How Do I Prepare to Get My First Sugar Glider?

Sugar gliders are small marsupials that have worked their way into the pet trade. As exotic pets, sugar gliders are extremely high maintenance. Once you have found a breeder or rescue organization to adopt a sugar glider from, it is time to prepare yourself and your home for the addition.

Things You'll Need

  • Cage
  • Sleeping pouch
  • Bonding pouch
  • Staple diet
  • Fruit
  • Vegetables
  • Meal worms
  • Parrot toys
  • Food dish
  • Water bottle
  • Bucket wheel
  • Fleece squares
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Instructions

    • 1

      Decide how many sugar gliders you would like to bring home. Sugar gliders are very social creatures and are happiest when kept in small colonies of two or three. Remember that if you decide to own a single sugar glider, you will have to devote many hours every day and night to your pet, and lone sugar gliders are prone to depression and self-mutilation.

    • 2

      Purchase a cage suitable for sugar gliders. A sugar glider cage is one that is at least 36 inches high, with bar spacing no more than a half inch wide. The biggest cage you can get is best, and height is more important than width.

    • 3

      Set up your sugar glider's cage. Organize the cage with a sleeping pouch, food dish, water bottle and various parrot toys such as fake tree branches, foraging toys that you can hide treats in and hanging toys your sugar gliders can jump from and manipulate. Include a bucket running wheel in the cage. It is important to use a bucket style wheel as sugar glider feet can slip through holes on other wheels and cause broken legs.

    • 4

      Decide on a staple diet for your sugar glider. Staple diets are fed nightly along with a variety of fruits and vegetables. You can either make a staple diet for your sugar glider, such as BML (see Resources section), or purchase a premade staple such as ZooKeeper's Secret. Avoid feeding hard pellets to your sugar gliders, as these can result in jaw problems.

    • 5

      Carry a small square of fleece with you for a few days before your sugar glider arrives home. Wear it against your skin throughout the day so your scent becomes absorbed in the material. Before your sugar glider goes into her cage, place the fleece in her sleeping pouch so your scent is part of her new home.