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Sugar
Gliders for Sale
Sugar Glider
(Flying Sugar) (Petaurus Breviceps)
Keeping Sugar Gliders as Pets
"My female sugar glider,
Gloria, and her baby (about 1 month after it came out of the pouch)
investigating the camera."
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Sugar Glider Breeder
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Rescue a
Sugar Glider
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Type |
Small
arboreal marsupial, which are a silvery blue gray color with a darker stripe on
the back. The last couple of inches of the tail are also black. They are members
of the same family as kangaroos, wombats, opossums and Tasmanian devils. |
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Temperament |
The sugar
glider is a nocturnal animal. Meaning, they sleep during the day and are up at
night. In the wild, sugar gliders are playful with their colony, but wary and
protective of intruders. When an intruder is spotted, they will sound off a
shrill yapping followed by a sharp shriek if a fight arises. It is not easy to
tame an already mature sugar glider, however it is easy to tame baby sugar
gliders, by holding them for several hours a day while they are still very
young. An untame glider requires lots of time and patience. If you wish to
have a cuddly glider, be sure to adopt one that has been extensively handled and
well socialized. They tend to bond strongly to one person. Usually the person
who has held them the most and spends the most time with them. While they will
check new people out, they always return to the person they have bonded to.
They are extremely active and very social animals and do not like to live alone.
If you would like to own a sugar glider, plan on having more than one. A lonely
sugar glider who is deprived of social interaction, will not thrive. They
will become depressed and lonely, which can cause them to die. Sugar gliders
adore their owners. They need a great deal of interaction and would even enjoy
riding around in your pocket all day, or if you wear two shirts, the glider will
hang out between your shirts, (the second shirt prevents you from being
scratched). In the wild, they form colonies with up to seven gliders in one
colony. In the colonies they have an order, a leader on down to the bottom of
the rank. They have a fun and friendly personality.
Sugar Gliders "glide" by leaping off of something. They
spread their membrane of skin called a patagium, that extends between their
front and back legs. They use their long tails to steer, as they glide to over
one hundred meters, adjusting the curvature of their skin according to which
direction they wish to go. Sugar gliders do not make great housetraining
candidates. Their teeth are sharp, and while they do not usually bite, they can
if they feel frightened or threatened. Sugar gliders need to be treated with
love, respect, and gentleness. They do not respond at all to punishment or
domination |
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Size |
Length: 6.3-7.5
inches (16-20 cm.) - The Sugar Glider is about the size of a gerbil when mature.
They have a long bushy tail, which is about the same length as their body
(20cm.)
Weight: 100-160 grams. |
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Housing |
A large cage,
the bigger the better, should be provided with plenty of things to jump and leap
off of (a minimum of 24 x 24 inches, by 36 inches high). For a sugar glider,
height is more valuable than floor space. A wire cage, wire should be no more
than ½ inch wide,
is best to allow the cage to breathe. A plastic tub can be placed under the cage
to catch any debris that may fall out of the cage. Lots of toys should be
provided as well as an exercise wheel, nest box and/or glider pouch. Branches,
ropes and ladders will provide lots of opportunity for climbing and exercise. |
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Clean-up |
The sugar
glider is a very clean little creature. If you keep their cages clean, they have
almost no odor. |
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Grooming |
Their nails
should be kept well trimmed. They can become sharp and will scratch you as they
dig in to try and climb up or land on you. |
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Feeding |
The feeding
requirements of a sugar glider are somewhat controversial. It is only recently
they have been kept as pets, and needs are somewhat of a mystery. As time goes
on people will learn more about the needs of these little creatures. Sugar
gliders are omnivorous, meaning they will eat plant material and meat. In the
wild they feed from nectar, fruit, insects and even small birds, eggs or
rodents. This diet is pretty hard to replicate in captivity. People feed them a
variety of foods trying to mimic their natural diet as best they can. Some
people feed insects such as crickets, mealworms, waxworms, moths and spiders.
The insects should be fed high quality food such as commercial cricket food, and
dusted with a complete vitamin/mineral supplement. Hence their name, the sugar
glider loves the taste of sugar. They like fruit cocktail. The fruit should be
fed in small amounts, chopped together so the gliders can not just pick out
their favorites. Some mix a concoction called "Leadbeater's Mix Recipe", which
is 150 ml Warm water, 150 ml Honey, 1 shelled, boiled egg, 25 grams high protein
baby cereal and 1 tsp of a vitamin / mineral supplement. Mix in warm water and
honey. Blend the egg, then gradually add the water / honey mixture. Blend in the
vitamin powder until it is smooth, and then blend in baby cereal until it is
smooth. Keep refrigerated until served. While sugar gliders love nuts, nuts
should be fed sparingly, as they can cause health problems. |
| Exercise |
Provided you
supply enough living space, the sugar glider will take care of its own exercise
needs. |
| Life Expectancy |
8-15 years |
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Health Problems |
In captivity,
the Sugar Glider is susceptible to back leg paralysis. It is thought this may be
caused by some sort of deficiency. It can be prevented and treated with vitamins
D, E and calcium. Nuts and seeds should be fed very sparingly, as the sugar
glider is prone to impaction, a condition similar to constipation. |
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Gestation |
In captivity,
females can have up to three litters a year. In the wild they tend to have one
or two litters a year. They often will have twins and sometimes triplets. Female
sugar gliders have pouches, their young will stay in the pouch for about the
first 70 days. Than for the next month or so, the babies will remain in the
nest. After about 3½ months, the young gliders will begin to accompany their
mothers and fathers. |
| Origin |
Native to
Australia, Tasmania, New Guinea, and the neighboring islands of Indonesia. Sugar
gliders can be found in wooded forests where there is plenty of rainfall and
where Acacia Gum and
Eucalyptus trees are found, as in the wild, that is their main food source.
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"My female sugar glider with her first
baby."
"Male sugar glider having its favorite
snack!"
Bettie the Sugar Glider
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