Sugar glider bonding is important whether you have a baby or an adult. Bonding with adults might be more difficult than bonding with a baby, but it is not impossible. I bonded with my sugar glider when she was about 10 months old. I am limited to discussing my experience and therefore cannot comment on bonding with a baby younger than 10 months. I also cannot comment on having multiple gliders as pets.
The first thing you need to have for the bonding process is a sugar glider bonding pouch. The pouch needs to be big enough for the sugar glider to sleep comfortably in and small enough for you to be able to wear it somewhere on your body, preferably close to your heart. My sugar glider had a bonding pouch when I got her from the pet store and she still uses it as her primary pouch 5 years later.
You want to make sure to wear your glider as much as possible when you first bring him/her home. I brought my glider to class with me in a zip pouch until I was comfortable wearing her around my neck in public. In the first weeks of having her, I would offer Pokey treats throughout the day to gain her trust and show her I was her friend.
She started to look forward to these treats as we got into a routine, and over time, she became more and more comfortable with me. Throughout the bonding process and to this day, I wear my sugar glider around my neck as much as possible. Sugar gliders need this contact no matter what their age, so if you’re going to have a sole glider, make sure you can commit to giving them time and attention.
Another important aspect to sugar glider bonding is play time. You need to allow several hours each night for your sugar glider to be out of its cage. I have my room sealed so that my glider can run around freely. I do not make her stay on my person at all times. Some people prefer to keep their sugar glider on them, but I give my glider more freedom as she really enjoys exploring.
During play time, she will run around my room and climb the door frames and curtains but she will also come to me and hang out on my body. I sometimes like to take her into the living room or outside so she can look around, but I don’t let her off my body. If we are outside my bedroom and she jumps off of me, I will simply pick her up and put her back on my body and she usually will not try to jump off again.
One thing to remember is that sugar gliders can’t really be trained to only go to the bathroom in their cages. They will urinate and defecate whenever and wherever they please. If there are things in your room you want to keep clean, make sure to have them put away before play time. Otherwise, be prepared to clean up after your glider. And from time to time, your glider will probably have an accident on you. Don’t be mad, it’s all just part of the fun of sugar glider bonding!
{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }
I have a 9 month old male, got him at 6 months, he had never bonded with anyone. He gets up at about 8 pm and goes to bed at about 7 am. I keep him in my shirt pocket all day. When I get him out of my pocket he wants to go right back in, like he is shy. How do I get him to play?
I have posted my response here: how to get your sugar glider to play
Hi, about a month ago I got my very first glider. He is 5 months and very jumpy. He still will nip at my hands when I first go to touch him but then he just nips every now and again, is this a good thing?. Secondly I let him out to play in the evening in my sons room and he seems to enjoy this I will sit on the ground while he plays and try offering him treats but he will not take them and he is hard to catch. I wear him in his pouch as much as I can daily and I give him hand treats. He is still very afraid of me I make one move and he goes into his attack position. Is there anything you can suggest to help with the bonding?
It is very important to gain your glider’s trust, and this process will take a lot of patience on your part. You said that you give him hand treats, but try to make sure that you do this every time you even approach your glider. Offering tiny treats every time you approach will show him that he can trust you. This is the best way I know to gain a glider’s trust.
The other advice I would give is to make sure that the pouch you wear your glider in is close to your heart. You can also try rubbing your scent onto something and putting it into the pouch with your glider as well as in their cage, because the scent will help them bond to you.
It sounds like you are doing the right things, but you may just need to be a little patient with your glider. If your glider seems to be nipping less after you first approach, this is probably a good sign that they are beginning to trust you. All gliders are different, so it is hard to say, but keep doing what you are doing and give it a little more time.
So i got my baby about a week ago and he is a very energetic guy. he is about 14 months old. He really enjoys going to my pocket and even jumps at my reflection in the mirror. im guessing thats a good thing? But when i lay down in bed and put him on my chest he will jump off and i feel like he is running away from me. Is he running away or just exploring ? while he is doing this he goes between the wall and my bed and skims the base of the bed. and he will burrow in my blanket and clothes. any idea to what he is doing?
That is so cute that he jumps at your reflection! Your glider sounds like he is very entertaining and fun. You have nothing to worry about with your glider jumping off of you to explore the room. Gliders are very curious by nature and they love to explore their environments. With your little guy being so energetic, it’s no wonder he wants to run off and explore all around the bed. Burrowing into your blanket and clothes is also totally normal glider behavior.
Don’t worry about his behavior at all and just have fun watching him play and explore. If you want him to interact with you more, you can offer him small treats to coax him back to you or offer him some new toys. Gliders go crazy for feathers, so you can wave a feather around to get him to interact with you, but make sure to supervise so he doesn’t try to eat the feathers.
I am deciding wether or not I should purchase two 1 1/2 year old sugar gliders. They come together and are affordable, but is that too old to bond with?
