How to Feed Sugar Joeys

Joey is the term for a young sugar glider, a nocturnal marsupial closely related to possums. Sugar gliders are native to Australia and often are misidentified as flying squirrels. In the wild, grown sugar gliders eat nectar and sap from trees and flowers, as well as bugs and small animals. Captive sugar joeys need a specialized diet to thrive. Start by feeding them with an syringe (with no needle, of course). As they age, they can begin eating out of a small dish.

Things You'll Need

  • Blender
  • 1/2 cup apple juice
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • Hardboiled egg
  • 3/4 cup baby cereal
  • 1/4 cup wheat germ
  • 1 tsp. liquid reptile vitamin supplement
  • Jar of sweet potato baby food
  • Jar of chicken baby food
  • Puppy milk
  • Chicken with apple baby food
  • Vanilla yogurt
  • Baby rice cereal
  • Apple juice
  • Syringe
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Instructions

    • 1

      Make what is called "Leadbeater's mix" by thoroughly blending the apple juice, honey, hardboiled egg, baby cereal, wheat germ, reptile vitamins and jars of baby food.

    • 2

      Mix equal parts of the Leadbeater's mix and the remaining ingredients---puppy milk (available in pet stores), chicken with apple baby food, vanilla yogurt, baby rice cereal and apple juice.

    • 3

      Adjust the food consistency until you have achieved a mix that flows through, but does not drip from, a syringe. Dilute the food with apple juice or thicken it with rice cereal.

    • 4

      Spoon the room-temperature food into a clean syringe, available at drugstores and pharmacies.

    • 5

      Grasp the sugar joey very gently in one hand and hold the food-filled syringe in the other.

    • 6

      Push the syringe plunger until a drop of the mixture appears on the end. Offer the syringe to the sugar joey. Do not push the syringe into the baby's mouth, as this can harm your pet. Instead, hold it up to the glider's mouth. Push the mixture slowly out of the syringe, letting the joey consume as much as it wants.

    • 7

      Feed very young sugar joeys four to six times a day. Observe the joey carefully for signs of hunger or signs that fewer feedings are warranted---for instance, a refusal to eat. Adjust the feeding schedule accordingly.

    • 8

      Massage the joey's stomach very gently by drawing a line with your index finger from chest to tail following a feeding. This helps the joey defecate.