Sugar Gliders (Petaurus breviceps).

Bonding with your glider

Firstly you need to take into account what the breeder means when he says ‘he’s hand tame’. What exactly does that mean? Different breeders have different meanings for the term hand tame. It could mean the glider won’t crab at you if you look at it, it could mean that the glider will take food out of their hand, or it could mean the glider will happily sit on their hand. Whatever it means you should be aware that the glider is tame with the breeder - not you!! The glider knows and trusts the breeder, he doesn’t know you so you cannot expect him to be perfect with you when you get him home!

You need to gain the glider’s trust, he needs to feel safe and secure and know you won’t hurt him. Put yourself in your glider’s shoes, he’s tiny compared to you, treat him gently and talk softly to him.

When you get home, place an old piece of clothing that you have worn for a day or two (but not washed) over the cage, or you could give the breeder a small piece of fabric that you’ve worn on your person to put into the pouch. This is so the glider will become familiar with your scent while he sleeps. Then put him/them in the cage and leave them to become familiar with their new surroundings. Remember the glider is only familiar with the breeders home, your home will be filled with new noises and scents. Do not try and get your gliders out for 2-3 days; you should of course feed them, and you could sit in the same room and watch and talk to them softly.

It’s important that while you’re still bonding with your gliders they come into contact with as few a people as possible to avoid scaring them. If people want to see your babies take a picture and show them that instead.

Once your gliders have settled into their new home you can start gaining their trust; I suggest you have a pot of live fruity yogurt at the ready. The best time to start bonding is during the daytime or early evening while they are still sleepy. Take their sleeping pouch (with the gliders in it) out of the cage and sit with it under your jumper for a while. Talk to them softly and pet them through the pouch. Open the top making sure they’re at the bottom and peek in. At this point you will probably be crabbed at, just carry on talking softly and reassuringly to them. They can’t understand what you’re saying but it’s the tone of voice that is important.

When they stop crabbing you could try offering some yogurt from the back of your hand, they will probably start crabbing again but don’t be put off, when they crab don’t pull back just stay still until they stop and then you can continue. Don’t try offering them fingers as they will be able to grab and bite them! You may experience some lunging, some gliders will swipe at you with a paw, again don’t be put off by this, just try and understand they are scared and reassure them. The aim is to gain trust at this stage, they need to associate your hands with positive experiences which will make them feel safe and reassured.

Allow the gliders to lick some of the yogurt off but don’t let him take it all. Gliders instinctively gouge to find more food - this is how they would get their fill of sap in the wild, and this is what they will do if the yogurt runs out. They need to learn that they will be rewarded for good behaviour, so do not remove your hand when they crab or bite, only top up the yogurt when they are quiet.

At this stage do not try and remove the glider from the cage or the pouch by hand.

When you can put your hand into the pouch without being crabbed at and without being bitten you are ready to progress. The aim this time is to try and pet the gliders body using the yogurt as a treat and as a distraction. Now your glider has learnt that good behaviour is rewarding try just dipping your finger (it will make stroking him easier without having to use both hands), let him have a few licks and top up the yogurt as before, then this time try and pet his body - probably easier to use your thumb at this point. When you can do this without crabbing the next step is to try and get your hand underneath him so he is sitting on top of your hand. I find the best way to do this is to use both hands, if you’re right handed as I am you will find it easier to have the yogurt on your left hand and use your right hand to scoop the glider up from BEHIND, this way you are out of the way of the teeth and by scooping forward you can release the claws from whatever fabric they are clinging on to. I also like to position my fingers so that the gliders front feet end up holding on to my finger tips.

Picking a glider up can be tricky as they are squirmy! Do not try and pick a glider up mid body, the chances are you will get bitten (unless your glider is completely bonded and trusts you without question), there’s also the problem of claws, the claws are like hooks and they can be a nightmare to free from whatever they are holding on to. The best way to release the claws is from behind, try and replace whatever they are holding onto with your finger, never just pull and hope they will release. Once you have perfected this it will become easy for you to release all the claws from each paw as you scoop forwards.

