Sugar Gliders Housing

One of the things you should remember when having Sugar Glider as your pet is their cage. As mentioned before in the wild they are tree dwelling creature, therefore you should provide your gliders with toys to play around, branches and ropes to climb and jump around is a good choice as it is their nature. Having horizontals and verticals bars are also a good addition to have for them to jump and play around.

The bigger the cage the better it is for the Sugar Glider; some breeder and expert suggest that the minimum size should be around 36 by 24 inches is good enough for a pair of glider. The more gliders you plan to have than be prepared to have even bigger cage for them. Do not treat them like hamsters by housing them in a hamster cage because they are not, just like in their name suggest they glide meaning they are one active animal and space is essential to them.

These are some guide you can use when searching a house for your Sugar Glider.

1. Height of the cage.

In the wild it is natural for Sugar Gliders to jump and climb even gliding from tree top to tree tops. In captivity the owner should at least provide a high enough (around 3feet) cage to house their gliders. With a tall cage you can put branches or hang thick ropes from the top of the cage for your Sugar Glider to jump, climb and play around.

2. Materials of the cage.

When purchasing a cage for you Sugar Glider, care need to be taken on the type of material used to build the cage. Chicken wire cages are totally not suitable for these exotic pet as their feet can easily cut by the wire and also can cause irritation to them. Cage made of Galvanized wire also has often been blamed for urinary tract infections in sugar gliders. This is because urine from the Sugar Glider will interact with the galvanized wire, causing a chemical reaction that produces a white powdery residue that can cause irritant to Sugar Gliders. It is best to look for cages that are made PVC coated or vinyl coated wire or other quality materials as they are safer to your Gliders.

3. Lock and security.

Sugar Gliders are intelligent animal; over time they will observe how you open the door to their cage. Soon they will learn to open the door of their cage and let themselves free. It is better to get extra lock or better locking mechanism for the door just to be safe.

Also make sure the cage bar spacing to be about 1/2 inch in only one direction. Most manufactured cages have second dimension spacing as much as 5 to 6 inches. As long as one of the two dimensions is 1/2 inch, you are safe. Any larger the joey (baby Sugar Glider) can easily let themselves loose.

4. Toys

It is not necessary to have shelves and ramps for your Sugar Gliders cage. What Sugar Gliders need are climbing apparatus like branches, vines and ropes. These items can help you to create a stimulating environment that is important for the active and extremely curious Sugar Glider. Give them things to do lest they become bored - bored little critters often turn into depressed little critters, and you don't want that!

The idea to have large cage is so they can actively climb, jump and run. Sugar Glider loves to jump, it is a favorite for them if the cage has levels, you are limiting limited their jumping space. Cages that are wide open from top to bottom, with the exception of branches and other stimulating toys like Wodent Wheel, is ideal for Sugar Glider.

The Bonding Process

Bonding with your Sugar Gliders takes time and patience, but it is the best part of owning this little pet.

To get your Sugar Glider to bond and really familiar with you, what you need to do is to spend some quality time with it. If you have a suggie that has been bred in captivity it might take you a less time to bond with it, this is because they are already familiar with humans and are not afraid of them. The trick here is not to force anything.

Take your time, be patience and take things one step at a time. Don't worry if your bonding will takes more time than you thought before, sometime it takes somewhere from instant bond to up to few months. To speed up the bonding process what you can do is to take some piece of cloth that you've been wearing for quite some time and has your scent on it, and put it inside your Sugar Gliders nesting box or sleeping pouch. This little trick will help your Sugar Glider get used to your scent a lot faster.

If you have a Sugar Glider who isn't completely tamed, don't wear gloves (some people just do that) while handling them. This is because your Sugar Gliders will get used to the smell of your gloves, instead of your own scent.

Suggies do bite some time when they get mad or feel threaten, but what you should do is just sticking it through. Don't try to jerk them around, because it will hurt you even more and returning them to their cage once they have bitten you is also not a good idea. They are a smart creature, your Sugar Glider will start to think, that every time it bites you, you will put them back to safety and leave them alone.

Stick it through and continue handling them. The bonding process takes time and patience, but after a while your Sugar Glider will start to understand that even if it bites you, you still continue to handle them.

Make sure to supervise children around your Sugar Glider. That's because most kids love animals, they may squeeze them too hard out of love, and this may cause your Sugar Glider to bite back.

