Fancy's Flying Furballs: A Sugar Glider Sanctuary

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Fancy's Flying Furballs: A Sugar Glider Sanctuary A rescue for Sugar Gliders located in East Tennessee. Fancy's Flying Furballs: A Glider Rescue came about as a fluke. Currently, in-house, I have 19.

A friend asked if I'd take in a Sugar Glider that one of his co-workers was having to give away. I'm allergic to cats and dogs, so this seemed a nice way to get an animal companion. The Glider was Fancy and I was told that she was about 6 months old when I got her in February of 2007. After doing some research and discovering that Gliders are "communal" (meaning they need to be in groups of at lea

st 2 or more), I bought Madeline from a breeder to keep Fancy company. After that, people started asking if I'd take in this Glider or that Glider that they knew of who needed a new home. So, in essence, I've become a Glider Rescue. To date, I've rescued 8 Gliders, bought 1 and those Gliders have had 14 joeys (baby Gliders). I hope to become a licensed breeder soon, but need to get the house organized first. It'll have to be inspected by both a veterinarian and a representative from National Wildlife. I've, also, thought of becoming an official non-profit Glider Rescue, but haven't decided on that yet. I plan on using this site to post stories from my Gliders point-of-view, pictures of them and insights into their behavior, eating habits, etc. If you like my page, please share it with your friends :)

Facts about Gliders:
1. Sugar Gliders are nocturnal. For those who don't know what that means: They sleep during the day and get up in the evening to play all night and then go to sleep in the morning. So, unless you're a night person, not necessarily a good pet for you.

2. Gliders are communal animals. This means they need to be in groups of at least two or more. It can be two males, two females or one of each. If you get just one Glider, you need to spend at least 10 hrs. per day with it. Single Gliders that don't get enough time with their owner will, literally, die of loneliness. So, it's best to buy Gliders in pairs.

3. Sugar Gliders are native to the rain forests of New Zealand and Australia.

4. In the wild, their life span is 3-4 years due to predators. In captivity, they've been known to live up to 15 yrs. So, if you plan on getting a Glider, plan on having it for a very long time.

5. Gliders are omnivores, meaning they eat fruits, vegetables and meats, just like we do. In the wild, their diet consists of the sap from Acacia and Eucalyptus trees, moths and hopping insects and the occasional bird or mouse. I feed mine meat, cheese, nuts, live mealworms, uncooked oatmeal, cherry/grape tomatoes and some green vegetables, grapes and other fresh fruits, and water. Meats containing nitrates or nitrites are bad. NEVER feed Gliders cat food or canned fruits.

6. Sugar Gliders are marsupials. For those who don't know what a marsupial is, it means they carry their young in a pouch. Within 24 hours of mating, they'll be pregnant. The baby grows in the uterus for 16 days. When it is about the size of an uncooked grain of rice, it will make it's way down the birth canal and to the pouch where it will grow for about another 8-10 weeks.

7. Gliders are "arboreal" creatures. This means they live in the canopy of the forest, that is, the tree tops. Because of this, they p*e and p**p as they walk along. This means that they can't be litter trained. It, also, means that they need to be let out of their cages for about 4 hrs per day so they can get out, run, jump and climb on things; basically, get the exercise they need to keep them healthy.

31/07/2025

The new cage arrived today. Storms meant I couldn't do what I had planned for the early part of the day. So, unboxed the cage, moved the parts to my bedroom, and started putting it together. Got the legs added to the bottom shelf, and then went to put the casters on the legs. First two went in great. Flipped the shelf around to work on the other two legs to discover that one is missing the plastic bit in the leg that the caster slides into. Took photos. Now to contact customer support to see if they can send me that part.

Guess I should start sewing pet screen onto the cage panels.

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31/07/2025

For the first time in 15 yrs., there are no glider cages in my bedroom! Granted, that won't last long. Tracking states that it should arrive sometime tomorrow, but it won't likely get put together until late Friday with pet screen being added over the weekend.

