Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 5:59 pmCongratulations on adopting your new Sugar Glider! Now are you looking for some useful bonding tips? Well, I'm here to help! There are a wide variety of bonding techniques that you can use with your Sugar Glider.
When you first bring home your Glider, we also recommend wearing a
piece of fleece inside of your shirt at night and putting it inside the
Glider's pouch as a blanket each morning. This will help to familiarize
them with your scent, the fleece should be used instead of the Glider's
regular blanket, this is a very simple method and should help quite a
bit!
I recommend beginning by using a bonding pouch for several hours a day, replace the current sleeping pouch with a bonding pouch and in the morning, take the bonding pouch from the cage and place it around your neck. You can leave it there for however long you feel comfortable, but only during the day hours. Sugar Gliders are nocturnal, and most likely will NOT want to be contained during the nighttime. I would suggest using this method for a few weeks until your Sugar Glider becomes more accustomed to you, while your Sugar Glider is asleep in the pouch he will be getting used to your scent, and voice. After he seems "settled", you can try gently cupping him in your hands in the bottom of the pouch or softly petting his fur.
If you have a nippy Glider or are just looking for a closer bond to yours, there is a solution for that too! Try using "licky treats" with them. You can dip the tip of your finger into some kind of liquid treat, such as lowfat yogurt or Sugar Glider approved fruit juices and try offering your finger to your Sugar Glider, this will teach him that your fingers bring him yummy treats and he will not want to bite. I don't recommend using any kind of discipline with a Glider that bites, or misbehaves, Sugar Gliders do not take punishment well and are likely to become confused.
You can also attempt to use "tent time" for bonding. For this purpose, I have purchased a large 10ft x 12ft screen room for my Gliders to play in. If you do this, make sure the screen is thick enough that they can't easily knaw through, also make sure the screen room has some kind of a floor, if not, you'll have to make one. You don't want your Gliders escaping! You don't have to go as crazy as I do over my Gliders though! If you are interested, they can be purchased at BJ's for about $50. A small or medium-size tent should work just fine, and just spend some time getting to know your Gliders in the enclosed space, it'll make you closer to them.
If you have a "Sugar Glider Proofed" room in your house, you can spend time bonding with them in there. You should NEVER let your Gliders have free roam of the house, they should always be under close supervision, and if you choose to let them roam in a room, make sure you are watching them and the room isn't too big where they'll get lost. Also, make sure to remove anything that could damage them, if it's a bathroom, take out all the chemicals and CLOSE THE TOILET LIDS! I cannot tell you the number of Gliders I've heard dying because of drowning in toilets. A "Sugar Glider Proof" room is a great idea but it's not for everyone as it can get messy and require maintenance.
When you first bring home your Glider, we also recommend wearing a piece of fleece inside of your shirt at night and putting it inside the Glider's pouch as a blanket each morning. This will help to familiarize them with your scent, the fleece should be used instead of the Glider's regular blanket, this is a very simple method and should help quite a bit!
If you have any more bonding related questions, feel free to post them here and I will try and reply as quickly as possible. If any of the experienced Sugar Glider owners come by this thread, feel free to leave comments on bonding advice or critique mine and I'll edit it. Thank you!
~Lauren
Sugar Shock!
You can also reach me through my personal e-mail account, Nion39@bellsouth.net or by calling my cell phone, (561) 613-1573, my cell phone is on 24/7 in case of emergency, but don't call during the nighttime unless it is an emergency.
SugarShock! 2009-08-30 14:23:12
When you first bring home your Glider, we also recommend wearing a
piece of fleece inside of your shirt at night and putting it inside the
Glider's pouch as a blanket each morning. This will help to familiarize
them with your scent, the fleece should be used instead of the Glider's
regular blanket, this is a very simple method and should help quite a
bit!
I recommend beginning by using a bonding pouch for several hours a day, replace the current sleeping pouch with a bonding pouch and in the morning, take the bonding pouch from the cage and place it around your neck. You can leave it there for however long you feel comfortable, but only during the day hours. Sugar Gliders are nocturnal, and most likely will NOT want to be contained during the nighttime. I would suggest using this method for a few weeks until your Sugar Glider becomes more accustomed to you, while your Sugar Glider is asleep in the pouch he will be getting used to your scent, and voice. After he seems "settled", you can try gently cupping him in your hands in the bottom of the pouch or softly petting his fur.
If you have a nippy Glider or are just looking for a closer bond to yours, there is a solution for that too! Try using "licky treats" with them. You can dip the tip of your finger into some kind of liquid treat, such as lowfat yogurt or Sugar Glider approved fruit juices and try offering your finger to your Sugar Glider, this will teach him that your fingers bring him yummy treats and he will not want to bite. I don't recommend using any kind of discipline with a Glider that bites, or misbehaves, Sugar Gliders do not take punishment well and are likely to become confused.
You can also attempt to use "tent time" for bonding. For this purpose, I have purchased a large 10ft x 12ft screen room for my Gliders to play in. If you do this, make sure the screen is thick enough that they can't easily knaw through, also make sure the screen room has some kind of a floor, if not, you'll have to make one. You don't want your Gliders escaping! You don't have to go as crazy as I do over my Gliders though! If you are interested, they can be purchased at BJ's for about $50. A small or medium-size tent should work just fine, and just spend some time getting to know your Gliders in the enclosed space, it'll make you closer to them.
If you have a "Sugar Glider Proofed" room in your house, you can spend time bonding with them in there. You should NEVER let your Gliders have free roam of the house, they should always be under close supervision, and if you choose to let them roam in a room, make sure you are watching them and the room isn't too big where they'll get lost. Also, make sure to remove anything that could damage them, if it's a bathroom, take out all the chemicals and CLOSE THE TOILET LIDS! I cannot tell you the number of Gliders I've heard dying because of drowning in toilets. A "Sugar Glider Proof" room is a great idea but it's not for everyone as it can get messy and require maintenance.
When you first bring home your Glider, we also recommend wearing a piece of fleece inside of your shirt at night and putting it inside the Glider's pouch as a blanket each morning. This will help to familiarize them with your scent, the fleece should be used instead of the Glider's regular blanket, this is a very simple method and should help quite a bit!
If you have any more bonding related questions, feel free to post them here and I will try and reply as quickly as possible. If any of the experienced Sugar Glider owners come by this thread, feel free to leave comments on bonding advice or critique mine and I'll edit it. Thank you!
~Lauren
Sugar Shock!
You can also reach me through my personal e-mail account, Nion39@bellsouth.net or by calling my cell phone, (561) 613-1573, my cell phone is on 24/7 in case of emergency, but don't call during the nighttime unless it is an emergency.