You will notice that I haven’t put a timescale on how long each exercise should take, that’s because each glider is different, it depends on how much work the breeder has done as well as the glider’s individual personality; and you. If you’re confident then the glider will pick this up and the process will take alot less time. It’s easier to trust a person who has confidence in you than someone who is afraid or wary of you.

You’ve gained the trust of your glider, so now it’s down to some real bonding. The best time to bond with a glider is during the daytime. Now you can scoop your glider out of the sleeping pouch you can put him into a bonding pouch which you can wear around your neck during the day, preferably one that fastens shut. You may want to put a piece of fabric from the sleeping pouch into the bonding pouch just to reassure the glider. I don’t recommend you take the glider out of the house just yet though, not until they are bonded with you. You can talk to your gliders and pet them through the pouch and offer them treats. The idea is that the gliders will be comfortable enough to fall asleep on you. After a week of being in the bonding pouch for a few hours a day you can start leaving the zip open a little and see what happens, your glider may come out and explore you, or he may stay put. The idea here is that the glider remains with you, if he doesn’t you need to gently scoop him up and put him back into the pouch. It’s difficult to say how long the bonding process will take, a glider is classed as bonded when if something startles them they will run to you; if they’re out playing and you need to catch them you can just put a leg in front of them and they will jump on, they’ll sit on your shoulder or sleep down your top without trying to escape. They’ll come to your hand if you put it out to them and you will generally just be their tree!

You could at this point start to encourage interaction through the medium of play (LOL!), feathers are a favorite as they like to chase them and pounce on them, lots of fun for everyone. In the U.S they use a tent for their playtime which I think is a great idea! It puts you and them in a confined, safe space together, you can take in treats and toys that you can all play with together, you will probably be used as a springboard and as a treat dispenser machine but so long as they’re interacting with you it doesn’t matter. If the glider comes and nips your fingers - don’t treat him!!

Playtime out of cage must be done in a ‘glider proofed’room. All possible escape routes should be blocked bearing in mind they can squeeze through inch square gaps!! Although gliders aren’t really chewers, electric sockets should be covered so that if they urinate near them they won’t become damp and dangerous!! They’re likely to use electric cables to climb on. It’s important to remember that nothing is out of reach to a glider, so remove any ornaments and house plants from the room completely.

Trust, bonding and play will make for a fantastic pet. My bonded gliders will happily cling to me all day while I go about my daily business, I could trust them to stay there whatever I do or wherever I go BUT I DON’T!!! Just because they are completely bonded doesn’t mean they won’t get curious and jump off up a tree to explore, the next thing they know is they’re lost and they panic and they’re gone!! I would be devastated if that was to happen so if I go anywhere outdoors with them they go into their secure bonding pouch so I know exactly where they are. I’m not willing to even risk losing my babies.

Bonding Do’s and Don’ts

Do go at your glider’s speed, don’t push them, the bond will be that much stronger if you allow them to come around in their own time.

Do talk to them, if you spend time watching and talking to them while they are in the cage you will notice they will pay attention, they won’t sit or roll over but they do acknowledge you.

Do reward good behaviour.

Do be patient; trust and good strong bonding doesn’t happen over night.

Do play with your gliders, allow 2-3 hours a night for out of cage playtime.

Do enjoy the time you spend with them, if it is a chore then maybe gliders aren’t for you!

Don’t punish your glider - even if it bites you hard!! By shouting, swiping at them, flicking them or anything that’s negative, it will destroy all the hard work you’ve put into gaining their trust in the first place!

Don’t rush any of the stages, go at your gliders pace.

Don’t be afraid to go back a step, if for whatever reason things go wrong go back to the previous stage.

Don’t allow crowds of family and friends to coo over your gliders before they are bonded, this is likely to scare them.

Don’t chase your gliders, if playtime is in a tent it will be alot easier to put them away than if they are running loose in your room.