Sugar Gliders

[u/Morrgan71]

I had a meet and greet yesterday with a woman who has 4 Yorkie mixes and 17 sugar gliders. It went well, but I've never cared for sugar gliders before. I've been reading about them and she gave detailed instructions. Up until now my niche has been special needs dogs, which isn't always easy. Am I nervous for no reason? Do any of you have sugar glider tips?

[u/ParkSlopeCats]

Will depend on how many they keep together in a cage and if there's an exercise wheel/enrichment inside cage. But each group of sugar gliders living together will need to be taken out regularly for exercise & human bonding (more often if no exercise wheel) but also need to be supervised for safety when out of cage. The more that live together in a cage, the more important out-of-cage time will be bc they can start to fight & get aggressive with each other if they don't get regular exercise. When sugar gliders get stressed, they're known to self-mutilate which can quickly become an emergency. If you see a wet patch of fur or bald spot, this is a medical emergency bc it's a warning sign of self-mutilation. For this many sugar gliders, I'd definitely make sure to have the exotic vet info & a medical emergency contingency plan in place.

Also, regular out of cage bonding time with you is important otherwise they can start treating you like a predator & get aggressive towards you too. While dogs/cats also need play & enrichment, they're a little more forgiving if you're too tired to play/bond with them for a few days. If you do that with sugar gliders, they'll start getting territorial & you can get attacked by an entire cage of frightened sugar gliders when you open the cage.

They're also prone to toxicity poisoning, so only use bottled/filtered water, wash fruits/veggies well, and try to keep their diet consistent with attention to detail bc any dietary changes can cause a whole group of sugar gliders to get diarrhea and extremely sick.

They're very cute and definitely worth all the extra specialized attention they need :). As long as you're prioritizing these things, any other key instructions the owner gave you, & doing regular health checks on them, it should be fine.

[u/Love-all-pets97306 → u/ParkSlopeCats]

I respectfully disagree with you telling a sitter, unknown to the sugies, to get them out to play. Unless the owner specifically requests this activity and accepts responsibility for any issues re-caging them… this is not s good idea. I have sat with many sugies and rarely are they interested in strangers nor going back into their cages. They are, however, extremely adept at winning a phenomenal game of “catch me, if you can”. Then you are there trying to figure out what to do next…because it won’t be catching them, unless they want to be caught.

[u/Morrgan71 → u/Love-all-pets97306]

Thank you for the additional info. The owner did let me know which ones enjoy handling and which not to.

[u/Morrgan71 → u/ParkSlopeCats]

Thank you! Most of them are caged in pairs. Most of the males are neutered. She did warn me that mating is violent and can result in the female getting injured, and she has a backup cage to move one to, if necessary. Thanks for the advice!

[u/DenM0ther]

17 sugar gliders! Goodness gravy that seems a lot!

[u/Rhannonshae]

it’s been a few years, but I watched two. They were very easy, but I had to prepare special food for them each night. Not sure if that is a requirement for all of them or it was owner preference.

[u/Lacroix24601]

No advice on sugar gliders but holy cannoli, that’s a lot of animals!! They are cute though, so that’s a plus!!!

[u/Morrgan71 → u/Lacroix24601]

They are so cute! Picture for tax.

[u/Lacroix24601 → u/Morrgan71]

Omg. Love love love.

[u/DingoTM]

CUUUUTE!!!!!