There were two cages in the bedroom in opposite corners. I took one apart several months ago, but hadn't moved it to the back of the van. Tonight, moved that one to the van, and then disassembled the second one. These two cages were the first large cages I purchased after taking in Fancy and Madeline.

Also of note: A couple of months ago, I ordered some better quality nest boxes for the gliders. I'd put one on the new bookshelf in my bedroom in hopes Bambi, Flower, and Nagaina would use it, but they completely ignored it. I pulled it off the shelf and put it in the play tent on my bed and put Grey Brother in it after giving him his meds this afternoon. Gus was curled up with Grey when I went to get him, but took off running around the tent when I pulled Grey out. It took a little coaxing, but Gus found the box and climbed in with Grey. They were in there together when I left. Went to check on them again, and Gus was curled up in his pouch inside the box. Grey Brother, on the other hand, had crawled out and was sleeping between the blanket and the bedspread. I suspect pain from his jaw is why he's sleeping alone. Hopefully, he'll start feeling better soon.

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29/07/2025

Sunday, July 20th, took in a new glider. Gus is a 4 yr. old, unaltered male who hasn't been around other gliders. His person was heading off to college and wasn't able to take him along.

Grey Brother, my only neutered male, wasn't eating much, and I'd quarantined him in the small cage in the sewing room. I suspected that he was being bullied by Bullwinkle and Sweetie Pie, who are also unaltered males. He wasn't running around much, just eating little bits and sleeping.

Without a good pet-screened cage to put the new boy in, I pulled out my play tent and put it on the bed. Hung some of Gus' toys and a pouch in it. Since it's easier to get unaltered males to get along with neutered males, and because I suspected Bully and Pie of being bullies, I moved Grey Brother into the tent with Gus.

First meeting with the new boy, they sniffed at each other a little, then Grey Brother walked away. Next time Gus approached him, Grey crabbed long and loud, which startled Gus into turning tail and running away. There has been some conflict between Gus and Bambi, but nothing serious.

Today, finally got Grey in to see the vet and took Gus along to keep up the bonding process. While waiting in the exam room for the vet, I put the boys' pouches down so the openings were facing each other. About 30 seconds later, I looked down to see Grey climb into the pouch with Gus!!! A couple of moments later, Gus moved into Grey's pouch, then decided to come out and look around a little. Moved him into a zippered pouch I'd brought along.

Turns out, Grey has a new abscess in his jaw. Vet cleaned it out, and then held him so I could trim his nails. After that, he went into the zipper pouch with Gus. Once home, and dosed with antibiotics, Grey went back into the zippered pouch that I had left open on the bed, inside the tent.

I've ordered a new cage for the bedroom, and when it arrives, I'll start alternating who has run of the room in my bedroom once I have pet screen on it. The pet screen prevents the gliders from harming one another through the cage bars.

Went to check on them a bit ago and both boys are still curled up together in the open zippered pouch. Currently have said pouch hanging around my neck.

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16/07/2025

Found Grey Brother this morning hiding under a bag in the floor of the sewing room. He seems a little weak, but he's eating. Keeping him with me as much as possible today.

16/07/2025

Went to feed the gliders this morning and Grey Brother is missing. For a moment, thought Leela was missing, too, but she finally came out of hiding. I searched known hiding places, used my camera to check the shelves in the top of the closets and under the chests in the room, but couldn't find him anywhere. Hoping he makes his way out after I go to bed.

On a whim, this evening, checked the weight of Bullwinkle and Sweetie Pie. I didn't write down their weights the last t...
13/04/2025

On a whim, this evening, checked the weight of Bullwinkle and Sweetie Pie. I didn't write down their weights the last time I put them on the scales, but, if I remember correctly, Bully was 106 grams to Sweetie Pie's 122. As of today, Bullwinkle, who is ~7 yrs old and by far the most active of my gliders, weighs 103 grams. Sweetie Pie, on the other hand, found the weight the others had lost, and now weighs in at 152 grams.

