Sugar Gliders!

Phoebe
My latest venture!

07/22/00 Phoebe has kids!
(click on images for full size pics)


Phoebe's youngin's at about 1 month after giving birth. They still are little bald creatures, and do not leave the pouch.	Tails start to emerge at about 4-5 weeks of age. Some hair is now visible	Mom's starting to run out of room in there, more body parts emerge. Fur and stripes become more apparent.

Cleaning time at "The Rat Inn" (they are not rodents however)		Mom still bounces all over the cage like she doesn't have a care in the world. It can make an adoptive father quite nervous at times!

07/25/00 - Stay tuned! More pics to come in the near future, the babies have already left the pouch and have their eyes fully open!		Read more about Sugar Gliders in general below. They are quite interesting, and very acrobatic!

Taxonomic Classification
Class: Mammalia
Subclass: Marsupialia
Order: Diprotodontia
Suborder: Phalangerida
Superfamily: Petauroidea
Family: Petauridae

Sugar Gliders (Petaurus breviceps) are marsupials from Australia or Indonesia. They are tree dwelling, nocturnal creatures often living in groups of 20 to 40. They are soft gray animals with a black stripe running down their back, and a gliding membrane they use much as a flying squirrel does. If high enough, a sugar glider can glide as far as 150 ft. Adult gliders weigh about 120 - 135g and are about 10 - 14 inches long with about 6-8 inches of that being tail. Their tails are used for balance and steering when gliding, but not much else. Gliders have odd qualities such as opposable fingers and toes and forked genitalia (in both male and female.) They also make a wide range of sounds such as chirping, barking, chattering, crabbing and other odd sounds that are hard to describe. Gliders can live 10 to 15 years if well cared for.

Listen to what a pair of crabby gliders sound like. The tiny creatures have a loud and unique sound they make when they're upset.

Since they are social creatures, sugar gliders need lots of attention. This attention can include running around in a glider-proofed room, finger-wrestling, and riding around on your shoulder, or in your hair. If you have a single glider, you need to pay attention to it at least two hours everyday. If the sugar glider becomes lonely, it will become depressed and eventually die. They are not the kind of animal you can put in a cage, feed & forget about. If you can't always play with them everyday for at least two hours it is essential to get another sugar glider for company. Since they live up to 15 years, you have to be willing to take care of it for that long. You also have to make sure you have someone to take care of them when you go on vacation. If you are buying a sugar glider for your children, remember that you will have to take care of it if they lose interest. Please make sure you can handle this kind of commitment.

If you are considering getting a sugar glider, here is a website and a couple of books you should look at first:

Amazon.Com
Sugar Gliders - A Pet For You?
Sugar Gliders: A Complete Owners Manual by Caroline MacPherson
Sugar Gliders As Your New Pet by Dennis Kensley-Wood
A New Owner's Guide to Sugar Gliders -- Helen O'Reilly; Hardcover

Barnes & Noble
Sugar Gliders as Your New Pet
A New Owner's Guide to Sugar Gliders
Sugar Gliders: Everything About Purchase, Care, Nutrition, Behavior, & Breeding

More General Information Pages:
Pygmy Pets: Sugar Glider Quick Facts
Ruth's Sugar Glider Page
University of Tasmania Profile
What is a Sugar Glider?
ISGA Caresheet: Introduction & Adoption

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