# sugar gliders



## Jay-Nitro (Jan 22, 2010)

anybody had any experience of these?

gorgeous little creatures but soooooo highly strung and high maintenance!!


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## catz4m8z (Aug 27, 2008)

Very cute!
But I have heard they are incredibly messy little individuals.


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## billyboysmammy (Sep 12, 2009)

I know a lady who has a pair of rescues.

Apparently its quite difficult to fulfill their behavioural, social and nutritional needs properly, and so often people get them just because of the cuteness factor.

They should only be kept within social groups, as depriving them of this can cause depression and an early death.

I dont know enough about them to comment further, they are super super cute, but they are a wild animal and i would prefer to see them stay like that.


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## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

So cute yes....but....hairy knuckles!!!! Awww.....hehehehehehehe!!!!!!!!!!! xx


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## sullivan (Aug 29, 2008)

i think they have a sugar feed also like nectar and fruits etc. Very cute but i think they are more specalised care than some of our pets.


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## Jay-Nitro (Jan 22, 2010)

yeah have no doubt how intense they are to look after! Im not speaking from experience but have read up about them. 

They need to be paired up at least and to bond with them your meant to hang a little pouch round your neck for them 2 sit in! Apparantley your heart beat soothes them  Diets very strict lots of fresh fruit, and they make some strangeee noises! Have also read storys that they pine for a lost partner and can over time actually die from loneliness...all together now 'awwwwwwwww' 

Search them on youtube, funny little things and I agree very very cute....but think domesticating them is going a bit 2 far. Dare say vast majority of vets wont know how to deal with them either.


But if it wasnt for all of the above, im sure we'd all want a couple!


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## billyboysmammy (Sep 12, 2009)

The reason that they bond so closely is the reason they should be kept in groups. If you keep them in a group you are less likely to have one dieing from lonliness. They do not mate for life, and so a grouping is better suited to their natural behaviour.


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## Jamie760 (Oct 14, 2010)

I thought these creatures were illegal in the UK.


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## Tyler (Aug 17, 2010)

I have four of these lovable little monkeys, three of which I have had for at least ten years! My original three are not massively tame because they where the breeding stock of a local pet shop that found they could not sell them that well. The forth, was born whilst with us so she is a lot better. They do bond closely with you.

I have to say, I know there is a lot on the net about how hard they are to look after, but I dont find them too bad in terms of diet. They are very smelly and do kick/throw/spit stuff out of the cage a lot though. I feed mine a selection of fresh fruit, veg, cat biscuits, honey, egg, nuts and reptile supplement. They are particularly good at getting ride of big scary spiders and moths, they love a good insect. 

For small critters they also put our cat in its place. She used to jump on the cage when she was a kitten and they would jump over to her and nibble her toes. She just watches them from a safe distance now.

Like others have said, really not a solo pet, but in a bigish house or one with a fairly warm garage there small can be managed reasonably. They dont really do bright light but a few red bulbs shorts that out no problem.

Also, they are not illegal in the UK


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## Jay-Nitro (Jan 22, 2010)

wow 4! How long can they live I had no idea upto 10 years. If they bond so closely how come their such little sods  Are they playfull animals and do you let them out to free range so to speak


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## Tyler (Aug 17, 2010)

I think life span is about 10-12 in the wild and 14+ in captivity. To be honest if I was to have them again, I would not have four of them; I would just stick with two!

Mine have just had a long period of time with no playing out time because we have had the floor boards off in the room they are in. But I do left them have a run around the room, although they largely stay on the outside of the cage or on me. My three oldest are not that interested in me, unless there is food involved, but the younger one likes to sit on my shoulder or head. They can be a little scratching on your skin so I tend to put a jumper on with a hood. She then plays peek-a-boo over the top.

I don&#8217;t find them to be little sods in terms of behaviour, although they can be cheeky and they will occasionally bark at night for attention. Their main draw back is the smell (which my wife can small more than me) and the fact that the spit and kick stuff out of the cage. As far as I understand, when they eat, the filter out part of the sticky fibrous matter and then spit it out, generally on to the adjacent walls!

They are far far to cute for their own good though!


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## Jay-Nitro (Jan 22, 2010)

they look and sound canny I must admit...but spitting? erghhh! :lol:


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## Tyler (Aug 17, 2010)

I must add, i have never witnessed it myself; i am going off what i have previously been told. They certainly dont spit at me!

Ty


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## Jay-Nitro (Jan 22, 2010)

well thats not so bad then! how come they smell alot for tiny creatures?


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## Tyler (Aug 17, 2010)

Jay-Nitro said:


> well thats not so bad then! how come they smell alot for tiny creatures?


Thats a difficult question really!

To me, if I keep on top of the cleaning, they dont smell at all! My wife however has a super sensitive nose and can be sat downstairs and know if I have opened the door to the back room. The leading cause of smell gliders, in my experience, is poor diet. I change mine over to a different diet once and that really made them pong, so I switched them back pronto. I think the key to minimising the smell is spot cleaning the bits of fruit that get dropped in the cage and cleaning the cage toys and bars on a rotational basis. Not difficult, just take a bit of planning!


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## Jay-Nitro (Jan 22, 2010)

Well I guess its the same with any animal if you let things get out of hand, theres going to be a stink! 


Final question...have you any pictures of the little terrors?


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## Tyler (Aug 17, 2010)

Jay-Nitro said:


> Well I guess its the same with any animal if you let things get out of hand, theres going to be a stink!
> 
> Final question...have you any pictures of the little terrors?


i cant find my old ones, but ill see if i can take some more!


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## Jay-Nitro (Jan 22, 2010)

cool! will keep checking back now and then


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## squeaker (Nov 29, 2010)

Not illegal no. Readily available on pet market.


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