They are not too old to bond with. You can bond with any sugar glider, but it may take more time and patience to bond with adult gliders. If they are used to being handled by humans already, it may go more smoothly.
I have a sugar glider that is about 4 years old that a friend just recently gave to me and when I try to pick him up he simply bites me and makes a trilling noise. He had a mate but she died and he won’t let anyone close enough to bond to him, any advice??
Since this is an adult glider who has experienced the loss of a companion, you may have to work harder to gain his trust. It is important to keep trying and not give up, even if it takes more time than you expected. You have to build up the trust gradually. The more time you spend with your glider, and the more work you do towards the bonding process, the more he will begin to trust you.
If he bites when you approach, it is best to take the bite rather than pulling away. He has to learn that biting you will not get the desired result. If you pull away, it just reinforces the behavior.
You should approach with treats and reward him so he knows you bring good things. Wear him as much as you can during the day, and spend as much time as you can playing with him at night. If he really will not let you close to him, then just sit by his cage and read a book, or talk to him. The more he gets used to your presence, the more he will begin to trust you.
Good luck and just remember that patience and persistence is key in the bonding process. It may take months to gain the trust of some gliders, especially adults who have been through a lot. Once you start to see some progress, it will be a rewarding feeling.
I have a one or two month old baby, and ever since I got him he seemed to still be upset and mad about how he was shoved in his pouch from the herpiton exotic pet store guy. I dont know what else to do but have patience for my little guy because he hates his pouch, he just likes to explore and chill in his room. One time (since Ive had him about almost a month/1.5 now) he climbed onto me, yet this is going slow. I’ve had an adult sugar glider before and he always loved his pouch. This one hates it and everytime I try to keep it around me or close to my heart he nips at me or my chest. I know he’s sweet, so I dont get mad at him when he bites me through the hand. But how do you get your sugar glider to be into his pouch? It’s been so long now.
Since your glider had a bad experience with that pouch, you may want to try a new pouch. You can wear the pouch for a few days first and then just hang it in his cage and let him venture in on his own. If he still does not like it, just give him time. You can try leaving little treats inside the pouch to entice him in. It may just take a little time for him to get used to it.
I am getting a 3 month old tomorrow and cant wait to meet her. Is she at a good age to bond with? I’ve never had a glider before, what do I need for her? I have a cage and I’m going to get stuff to make a pouch because i just dont have the money to buy one right now. I work at a Winndixy do u think I can keep her pouch under my shirt while I’m at work? I work from about 4pm till about 11pm every night and I really want to bond strongly with he. Do u think I would be ok doing that?
3 months old is a good age to bond and typically would be easier than bonding with an older glider. All gliders are different though, so there is no perfect age for bonding. Besides a cage and pouch, you will need to provide the proper diet for her, which includes 50% protein, 25% fresh or frozen fruits, and 25% fresh or frozen vegetables. You should also provide toys and an exercise wheel. That would cover the basics.
Gliders may be waking up around 11, so you may run into problems wearing her at work. It just depends what time your glider tends to wake up and want to get out of the pouch. My advice would be to wait and see what time she usually gets up and decide from there whether it would be practical to wear her to work.
Help….. We are adopting a 1 yr old glider and there is so much info out there I am looking to see about bonding and feeding.. Above I read about bonding and I am going to up what I am doing . But for feeding, please help, what should she eat ?? Some websites say all this food and others say only pellets and then an apple at nite.. Please help
Thank you
Stay away from any website that says to feed only pellets and an apple! Those sites provide misleading information and should definitely not be trusted. The proper breakdown for diet is 50% protein, 25% fresh or frozen fruits, and 25% fresh or frozen vegetables. There are several established diets that you can follow, or you can just stick to that nutritional breakdown by rotating different proteins, fruits, and vegetables. Don’t forget that gliders love live insects too!
I have a single male sugar glider that is 1 yr and 5 months old. He always been my only glider and we bonded really well when I first got him. One night I had him out playing and he was getting a little wild. He started “going to town” on my sweat shirt and biting at it. I assumed this was normal for gliders going through puberty. All of a sudden as I was about to put him back into his cage, he latched onto the back of my arm and started biting down repeatedly and extremely hard! He bit me about 5 times and did break the skin. I was terrified! It was as if he turned on me. He used to nibble, but this was no nibble. Ever since, I’ve been extremely cautious and shy with him. I take him out to play, but I am afraid he will bite me like that again. What can I do to make myself more comfortable with him?? Would neutering him help with his hormones? Should I get him a mate? Please help! I love my little guy and I don’t want him to go, but if I can’t trust him…. also I want him to have all the attention he deserves.
Neutering may help, but does not work in all cases. There are several possible explanations as to why your glider suddenly started biting.
Certain triggers can bring out aggression in gliders. For example, if you have recently introduced the glider to a new cage mate. Aggression is possible especially when introducing a new female to a male glider. Another possibility is that you had an unfamiliar smell on your sweatshirt that day. You may want to change your clothes before playing with him to make sure you don’t have any foreign smells. Finally, if you made a change to your glider’s environment, such as moving the cage, that could cause aggression.
