So you are thinking about adopting a sugar glider…
We have broken down sugar glider ownership to three main subjects...
Housing, Diet, & Time.
Housing, Diet, & Time.
1) Housing
Sugar Gliders need a large bird cage with small bar spacing. A minimum of 24 inches deep, 24 inches wide, and 36 inches tall for one or two gliders. Larger is always better. Cage bar spacing should not be more that ½ inch wide, any larger and they can get their heads stuck and hurt themselves. Gliders are more comfortable with horizontal bars for grasping, but not necessary. Cage metal should be painted, exposed metal can rust and cause health problems. Most bird cages come with a droppings tray that is lower and separated from the rest of the cage. This tray, or the bottom of the cage, should be cleaned once every week or two. Use of paper or bedding (never cedar) can make clean up easier. Gliders can be messy eaters, and are indiscriminate on where they relieve themselves. Having a rug under their cage that sticks out a foot can help keep a clean floor, and hanging sheets from the walls close to their cage will keep clean walls. Sheets and rugs can be easier to clean that walls and floors.
in the cage...
Gliders have a few essentials inside their cages. A place to sleep, we prefer felt pouches. Pouches are easy to remove and make for great bonding during the day when they are sleeping. For the most part Gliders keep their pouch clean of feces, and sometimes collect small trinkets from around the cage and keep them in the pouch. We also like to put small pieces of felt into our pouches. This gives them extra bedding and if we have to wash or switch pouches they can keep their home scent. Platforms, hammocks, perches, bridges, felt vines, and TOYS are all great for inside glider cages. Be careful of tunnels with new gliders, pouch defensive gliders can get very defensive in these. You can buy glider “cage sets” from many places online, or just make your own! Small plastic kids’ toys make great glider toys. Hanging barrel of monkeys around the cage will give you glider lots fun. Every glider is different in what peaks their interest. So just giving or making them lots of toys and see what they like! WARNING keep anything with thread out of your gliders cage. They can get caught up stuck in it and hurt themselves, loose a tail or worse! Use knotted felt, and baby toys to be safe. Some bird toys will work as well just be wary. Gliders love noise makers, i.e. bells, but be sure they can hurt themselves with any sharp edges, and understand they will be making noise all night with it so don’t give’em any if that will bug you.
Wheels...
Wheels are an important part of a sugar gliders life. They spend a lot of their time at night on the wheel and get most of their exercise from the wheel. Some owners have claimed that an adult male will fun 5 miles a night on their wheel. We have searched and tried all kinds of wheels and found these three...
#1 Best Overall Wheel is the Stealth Wheel (left in photo) priced at $40, we have tried and like both the side mounted and base mounted. It is very quiet, allows them to jump in the wheel (has to "axel"), and allows them to cling to the mesh material and go for a ride. It is especially entertaining to watch two sugars on one of these, when one holds on and the other runs! There is little to no areas of pinch that might endanger the sugars tail and you can purchase the nail trimming attachment. One downside to this wheel is the mess. Gliders will inevitably go to the bathroom while in the wheels. This Stealth wheel tends spread it a little more readily than the wodent wheel does, due to the mesh running surface.
#2 Best Buy Wheel is the Wodent Wheel (center in photo) priced at $15. There are many retailers and is fairly easy to find. This is a great wheel that is designed for animals with tails like sugar glider has an unbeatable price and has the easy to install nail trimming wheel (may have to buy the trimmer separately). Unfortunately it is a little noisy, but not too bad. It is base mount only, has an axel so only short jumps are allowed, and not much clinging to the wheel, besides grabbing the whole in the side. Wodent wheels are a little cleaner than the stealth, keeping any mess in the wheel , and coming apart easily to clean.
#3 The pet store Silent Wheel (right in photo) priced at around $25. This has the side mount or base mount, but it is not a good sugar wheel. It is very noisy; the sugars tend to fly out the side when they are trying to run fast. There also looks to be a large pinch area in the back of the wheel that always made me nervous. If this is all you can find on a short notice it will work, but don’t waste your money if you are buying this only for a sugar glider. But the smaller 6.5 inch side-mount silent wheel makes a great joey wheel, although they grow out of it fast.
#1 Best Overall Wheel is the Stealth Wheel (left in photo) priced at $40, we have tried and like both the side mounted and base mounted. It is very quiet, allows them to jump in the wheel (has to "axel"), and allows them to cling to the mesh material and go for a ride. It is especially entertaining to watch two sugars on one of these, when one holds on and the other runs! There is little to no areas of pinch that might endanger the sugars tail and you can purchase the nail trimming attachment. One downside to this wheel is the mess. Gliders will inevitably go to the bathroom while in the wheels. This Stealth wheel tends spread it a little more readily than the wodent wheel does, due to the mesh running surface.