Sugar Glider owner's basic manual

Many people chose to adopt a Sugar Glider to be their pet because they are cute, cuddly and entertaining as well as exotic in nature.

Before thinking of having Sugar Gliders as pets, the owners to be are advised to have some Sugar Glider knowledge about these cute little pets. Do some research to know and understand its needs, characteristic, how they live and things that relates to them. Just like other exotic pet they tend to have their own unique requirements as they are not a domesticated pet like cats or dogs.

Sugar Glider is an omnivore also a nocturnal animal; they feed on plants and insects. In the wild they favored sweet foods like nectar, fruits, sweet sap such as from eucalyptus, acacia and gum trees, insects and small vertebrates. It’s active during the night gliding from tree to tree in search of foods and spends most of the daytime sleeping.

In captivity as a pet, Sugar Gliders’ diet need to be varied consisting of protein (meat, insect etc), fresh fruits and vegetables, and also supplement of calcium. Nowadays commercial dry and soft Sugar Glider pallets foods are easily available on the market, but it is not recommended that these become their staple food. It is always better to have fresh food source for your Sugar Glider in addition to commercial food.

Calcium is also crucial to Sugar Gliders’ diet; there are products on the market catered for them. The common problem of the Sugar Gliders’ health is the imbalance of phosphorous and calcium in their diet. Too much phosphorous leads to the blockage of other nutrients, this can cause malnourishment, foods that have calcium substance has always an equal amount of phosphorous. Food supplement that are rich in calcium is highly recommended to prevent diseases that are cause of phosphorous.

Sugar Gliders are social animals, in the wild they live in groups of 10 to 15 members. They love and get along the company of other Sugar Gliders very well. Due to this fact, owners should also consider adopting at least a pair when buying them. As a pet they can be very playful, it is also their social nature that allows them to develop bonds with their owners. In order to bond with their new Sugar Gliders, many owners’ carry them around in a bonding pouch for several hours a day. They need to have a social interaction and attention from their owners, they can get bored and lonely if left alone for a long period. They may usually become depressed, withdrawn, and defensive and may also refuse to eat. The more time you spend with them the stronger the bonds is.

In captivity a Sugar Glider can live from 12 to 15 years. They can be trained to perform tricks gliding from one place to another. Owners should be alert and be aware of their gliders when they are playing out of their cage.

Sugar Glider requires a tall cage rather than a wide ones, in the wild they are tree dwellers therefore they feel safer high up. The minimum height is about 30 inches, but some breeders and experts recommend using 24x36 inches cage which is a good size for a pair of Sugar Glider. In most cases the bigger the better it is, though the cage for Sugar Glider doesn’t focus on the floor so much but rather on its height. Owners should fill their cages with exercising wheels, toys, ladders, branches and ropes as to entice their glider to be active. Gliders are playful animal but if they are not active they tends to be obese and this creates problem to the owner.

It is recommended that they are allowed to play outside the cage for several hours in a glider safe room supervised by the owner. Sugar Gliders are cute and cuddly; children should be supervised by adults when they play around Sugar Glider.

Suggie as Your Pocket Pet

Sugar Gliders are very social and enjoy companionship. Due to this fact sugar gliders will bond well with their owners. If you do not have a lot of time to spend with your sugar glider it is a good idea to keep more than one.

If you plan to keep more than one Sugar Glider it is advisable to raise them together from a young age as it can be difficult introducing unacquainted adults.

Be sure to have an appropriate cage for your Sugar Glider. It is best to get the largest cage that you can afford to give your Sugar Gliders plenty of room to play around.

Before purchasing a sugar glider be sure to do some research on their nutritional needs. Sugar Gliders have some special dietary requirements that are important to follow to ensure your Sugar Glider in optimum health.

Remember Sugar Gliders are nocturnal animals, so if you plan on owning a Sugar Glider be prepared to have a pet that is most active during the night. Sugar Gliders make a chainsaw like sound, so you may want to place their cage in an area where their talking does not disturb you while you sleep.

In spite of the fact that Sugar Gliders are nocturnal, they are usually happy to spend time with their owners during the day by sleeping in a pocket or pouch (bonding pouch). Many Sugar Glider owners find this trait particularly charming and take their little sugar glider pocket pets with them everywhere they go.