If your glider bites you again, you can try making a “PSSST” sound. This is the sound gliders would make to each other to say “STOP IT.” You can also try blowing some air at him to startle him so he doesn’t bite. Since you said he started getting wild before he bit you, you can just keep an eye out and be cautious if he starts getting amped up again. Just take it day by day and see if maybe it was a one time thing. If it happens again, then you may want to consider neutering him and see if that helps.
Hi..I just got a 2months old glider about 2days ago and she only eats fruits..I’m abit worried because protein is important for their diet..any suggestions??
Keep offering her other foods and rotate different kinds of foods so she has plenty of different kinds to try. If she still won’t eat anything, you can blend up some fruit with some protein and vegetables mixed in.
Try giving your little ones Gerber meat sticks. Not turkey or chicken because these both contain onion or garlic and that is bad for gliders. They LOVE meat sticks and boiled chicken.
Hi. i got my glider about two days after christmas..so I’ve had him for a few weeks now and I can touch and pet him as much as i want while hes in his cage, and we even got a small tent that my boyfriend and i sit in with him…but he still will not let us pick him up at all.Usually he tries to bite.I took him in his pouch and held him for a little bit on my bed but when i was petting him he tried to run out and he almost got away so i got nervous and havent done that again.We found out that he is about a year old, and im starting to get nervous that hes to old to bond with my boyfriend and I..Someone please help me turn my scared glider into a nice sweet one i can take all over and hold and play with whenever i want..please!
I would just keep playing with him in the tent until he gets used to you more. Bonding can take some time and it just requires dedication and patience on your part. It sounds like you are off to a great start so don’t get discouraged!
Hi Im 14 years old and have wanted a sugar glider since I was 10 would it be hard for me to bond with one if im at school 7 hours a day or should I wait till I leave school?
It may be harder to bond if you are not able to wear your glider during the day. It could also be a problem if you can’t spend time playing with them at night. They might not get up til after 11 PM and you will need to spend time playing with them out of the cage. If you go to bed early for school, it might be too hard to have a nocturnal pet.
It ant tht hard for me im 14 n this makes the 3rd sugargliders ive had n my sugarglider is prego so yea id get a sugarglider if i was yu i love playin wit mine but if yu get one id get two of em(: hav fun wit them or it
I just bought a sugar glider from Pocket Pets( Yea I know people don’t like them), anyway she was the most energetic girl in the bunch and she caught my eye immediately! I’ve had her for 3 days now. The first two days I left her in the pouch or in her cage. I would occasionally hold her outside of the pouch with the pouch( as a glove). Today I decided I would hold her in my bare hand. Well she bit me and drew blood (It hurt like hxxl!). It kind of scared me and now I’m not sure where I should go from here. I give her apples every night because I’m not sure that she’s been drinking her pedialyte/water mixture. I’ve had her in the bonding pouch since the bite (roughly about 5 hours now) and she’s no longer crabbing when I move the slightest bit. She crabs softley when I touch her through the pouch sometimes but I’ve noticed she calms down A LOT faster. Is that her getting used to me or is she just sleeping good? Should I even be trying to hold her now? Thanks!
Yeah I think that your glider is starting to get used to you. Bonding takes a lot of patience, but it sounds like you are doing the right things. Just keep doing what you are doing and remember that gliders bond at their own pace. Some will bond fast and others can take their time.
The most important thing is not to let her biting you make you scared of her. She has to learn to trust you and she can sense your fear. You need to be confident the next time you try to pick her up. If you back away when she bites, you are also reinforcing her behavior, so try to take the bite. She will learn faster that way that biting does not get the desired result.
Ive had a glider before but Ive never had a matin gliders n i have no clue how long tht they r supose to come out of the pouch my female glider is a lil over a year old n the ppl tht ive got them off of said tht she has got prego 4 times b4 n they didnt tell me how long tht the Joeys stay in the pouch. can yu plezz tell me how long tht the Joeys will stay in her pouch n wat i need to do to help them please
I can’t really be much help on this topic because I don’t breed gliders myself. I suggest you have a look at this site: http://www.suzsugargliders.com/breedingsugargliders.htm
I have had my 2 sugar gliders for nearly a year (female and male), I purchased them from a pet shop (which I know it is not recommended). I was told they were 8 months but I’m not entirely sure if that is the correct age. I take them out in a pocket if not everyday, then most days and then in the night for a hour or so they have free access to my room. I offer them treats and always go by recommended diet (fresh fruit, vegetables, live insects, and meat). They are slightly bonded as they stay on my body for short periods of time but will always glide off and lately I have struggled to settle them in my pockets. They do not come to the front of then cage to greet me and run away instead. I feel like the bonding sessions have come to a hault and feel there is nothing else I can do. please help? and any suggestions would be very much appreciated. Kristi and the kids