I am thinking about getting a pair of Sugar Gliders, and I was wondering if any of you guys have ever how one or know anyone who does. Im just looking for alittle first hand knowledge.


Here are some pictures:

 

A friend of mine has a pair of them. What do you want to know?

 

I used to have two sugar gliders, both female. They make great pets but you have to put in the time early on to get them accustomed to you, otherwise they have a tendency to be skittish and nibble when handled later on. If you handle them frequently when they're young, though, then they'll usually be very tame when older and will just cling onto your shirt while you walk around.

As you probably already know, they're nocturnal and very social, so expect to hear lots of chattering at night.

Also, if you're considering sugar gliders, I'd also suggest considering prairie dogs. I've had those (as well as bunch of other animals) as pets before and they're one of the best pet rodents IMO. They're extremely friendly, love attention, and are of course very cute. They're quieter than sugar gliders and the only real downside I can think of is that they'll require a lot more horizontal floor space (whereas sugar gliders will require a lot of vertical space).

 

they are commitment. they are very sociable and require attention. you will want to make or buy some kind of pouch you can wear (warm and fuzzy on the inside) so they can climb in and hang out in.

exotic pets in general require more work and attention to ensure they are happy and you enjoy them as well.

http://exoticpets.about.com/od/sugarglider...gar_Gliders.htm

http://www.isga.org/informationcenter/Heal...s/caresheet.htm

http://www.faqs.org/faqs/pets/sugar-gliders/part1/

 

I have some interesting rabbit stories. Rabbit Story #1:

Mrs. Raptor brought home this beautiful six month old Netherland Dwarf rabbit colored like a Siamese cat. Netherland Dwarfs are very small with short snouts and ears. Her rabbit expert friend who gave us this rabbit said it was a girl. So we named her Sonya after my secretary, who was Dutch Indonesian, visiting in Holland at the time, and had big brown eyes like the rabbit. Sonja thought she was a dog, was housebroken, came when you called her, and slept in the bed with us.

We had some friends who lived in Solana Beach that had a sailboat. We used to go sailing with them to Catalina Island all the time. They loved Sonya and got a boy rabbit, which they named Bibby after Henry Bibby, who was playing basketball for UCLA at the time. Bibby had a white patch on his chest like a bib. One time we took Sonya down to meet Bibby and go sailing. We found out within about three seconds that Sonya wasn't a girl and Bibby wasn't a boy. Mrs. Raptor was laughing so hard she was crying. Sonya became Isaac. Isaac lived to the ripe old age of nine. He died when we moved into our current house -- the move was too much for the little guy.

Rabbit Stort #2:

Shortly after we moved into our new house, some kids down the street sort of adopted us. They raised Netherland dwarf rabbits. One day they showed up with these tiny 2 1/2 week old bunnies in a blanket. We said "We'll take that one," a dark gray little guy with a white chest and feet. They said "OK, but they won't be weaned until they're eight weeks." Well, the next Friday evening I came home from work to find this tiny little bunny hopping around on the kitchen table. Mrs. Raptor said "They declared him weaned." I made myself a short drink of Jack Daniels on the rocks and set it down on the table. The rabbit started drinking it! He wasn't supposed to be weaned from his mother's milk until eight weeks and at 3 1/2 weks he was drinking whiskey. Of course, we named him JD. He also thought he was a dog and slept in the bed with us.

Mrs. Raptor's best friend moved to Chicago and gave us her cat, Jamaica, a 25 pound ass kicking guy. We had a Blue Jay who used to dive bomb and torment all the cats in the neighborhood. On day one, Jamaica ate the Blue Jay. Jamaica then proceeded to kick the crap out of all the cats in the neighborhood. Then he tangled with a possum -- and lost. Well, JD really had Jamaica's number. He was just a little bit bigger than Jamaica's head, but he used to chase Jamaica around. He once chased him up a tree. JD also lived to be nine. Then one day, chasing the cat, he ran headfirst into a metal bedpost. That was the end of JD.

Rabbit Stort #3:

Then we got a really little Netherland dwarf baby bunny that was cream colored with a black nose and ears. He loved to climb up things and pissed a lot (housebroken). Since he always went up and made water, we named him Archimedes after the Archimedes Screw. This was quickly shortened to Archie. Archie was a real charmer. He also slept in the bed with us and thought he was a dog. People would come over to visit us, but they really wanted to see Archie. Unfortunately, he had some congenital birth defect and died at nine months. We were very sad.

 

I'm pretty sure they've been banned by the CDC due to infecting some ppl with monkey pox. THey can get nasty during their breeding time (a few months).

Why not just get a dog?

 

Yep, you're right, the ban on sale and distribution of prairie dogs is still in effect. For some reason I thought that had gotten lifted after the initial scare.

Some of them do get nasty during breeding time (mine never did), but what animal doesn't?

As for dogs, I've had plenty of those, as well as cats, parrots, all sorts of reptiles, etc. Life is short, keep a lot of pets, drive a lot of cars, smoke a lot of herb, etc.

 

Thanks, everyone for your help.

 

You've got me looking into these for pets now.. We don't have the kind of lifestyle that we can keep a dog, so I'm thinking of getting a couple of these guys. I have a question though, and it may sound very naive, but: Can you let these things run free, while you're at work? Like if you leave the cage open will they go there to p and poo? Or is it dangerous to them to let them run free unattended?

 

whoa these things can fly???? so if u throw them they will just glide down?