#2 Best Buy Wheel is the Wodent Wheel (center in photo) priced at $15. There are many retailers and is fairly easy to find. This is a great wheel that is designed for animals with tails like sugar glider has an unbeatable price and has the easy to install nail trimming wheel (may have to buy the trimmer separately). Unfortunately it is a little noisy, but not too bad. It is base mount only, has an axel so only short jumps are allowed, and not much clinging to the wheel, besides grabbing the whole in the side. Wodent wheels are a little cleaner than the stealth, keeping any mess in the wheel , and coming apart easily to clean.
#3 The pet store Silent Wheel (right in photo) priced at around $25. This has the side mount or base mount, but it is not a good sugar wheel. It is very noisy; the sugars tend to fly out the side when they are trying to run fast. There also looks to be a large pinch area in the back of the wheel that always made me nervous. If this is all you can find on a short notice it will work, but don’t waste your money if you are buying this only for a sugar glider. But the smaller 6.5 inch side-mount silent wheel makes a great joey wheel, although they grow out of it fast.
2) Diet
There is a wide variety of diet options available for captive gliders. A healthy glider diet should consist of 3 main parts:
Protein,
Fresh Produce, and
Supplements
(i.e. Vitamins & Calcuim).
And don’t forget the water bottle!
Small rodent water bottles work nicely, and dont worry if they dont seem to be drinking alot, they get much of their water from the fruits and veggies.
Protein (25% or 1-1/2 teaspoons per glider)
HPW* (what we use), hardboiled or scrambled eggs, mealworms, any non-poisonous insects, non-fat yogurt (less preservative and chemicals the better), chicken baby food (ours really like chicken and sweet potato), and even pinky mice or other small animals (not recommended).
There are also many varieties of prepared glider food that are a good source of protein, including Zoofood, Insectivore Fare, Glider Complete, Glider Diet with Eucalyptus, monkey biscuits.
*We make up a batch of HPW every week or two, measure out the mix into ice cube trays, and freeze it for the next week or two of feeding. It’s really easy to make and directions are here. The two specialty items required are wombaroo powder and bee pollen. The great thing about the HPW diet is that it provides the protien, calcium, and vitamins so no additional supplaments are needed.
Fresh Produce (75% or one tablespoon of fruit and one tablespoon of veggies per glider per night)
Fruits (one chopped tablespoon per glider per night):
Gliders love lots of fruits, and they like plenty of variety. Most fruits are fine for them; you should feed any one or two of these nightly: melons, mangoes, papayas, grapes, apples, plain unsweetened applesauce, kiwis, peaches, pears, starfruit, any berries, apricots, nectarines, plums. They like to eat bananas, oranges, and pineapple, but don't give them these fruits more than once a week. Too much of those will give them upset tummies. Some people buy frozen fruit, but none of my gliders will eat fruits unless they are fresh. They do not like grape skins, so they may not eat them unless you cut them open.
Vegetables (one chopped tablespoon per glider per night):
You should feed one or two veggies every night. They can have: raw yam, fresh tomatoes, green beans, peas, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach leaves, romaine lettuce, squash, turnips, beets, or mixed vegetables. Corn is only acceptable in small quantities due to its high phosphorous content. Most of those can be bought frozen or fresh, either is fine but microwave thawing does reduce the vitamin content. They do not like tomato skins, I recommend cutting them open.
Supplements (vitamins and phosphorus free calcium)
Option 1: HPW (high protein wombaroo) diet. Gliders love it and it provides all the necessary vitamins and minerals. You can find all the specialty items needed at www.exoticnutrition.com
Option 2: A small amount of 50/50 mix of Glider Booster MultiVitamins and Glider-Cal Calcium supplement sprinkled onto their food every other night. These can be ordered online here. I recommend stirring it into something sticky, like applesauce, yogurt, or onto a moist fresh fruit so you know they are eating it.
Option 3: A small amount of 50/50 mix of Repcal Herptivite (blue label) and Repcal Phosphorous-Free Calcium with VitD (pink label) sprinkled onto their food every other night.
I’m sure there are many others and many other opinions on glider diets, always do your own research as well.
Whichever you chose you can find all the ingredients at exoticnutrition.com
Treats in moderation: Honey, apple juice, yogurt drops, and of course bugs. Young Joeys may not be interested in mealworms, but once they get a taste for them they will do anything for a mealworm. When you are just starting getting to know your glider one trick is to figure out what food they like and use it as a ploy to hang out with you (with rocky it was grapes, then mealworms). It is defiantly less stressful to coax them out of their cage with a treat then to chase them around and grab them. They also begin to associate you with treat, this makes them like you. This is also a way to train your glider through positive reinforcement. They do something like: fly to you on command or fly away on command and you give treat (see Skinner).
Don't feed list:
These are things you should NOT feed your gliders: beef, refined sugar products, wet or dry cat food, chocolate, fruit pits, seeds, bread, avocados, rhubarb, nuts, cottage cheese, salt, and any milk products.
Protein,
Fresh Produce, and
Supplements
(i.e. Vitamins & Calcuim).
And don’t forget the water bottle!
Small rodent water bottles work nicely, and dont worry if they dont seem to be drinking alot, they get much of their water from the fruits and veggies.
