he is alone. Self-mutilation leads to many deaths every year. The best thing you can do for your glider is to get him a friend, or sell him to someone who has another glider. General glider care is expensive. My recommended diet is the BML diet, it is the only diet I trust completely, and it is easy to prepare in comparison to the rest of Ellen's recommended diets.

The best thing I can tell you is to please please please go to that website. It truly is the best thing ever.

Tell me how it goes or if you need help. I have close to 10 years of glider experience under my belt.

Adam,

I appreciate the thought of your post, however I must point out - just because I did not join up at sugarglider.net (or any other sugar glider site) does not mean that I have not done plenty of reading there, nor did I walk into getting her blindly. I simply asked for a few basic opinions from a few folks here, as there are some people that are members here whose opinions and knowledge I very much value and know that I can trust, as opposed to some names on a website whom I know nothing about - even if you think sugarglider.net is "THE" site to go to, as you said it's like this site - some think it's the best site there is for reptile info, some think it just plain sucks.

FYI, she is eating the BML diet with fresh fruits and veggies added, does not keep anyone up at night, is properly colored, is not allowed anywhere near the toilet, and has gotten to be quite tame in the 2 months that we have been caring for her.

Originally Posted by HiddenHollowHerp

You should only feed your glider an approved diet.

www.sugarglider.net

That site is to sugar gliders what this site is to reptiles (except the sugar glider people seriously treat their gliders like their flesh and blood children).

I really wish you would have joined that site before you got your glider in the first place, because you are in for a REAL committment. Gliders bite just like snakes do. Gliders bond by scent (your sweaty armpits). Gliders need massive enclosures to excersize their patagia and keep it supple. Do not, under any circumstances, even consider buying a glider leash. Your toilet lid must now be closed at all times, forever. Your cats are your glider's worst nightmare. Your snakes are your glider's second worst nightmare. Dogs and ferrets can do some hideous damage too. Your glider should be monochromaticly gray with a black stripe and a light belly. If your glider is brown, he has been fed an unsuitable diet. Veterenary care for gliders is expensive, and annual checkups are absolutely needed. Your glider cannot eat hard corn or hamster food, which contains aflatoxins, which will kill it violently from the inside out. Your glider needs constant access to water. Your glider will keep your entire family awake every night. Your glider is capable of self-mutilation due to stress, which is extremely likely considering he is alone. Self-mutilation leads to many deaths every year. The best thing you can do for your glider is to get him a friend, or sell him to someone who has another glider. General glider care is expensive. My recommended diet is the BML diet, it is the only diet I trust completely, and it is easy to prepare in comparison to the rest of Ellen's recommended diets.

The best thing I can tell you is to please please please go to that website. It truly is the best thing ever.

Tell me how it goes or if you need help. I have close to 10 years of glider experience under my belt.

It is nice to offer help, that is what we are all here for, to ask info if we need it, and to offer our experience and knowledge.
But there is no one way to take care of a critter. I always thing that gathering as much info as one can, and then making informed decisions, is best for the critter.
I've heard sugar gliders are not as easy to take care of as, let's say, a kitty.
But I know this one has a good home. I'd love to see pix.

Well, I must apologize, because from your first post, it sounded to me like you didn't know what you'd gotten into, which is the case with 80% of people who get sugar gliders. They are cute, they are fun, they are entertaining, but they are a committment. I learned that the hard way, and it still breaks my heart every time I think about it. It's a sensitive subject for me.

It sounds like you're on the right track, but really, please consider getting her a little sister. I can point you towards 50 different breeders who really know their stuff. Every person I've ever met with gliders, myself included, has said : "I never knew what a happy glider looked like until I got my glider a friend."

Just something to consider.
Again, I'm sorry if my post seemed pushy, but my heart falls like lead in the ocean whenever I hear about someone getting a glider. Most of the time, it is not a match made in heaven, so to speak.

Do you know how to do the tent-test or the HLP test?
Just curious.


Adam.

The "tent test" is commonly used in a lot of critters to check for dehydration - but as far as a test that I can actually perform for HLP, I can't say that I do. My understanding is that as long as angulation of the leg is correct, no swelling of the toes, etc. I wouldn't need to "test"....isn't the only definitive diagnosis test going to be an xray if those issues are present?

Yep, that's the only definitive test you can do.

However, if she starts shuffling, waddling, or trying to walk backwards, you should have an x-ray performed.

The HLP test was sprinkling flower on a countertop and trying to get her to walk a straight line. I remember that the results were either that the hind prints would be in the front prints or that the hind prints would be way wider. I just wish I could remember which was good.

Have you locked her in a tent yet?

OK, why would I lock her in a tent?

It's the best way there is to get her to play with you. They love it. Especially if you bring feathers or tree helicopters or cat teasers (without catnip).

Just sit in the tent with her and have "tent time". Your son would love it too, I'm sure. The tent gives her an area to be wild where she can't get hurt.