Sugar Glider

SUGAR GLIDERS

The Sugar Glider is a small arboreal (tree dwelling) marsupial from Indonesia, New Guinea, and Australia.  In the wild, the Sugar Glider lives in forested areas containing eucalyptus, gum, and other trees.  An adult Sugar Glider is about the size of a Southern Flying Squirrel (4” from nose to base of tail) and has a gliding membrane form its front paws to its ankles.  It is capable of gliding 150 to 200 feet from tree to tree, always with at least a slight downward direction, as they cannot glide up.

A captive born Sugar Glider is a steel gray color with a black strip down its back from its nose to its tail.  An imported adult is usually brownish in color, probably because of its diet and staining from the trees in which it lives.  The furry tail is not prehensile, although the Sugar Glider often curls the lower third.

The Sugar Glider lives in groups of up to a dozen in tree hollows or nests built of leaves in the crotch of branches.  Normally, one or two dominate males coexist with several females, offspring, and non-breeding males.  Weaned youngsters usually leave the family group between 6 and 7 months of age to form or join another group.

FEEDING

In the wild Sugar Gliders eat a variety of fruits, nectar, and sap, as well as buds, berries, pollen, and small insects.  They chew holes with their sharp incisors in the bark of trees to drink the sap.  They return latter to eat the dried gum that accumulates there.  The Sugar Gliders high metabolism accounts for the intense sugar content of its diet.  When Sugar Gliders first became popular the dietary requirements of this creatures was a mystery.  There were a lot of “trial and error diets” that flooded the market.  Thankfully, after much research by PhD’s in animal nutrition Brisky Pet Products introduced Sugar Glider Diet.  This finally permitted the Sugar Glider owner to feed their pet a complete diet in an easy to use pellet.  This diet is complete (even containing eucalyptus) and can be fed as an exclusive diet.  Brisky Pet Products Sugar Glider Nectar is a supplement that can be added to the diet several times a week (especially useful for finicky gliders).  As with all animals limit, treat intake to no more than 10% of your pet’s diet.

HOUSING and OTHER CONCERNS

You can keep a single Sugar Glider in a cage as small as 20”x20”x30” or house a pair together in a cage at least 50% larger.  Make sure the wire mesh measures ¾” or less.  Sugar Gliders are tree dwelling and appreciate large roomy cages.  Gliders need something to climb on.  Place freshly cut branches from non-toxic trees and bushes, such as willow, aspen, and apple in various positions within the cage.  Be absolutely certain anything introduced to your Glider’s environment is non-toxic, because they will chew the branches, often completely de-barking them.  Once a limb is dry or the bark is gone, replace it with a fresh one.  Sugar Gliders appreciate some toys such as ladders, ropes, and rings.  They also like a small pouch to curl up in.  Sugar Gliders can tolerate temperatures from 55 to 95 degrees (for short periods of time).  There preferred temperature range is from 70 to 80 degrees.

SOCIAL ATTITUDE

A tamed, domestically raised Sugar Glider can make a great pet that bonds readily to its human owner.  Its social attitude in the wild, coupled with its need to be physically attached to something, supports this bond with the people who give it attention.  Frequent handling reinforces this attachment.

To help adjust your Glider to its new home, give it plenty of attention by simulating wild “grooming” behaviors such as gentle rubbing and scratching of the neck and head regions.  After the Glider has aloud this, progress to the more venerable regions of the throat and stomach.  A well bonded Sugar Glider will return the favor by grooming its owner with its mouth and paws, often with great seriousness and vigor.

A tamed Sugar Glider will thoroughly enjoy riding in your pocket, on you shoulder, in your hair or inside your shirt.  It will treat you as if you were a large Sugar Glider and strictly as an equal.  The Sugar Glider is not a submissive pet but is very affectionate.  The glider is basically a clean pet, but because it is a tree dweller, it does not truly “housebreak”.  It should not be removed immediately from its cage after it has been sleeping.  Waiting 30 minutes or more before taking the Glider out after it has been sleeping will lessen the possibility of it urinating on family or furniture.

Tamed Gliders do well in pairs and will continue to bond with the human family.  If introducing a second Glider to the household be sure to proceed slowly and let all human family members handle the new addition before it is introduced to its new cage mate.

Untamed adults may tame down, but should usually be reserved for breeding stock.  You can expect to pay the same for a tamed baby as for a pair of untamed “breeders”.

As with any exotic animal, be sure to check with local and state authorities for the legality of your chosen pet.