Eating their babies

Question
I own a pair of sugar gliders, my female is about 15 months old and my male is approximately a year old.  I noticed 6 weeks ago or so that she was pregnant.  Tonight when I went to feed them I noticed the remains of the baby in the bottom of the cage.  I am at a loss as for what to do now.  I am unable to find a vet to neuter my male so I am wondering if seperating them would be for the best, or what are the chances this could happen again?  Any information on this would be helpful. Thanks

Answer
Dear Tracy:

I am so sorry for your loss.  That must have been so painful for you to go through.  This is always a tough dillemma.  If the male were aggressive toward the female, then yes, I would say separate them.  But if that is not the case, I am inclined to try to keep them together and get him neutered.  If you contact me with your city and state, I will attempt to find a vet in your area that will neuter your male.  At this point, I think separating them would cause more stress than cure.  So I would not separate them at this point.  They can be pregnant and have older joeys in pouch at the same time.  So she quite possibly could be pregnant again already and you don't want to stress her further.  Especially since it may not have been the male who cannibalized the joey(s). Females often cannibalize the joeys.  It can happen due to deficiencies in the diet (usually protein) and also due to stress.  Neutering is the best course of action if we can find a vet nearby.   

I would appreciate it if you would write me back with the exact diet you feed and think back to any possible stress factors:  Recent move, location of their cage, temperature of their location, new pets in the home, visitors to the home, etc.  Try to think of everything, even if it seems trivial.  

If you wish to go private with this information, you can email me directly at lauriegall @ cox . net

I'll do my best to help you out with this.  

Laurie