The best “home” for a pet glider would be a cage no smaller then 18 x 18 x 24. When choosing a cage the width of the wire should not be more then 1”x 1/2”, if any larger the glider can escape out. Use either plastic coated wire or stainless steel. The door needs to be safely secured by a j-clip, the glider can learn how to open the door. They enjoy height in the cage as opposed to width, if room permits, the larger the cage the better, sugar gliders like to explore and glide. You can use your imagination when it comes to decorating the cage. The glider loves to play and climb. You can use several items to entertain your glider; solid wheel, bird toys, swings and mirrors, cotton ropes, hamster tunnels, or any toy you find in a pet store. (You can be creative with household items too!) Keeping tree branches in the cage gives them a wonderful exercise area to climb on. The larger the branches the better, it will keep their teeth and gums healthy and their nails trimmed. Branches known to be toxic are: Almond, Apricot, Black Walnut, Cherry, and Peach, as the contain trace amounts of cyanide. DO NOT USE ANY TYPE OF BRANCHES THAT HAVE BEEN CHEMICALLY TREATED, your sugar glider will chew on them. The cage should be kept in a room of high traffic in your home, where the difference between day and night can be detected, although they should not be kept in direct sunlight. The cage should be kept out of drafts and should be away from heat and air conditioning vents. The temperature range should be between 75—85 degrees. It is not recommended to keep them below 70 degrees unless the cage is covered. Since the gliders are nocturnal they need a pouch on the side of the cage or nest to sleep in. You can purchase extra pouches to rotate for cleaning purposes. Other ideas include a pine box (not cedar), or a large cool-whip bowl. For nesting material you can use paper towels or non-colored newspaper (colored ink can be toxic to the animal).

The proper diet consists of 75%-85% fruits and vegetables and 15%-25% protein. I suggest feeding a varied diet consisting of: sweet fruits such as apples, melons, grapes, etc. and frozen mixed vegetables, fresh vegetables, yogurt, boiled eggs (with shell) and sugar glider pellets. These foods should not be given all at one feeding, as it result in a lot of waste, the glider will pick thru the food and pick the favorite foods, and not give them a balanced diet. Recommended schedule should be 1/2 cup fruit one night, 1/2 cup vegetables the next night, they need a protein (cooked meat like chicken, turkey, hamburger or live crickets, meal worms) and yogurt for culture a couple times a week. The glider pellets and water bottle should be left in the cage daily. The glider pellets are very important to balance the diet. Glider Booster, or vitamins, should be sprinkled on moist food daily, it gives them vitamins and nutrients they can’t get just from the regular diet. There are several recipes you can mix up as an alternative, not a replacement. A sample glider formula that works well is as follows:

Its best to never give gliders canned foods, which are processed and usually high in sodium or refined sugars. Not knowing how their systems would respond to it. USE COMMON SENSE. TREATS, we use raw unsalted peanuts or almonds, pine nuts, trail mix (unsalted), raisins, avocados, hard boiled egg with shell, peanut butter, yogurt, etc. be creative. I like to use the treats to train the gliders. When the gliders are babies they haven’t developed their taste buds yet, so don’t stop trying if they don’t like something. Sugar Gliders tend to come out shortly after dark, although some do like to “sleep in” and will come out a little later in the evening. They will get used to your life style and come out when you feed them. If the food is all gone in the morning you probably didn’t feed them enough. They will peel the corn and grapes. It is normal for the glider to chew its food an then spit it out. It is a good idea to use bottled or purified water to avoid tap water which contains chemicals. Use a water bottle that will hang on the side of the cage and they like nectar daily in a small dish (I put the booster in the nectar also). Gliders love crickets, meal worms, or pinkie mice, for some protein and fun. It’s a treat for you just to watch them eat.

The Sugar Glider is a very healthy animal in general, but a few ailments can occur. It is very important that you provide a heat source for the glider, like a space heater, heating coil or reptile night basking light (a heat rock in not good). If the glider ever becomes lethargic the cause could be low blood sugar. Immediately administer something sweet such as nectar, or pedialyte with a eye dropper, honey, or Nutri-Cal. They can catch a cold if exposed to a cold draft. Systems include nasal discharge, sneezing, rubbing of the nose and congestion. tribressen oral syrup has been successfully used in treating colds. It has been suggested that “cat nip” can be fatal to gliders. Calcium deficiency, a form or rickets, has been seen in gliders, by using the glider “Booster” daily it will be reduce the risk of that happening. The symptom is paralysis of the back legs. Use 1/8 tsp of calcium supplement mixed with an ounce of fruit nectar (use eye dropper if glider wont drink out of small dish or lid. Obesity can become a problem and can be prevented if fed properly, avoid too many fats and proteins. You can neuter your male glider, I would wait until he has matured to do this and his sent gland will disappear. Call us immediately if you think there is a health problem with your glider, we’re not veterinarians, but because we work closely with one maybe we can save you a visit. You should find a veterinarian in your area that knows about gliders just in case.