Adding some photos of these two as I've not shared many. Bullwinkle is easy to spot because his tail curls up over his back, and he almost always looks like he's angry. Sweetie Pie has a white face and his tail is almost always straight out behind him.

13/04/2025

Just checked weights for Leela and Grey Brother. These two are in with Bullwinkle and Sweetie Pie. However, I've been feeding this group as though there are only four of them before Mowgli passed, and as though there are only three of them now, and they've been getting half portions of meat and cheese. Why? Because Leela, Grey, and Mowgli were all very overweight.

In January, Leela was weighing in at 222 grams when she should max out at 130. Grey Brother was weighing in at 174 when he should max out at 150. Tonight, Leela was down to 188 and Grey was down to 155.

For anyone worried that I might be underfeeding them, know that there is usually a little bit of food left in their bowls, and they don't always finish their smoothies.

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Mowgli is gone.😭😭😭Took him back to the vet today. He had an appointment for another blood draw. However, his stomach w...
02/04/2025

Mowgli is gone.😭😭😭

Took him back to the vet today. He had an appointment for another blood draw. However, his stomach was distended and he vomited as soon as they gave him anesthesia. Instead of sedating him completely, they took some x-rays and an ultrasound. Both showed a large pocket that the vet suspected was fluid. He drew a large sample of fluid that looked like urine.

The vet gave me the option of a referral to UT Vet Hospital or Euthanasia. He offered to show me the x-rays, and then we took another ultrasound. The vet assistant offered to "spin out" a sample of the fluid to try to determine what it was since it wasn't from the bladder. I wanted as much info as possible before making a decision.

They led me back to the exam room, and I put Mowgli in my tank top. He moved around so that his head and one arm were lounging over the neckline. After a few minutes, he made some jerking motions. I peaked in at him and he appeared to be asleep, and about every 20-30 seconds he made this little jerking motion. A few minutes later, it stopped. I looked down at him and couldn't see him breathing. He made the decision for us.

I asked the vet if he would do a necropsy and take care of the cremation for me. He called before I made it home. Mowgli had liver cancer. There was a tumor on his liver and still lots of fluid in his body cavity. Vet checked his bladder as we thought there might be an issue there, but it worked properly. He assured me that I hadn't done anything wrong and that there was nothing we could have done to save him.

I was told that Mowgli was 3 yrs. old when I took him in at the beginning of February 2020, making him 8 yrs. old at the time of his death. He was the oldest of the Jungle Book crew, and the oldest glider currently in the house. Of the Jungle Book crew, he was the first to bond with me, and he was a really sweet glider. He is missed already.💔😭💔

20/03/2025

Mowgli Update:

For the first time in over a month, Mowgli is no longer in a quarantine cage.

Took him back to the vet this afternoon. Vet had originally planned to do another blood test, but decided it was too soon to try again. Mowgli had dropped for around 120 grams to 106 grams since two weeks ago. Considering he was getting a full size portions and a larger share than any of the other gliders, and he's been eating, this weight loss has me concerned.

Vet decided to take him off the liver support supplement, and said he could go back to running with the rest of his group. He goes back in two weeks for a recheck.

Waited a bit after getting home to let Mowgli out of his quarantine cage. Partially because I was concerned about how he would be received. When I first realized something was wrong, none of the other gliders would stay in a nest box with him. Recently, Sweetie Pie has been picking on him through the bars of his cage. So, I was a little concerned over how the other gliders might react.

A little bit ago, I pulled Mowgli from the quarantine cage. Next, I pulled down the shoe box the others were sleeping in and opened it up. Mowgli climbed in and crawled to the bottom of the pile. Leela, who has not bonded with me yet, tried to leave the box, but I think that was more because of me than Mowgli. Sweetie Pie came over and sniffed at Mowgli, and I touched him on the head and told him to be nice. Instead of bothering Mowgli, he hopped onto my shoulder. I closed the box up and put it back on the shelf in the closet. Will check again in a bit to see if everything is going well. So far, haven't heard any fussing from that room.

