Glider Questions -

Question
QUESTION: First off, I just got two glider's today, I was looking for one for a cage mate for my glider, But i ran across these two.

They are  a male and female, The male is 1 and a half, The female is 1. My glider is only 9 months old. Right now i have them in seperate cages, Next to eachother.

I was told at the last minute that the female already has babies in her pouch. I wanted to put them in the same cage, Can i do this?

In my mind I think that i should wait until her babies are weaned to introduce them all, should i do that? Would it be ok to put these two with my girl? Do you think they would kill my girl? I cant have that i love her to death!

The other question I have is.. My little 9 month old girl, She is really "iffy" I can pet her, She doesn't mind that at all, But if i try to pick her up, She ALWAYS bites me.  She doesn't mind crawling around my hand though. But I'm not allowed to put my hand around her. Also i have tried hand feeding her treats, SHE ALWAYS bites me when I do this, She bites me hard and makes me bleed. I think she is dominant over me!! is that possible? I still love her to death though, I would never want anything bad to happen to her. Do you recommend anything that i can do to get her over this mean stage
?

ANSWER: Kesaruh,

Wow!  You have lots of important questions.  I am really busy at the moment, and will answer your questions on Sunday.  In the meantime, check out sugar-gliders.com. glideruniversity.com, or my website, nc.sugar.gliders.googlepages.com  Talk to you later,

Betty

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QUESTION: Alright, Thank you,  I will be looking forward to your reply!

One more important thing I would like to ad, I didnt know that we had mice in our house, But i woke up one morning and my little stella was eating a mouse by it's head! Im assuming it went in her cage for food, And she killed it.

She was very proud of her kill, And didnt want me to take it! She is very spoiled and has all the food in the world!

Will this be a problem when introducing? Will she try to eat the other gliders?!?!?!?

ANSWER: Hi,

That happened to me when I used to live in an old farmhouse.  U went in to their room one night and found Pikachu upside down, eating an adult mouse.  I couldn't handle it, so I just closed the door.  There was never even a carcass.  They even found a nest of "pinkies."  How sad!  Anyway, the only possible problem would be if the mouse is diseased or has eaten pesticides.  

Gliders do know the difference between friends and food!

Betty

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QUESTION: well, We didnt have poison out, We have cats, We also didnt even relize we had mice!

Anywhoz, That was about a month ago, She seems fine. But I just dont want her to think another glider is another mouse. Tonight they got into a cage fight, The two girls we're reaching their arms out and trying to grab eachother through the bars. They we're hissing and barking. I moved the cages farther apart. I just hope eventually they will be friends! Tonight is their second night here.  

Answer
Hi Kesaruh,

Thank you for being so patient.

I'm afraid I do not have a definitive answer for you in your situation.  Sugar Gliders have distinct personalities and social structures that we cannot fully understand.

It is fortunate that the male and expectant female are together.  The male should not have a problem with his own joeys.  As long as the immediate out of pouch experience goes well, there should not be a problem with the two of them.  

Adding a second female can be tricky.  If she shows submissive behavior, then they will get along fairly easily.  If she tries to dominate, then either or both of the others will most likely fight with her.

How far along is the female with babies?  Are the joeys quite big and very obvious? If so, please be especially cautious.

You want all three of them to get along.  My three families are in trios with one male.  Generally that is a good situation; they all care for the joeys.  You also want to be protective of your first female, and of the babies.  Here's my suggestion:  Get two rather thin pouches with zippers.  I use fabric purses from a thrift shop.  Put the pair in one, and your female in the other. Put both pouches into a third pouch. Carry the pouch around with you all day.  The gliders will smell each other and possibly fuss at each other, but are protected by the pouch.  When they crab, put your hand into the large pouch and help them calm down by cupping them in your hand (from outside the zippered pouch).  Continue this process until they are calm while they sleep next to each other.  Keep them separated at night when you cannot supervise them.  Switch cages each night so that their scents are mingled.

When they seem to be calm with each other, you are ready to see how they do face-to-face.  Do this next step during the day while they are sleepy.  Take both pouches into the bathroom.  Glider-proof the room and hang up some towels, pouches, etc. to provide extra hiding places.  Have a hand towel ready to toss over them in case they start to fight.

Put some vanilla extract on the back of their necks (like perfume).  Put both pouches in the bathtub, with the openings facing each other, about a foot apart.   At this point one or all of them will come out to see what's going on.  Just leave them alone, unless they make a fighting furball, in which case you'll need to separate them with the towel and try again another time.  They will sniff at each other, fuss, crab, and probably chase one another. Be patient.  Hopefully they will settle down together. At that point, put them all together in to the large pouch and keep them with you for the rest of the day.  If not, then you'll have to go back to the double pouch routine and try again later.  It takes a lot of time and patience, but, hopefully, it can be done.  

In your case, I wouldn't leave them alone overnight for a while. Let them have supervised visitation until you feel comfortable with their behavior. Your patience will pay off when all three become a happy family.  

Please keep in touch, and give me a call if you need anything.  My number and personal email can be found on my website.

I hope this helps.  Good luck!

Betty