Protein (25% or 1-1/2 teaspoons per glider)
HPW* (what we use), hardboiled or scrambled eggs, mealworms, any non-poisonous insects, non-fat yogurt (less preservative and chemicals the better), chicken baby food (ours really like chicken and sweet potato), and even pinky mice or other small animals (not recommended).
There are also many varieties of prepared glider food that are a good source of protein, including Zoofood, Insectivore Fare, Glider Complete, Glider Diet with Eucalyptus, monkey biscuits.
*We make up a batch of HPW every week or two, measure out the mix into ice cube trays, and freeze it for the next week or two of feeding. It’s really easy to make and directions are here. The two specialty items required are wombaroo powder and bee pollen. The great thing about the HPW diet is that it provides the protien, calcium, and vitamins so no additional supplaments are needed.
Fresh Produce (75% or one tablespoon of fruit and one tablespoon of veggies per glider per night)
Fruits (one chopped tablespoon per glider per night):
Gliders love lots of fruits, and they like plenty of variety. Most fruits are fine for them; you should feed any one or two of these nightly: melons, mangoes, papayas, grapes, apples, plain unsweetened applesauce, kiwis, peaches, pears, starfruit, any berries, apricots, nectarines, plums. They like to eat bananas, oranges, and pineapple, but don't give them these fruits more than once a week. Too much of those will give them upset tummies. Some people buy frozen fruit, but none of my gliders will eat fruits unless they are fresh. They do not like grape skins, so they may not eat them unless you cut them open.
Vegetables (one chopped tablespoon per glider per night):
You should feed one or two veggies every night. They can have: raw yam, fresh tomatoes, green beans, peas, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach leaves, romaine lettuce, squash, turnips, beets, or mixed vegetables. Corn is only acceptable in small quantities due to its high phosphorous content. Most of those can be bought frozen or fresh, either is fine but microwave thawing does reduce the vitamin content. They do not like tomato skins, I recommend cutting them open.
Supplements (vitamins and phosphorus free calcium)
Option 1: HPW (high protein wombaroo) diet. Gliders love it and it provides all the necessary vitamins and minerals. You can find all the specialty items needed at www.exoticnutrition.com
Option 2: A small amount of 50/50 mix of Glider Booster MultiVitamins and Glider-Cal Calcium supplement sprinkled onto their food every other night. These can be ordered online here. I recommend stirring it into something sticky, like applesauce, yogurt, or onto a moist fresh fruit so you know they are eating it.
Option 3: A small amount of 50/50 mix of Repcal Herptivite (blue label) and Repcal Phosphorous-Free Calcium with VitD (pink label) sprinkled onto their food every other night.
I’m sure there are many others and many other opinions on glider diets, always do your own research as well.
Whichever you chose you can find all the ingredients at exoticnutrition.com
Treats in moderation: Honey, apple juice, yogurt drops, and of course bugs. Young Joeys may not be interested in mealworms, but once they get a taste for them they will do anything for a mealworm. When you are just starting getting to know your glider one trick is to figure out what food they like and use it as a ploy to hang out with you (with rocky it was grapes, then mealworms). It is defiantly less stressful to coax them out of their cage with a treat then to chase them around and grab them. They also begin to associate you with treat, this makes them like you. This is also a way to train your glider through positive reinforcement. They do something like: fly to you on command or fly away on command and you give treat (see Skinner).
Don't feed list:
These are things you should NOT feed your gliders: beef, refined sugar products, wet or dry cat food, chocolate, fruit pits, seeds, bread, avocados, rhubarb, nuts, cottage cheese, salt, and any milk products.
3) Time
Sugar Gliders are a communal species. This has certain implications for pet ownership. If you are planning on adopting one glider you are going to want to plan on a minimum of one hour after dark out of cage enrichment time every day. This is especially important when you first bring them home and you are trying to bond with them. Also, during the day keep you glider in a bonding pouch, or bra, next to your heart as much as possible. This gets them used to your sounds and smells. The more time they have with you in the beginning the better pets they make in the long run. Out of cage enrichment time can mean many different things: Letting them use you as a jungle gym, supervised exploration, letting them ride you as you hop or jog around carefully, just letting them perch on your shoulder, or for really stubborn gliders try the tent method, set up a small tent, hang a few toys, and sit in it with your glider. The same holds true for if you are adopting multiple gliders, they just get less lonely at night if you are not there. If you are adopting one glider we highly recommend putting the cage near earshot of your bed if you will be sleeping most of the night. If they get lonely they will bark and you can take them out or talk to them, if you are in ear shot. Another trick that has worked for us in the past was light cycle manipulation. We kept them in a windowless room with a timed light source. We kept moving the “sundown” earlier and earlier, very slowly, until they were waking up at around 5PM, giving us plenty of time to play with them. Sugar Gliders can make great pets, but like many pets if you don’t put the time and energy they can also make bad pets. Before you decide on a glider, make sure you are ready for the commitment.
