Is there behavior good?Are Sugar Gliders (Flying Squirrels) good pets...?
YES they are GREAT pets, my wife has two. And they are NOT flying squirrels. Squirrels are rodents. Sugar gliders are marsupials; they have a pouch, like a kangaroo, and they have opposing thumbs on their claws, they are very cool and different animals. Kind of like a combination between a kangaroo, bat, and squirrel.
They are also called ';pocket pets'; or ';pocket buddies'; for a very good reason, see below. NOTE that they require a lot of working with and attention. If you don't want to give them attention on a semi-daily basis, sugar gliders are not for you.
You will need a small sugar glider pouch, like a purse, the pet store will have them. Put them in the pouch and carry them with you whenever you can. Sometimes they will crawl out of the pouch and under your shirt, be sure to wear a T underneath as their claws are sharp. Sometimes when my wife is in line at a store, they will peek out . . . freaks people out but they love them! ';What the heck is THAT?';
Sometimes they will try to bite you to test you, you have to ';take the bite'; and let them know it doesn't intimidate you. After a while they'll only bite if they think it's a peanut.
Sometimes we play this game, we stand 12-15 feet apart and toss the sugar glider to the other person. They open their arms and glide to you . . they LOVE this as they don't get to glide much when domesticated.
One is fine, two is better, even the same sex, they will live happier and longer. We have two males, and both are neutered.
People often mis-feed sugar gliders. ';sugar'; is only what they do in the wild, use their long lower teeth to puncture fruit. The need LOTS of vegetables and protein (cooked grain cereal, eggs, tofu) and only give them a LITTLE fruit or insects. If you feed them only fruit and insects their coat gets matted and they become malnourished. A healthy S.G. will have a smooth coat, softer than even mink, and look a little on the chubby side.
We did this at first, thinking they wanted more fruit, and one of them got an impacted tooth, had to have it removed! Too much sugar is not good for sugar gliders.
For a cage, a small bird cage will do, especially if you take them with you every other day or so, but the bigger the better, see below. They need an exercise wheel, not a wire hamster one but one of the plastic ones with a flat running surface. You can glue abrasive pads inside the wheel to keep their claws from growing out too long. Do NOT use wood chips in the cage, they are not rodents. Wood chips are BAD for them - it puts splinters in their paws and they often eat it and this is not good. S.G.'s need no lining in their cage.
The bigger the cage the better. We built a ';corner cage'; that goes to the ceiling and is 6 feet wide, they like to get high in one corner and glide down to the pouch in the cage. The bigger the cage, the more exercise they get.
There are really only two ';bad'; things about them. They have a bit of a smell. :-) Not too bad, but cleaning their cage daily helps a lot.
The second bad thing about them is they are nocturnal. They will run in the wheel most of the night, and often spend several minutes barking in the middle of the night. Be ready for this, it's what they do, don't try to stop them - but it may interrupt your sleep!Are Sugar Gliders (Flying Squirrels) good pets...?
First of all, you need to realize that sugar gliders and flying squirrels come from totally different branches of the mammal class. Flying squirrels are rodents, and have behavior and needs similar to those of other squirrels, rabbits, or chinchillas.
Sugar gliders are marsupials, and they subsist on an omnivorous diet of smaller creatures and certain types of tree sap. Behaviorally, gliders are similar to ferrets. Curious, intelligent, and often deeply attached to humans in their family, they require (not ';should have';, REQUIRE) at least an hour or two of human contact daily in order to be truly tame and friendly.
Yes, they absolutely need cages when you aren't keeping a close eye on them. They're notorious for getting into trouble when left to their own devices.
Yes according to this website they do need a cage and a tall one is preferable :
http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/squirrels鈥?/a>
they can be very good pets. but the onky thing about them, is that they require ALOT of attention. they have to be held and played with more than any other pet. sometimes they arent very good with children but how much attention they get has alot to do with it. and yes they do need cages. any kind of cage will work really but they need alot of toys in there so they can play.
Maybe when they get older they don't need 1 but if u get 1 when it is a baby u want a cage!
don't know
you nead a demesticated pet thoue
no .a hamster would be better than it
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