01/24/2022
GLIDERS AS PETS
Sugar gliders are available from shelters, breeders, and pet stores across the country. They make excellent pets for people who take the time to learn about their needs before acquiring them.
As they are extremely social animals that get depressed when housed alone, sugar gliders should never be kept singly as pets but rather should be housed in pairs. Males and females may be kept together, as long as the male is neutered after 5-6 months of age — a relatively simple procedure that is commonly performed by glider-savvy veterinarians. If not neutered, the male will mate with the female to produce 1-2 babies (called joeys) after sexual maturity (about 8 months in females and 12 months in males).
Sugar gliders are playful, curious animals that typically love to hang out with both their cage-mates and their human caretakers. Given their natural affinity for pouches, they generally love to curl up in a shirt pocket or in a fabric pouch. Pouches designed for sugar gliders are typically available in pet stores.
They must be handled daily by their owners to become tame or they tend to be nippy. Thus, they are not great pets for families with very young children. Since they are nocturnal, they are best for people who have time available to handle them at night. Given their quick movements and inquisitive nature, they must only be allowed out of their cages while closely supervised, in pet-proofed areas free of electric cords and other dangerous objects on which they might chew.