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15/03/2025

Mowgli Update:
The pr*****ed p***s has finally, completely retracted!!! Discovered this in the wee hours yesterday, but I was too tired to post about it before going to bed. He's getting out and climbing in his cage more, spending some time in his wheel, and moving about a bit more steadily than before, but he's still a bit shaky.

This morning, I pulled him out so he could play in the living room a bit while I prepped the food for all the gliders. He climbed over the piled up clothing on the couch, and went to the floor on the other side of it. Had to get up one time to keep him from going into the kitchen as I don't allow the gliders to freely roam in there. He sat in my lap at one point eating a piece of Turkey, he liked a couple of grape slices, and ate a couple of pieces of corn and at least one green pea. Then took off again. Once the food was done, put him back in his cage before I started cleaning out their old bowls to replace with the new ones.

Partway through the food change out, Bullwinkle came out and joined me. He road around on my back, climbed down my arms, back up, chewed on the seam for the collar on my T-shirt, and simply hung out on me while I set up the moat and water bowls, distributed the fresh food bowls, and then made and distributed their yogurt smoothie.

Since last night was the dose for Mowgli's Gabapentin and Amoxicillin, which I'd been mixing into his smoothie, I'm testing to see if he'll eat the yogurt smoothie with his liver support meds in it. Tried this before and he turned his nose up at it. This time, it has several drops of a liquefied lollipop in it to try to help mask the flavor of the meds. It worked for the Gabapentin and the Amoxicillin. Here's hoping it works for this one, too. I really hate having to fight with him to get him to take his meds. He goes back to the vet this next Wednesday.

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12/03/2025

Mowgli Update:
He's still using the bathroom, but his f***l matter is mostly fluid. He's still cleaning himself, and he's finally starting to get out and move around more. All of my current quarantine cages are either really small or old and rusty. So, I bought a new one that's a "medium size bird" cage. Mowgli is climbing all over it, and he's running in the wheel some. He'll grab a piece of food and climb into the wheel to eat it. His p***s has almost completely retracted. There's around 1/4" of it still sticking out. Per the vet, he's getting ReptiCal and ReptiVite sprinkled on his food daily, while the rest of the gliders get it every other day. He goes back to the vet in another week to redo blood tests.

In other news:
Weighted Leela and Grey Brother. Grey is down to 168 grams, which is a slight decrease since last month. Leela dropped from 210 grams to 200 grams over the past month.

Bullwinkle and Sweetie Pie are both very outgoing. Despite having been separated from the rest of the gliders, Bullwinkle is checking Mowgli out when he climbs on the bars of his cage. Sweetie Pie is being aggressive with him, but not sure why. Grey Brother is still avoiding him, as is Leela.

Everyone else is doing well.

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06/03/2025

Mowgli Update:

We made it to the vet for our scheduled appointment. Turns out the tooth the vet thought might be infected, then said wasn't infected, actually went full abscess and burst through the skin beside Mowgli's nose. This was the swelling I'd seen on Monday.

Since giving him a bath Monday evening, he's been keeping himself groomed.

The base of his p***s has receded back into his cloaca, but the rest is still pr*****ed.

New blood work showed the liver levels were back to normal or near normal, but red blood cell count, calcium, and several other levels were low.

Vet gave me a different antibiotic as, apparently, SMZ affects the liver. He's to stay on everything for a while longer and goes back to the vet in 2 wks.

Asked if dissolving lollipops and adding them to the meds each dosing would be okay as an effort to make the meds more palatable. Vet gave me the go-ahead. Don't have any at the moment, so I've dissolved a couple of pinches of sugar in orange extract and apple juice. Will load the syringes with meds, then add some of this mix to see if it makes it easier to get Mowgli to take his meds.

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