How should the cage be furnished?

The key principle to keep in mind is that your sugar glider’s cage should mimic its natural environment to the extent possible. In their natural environment, sugar gliders climb, jump and glide from branch to branch and from tree to tree. Here are some suggestions to help keep your glider happy:

Tree branches:

Including branches in your sugar glider’s cage will provide it something to sit on and glide or jump to/from! Attach the branches with glider-safe ties or straps. Don’t use wire twist-ties! Use a type of wood that is rated as safe for small birds, such as apple, aspen, cottonwood and willow. Many breeders prefer manzanita branches above all others. Make sure the branches have not been sprayed with pesticides. If you use a tree branch from your yard, you may want to place it in a freezer for a day or two, in order to kill any bugs in/on it.

Do not use branches from pine trees, cedar trees, fir trees or redwood trees. They all produce a sticky sap that can be quite difficult to remove from your glider’s fur. And the sap may in fact be poisonous.

Your sugar glider will have a good time stripping the bark from the branches! Once a branch is stripped and/or soiled, replace it with a new one.

Other climbing and frolicking toys:

Climbing robes, perches, ladders, bird bells, etc. are also enjoyed by sugar gliders. Check your pet store’s parrot and hamster toys. Be sure that anything you buy is sturdy enough to take the wear from an active sugar glider!

Nesting boxes or a sleeping pouch:

A nesting box is a very important part of your sugar glider’s environment! Remember, they are nocturnal and need a warm, safe place to curl up and sleep during the day. Nesting boxes can be made of wood, wicker (like a finch nest) or plastic. The hole in the nesting box should be at least 1.5 inches (3.75 cm) in diameter. If you are using the nesting box for breeding, make sure the hole is up high enough, or on top of the box, so that the babies can’t fall out. If you really want to keep your glider happy, provide more than one nesting box or sleeping pouch.

As an alternative, you can put a cloth sleeping pouch with a slit in it in the cage, and tie it to the side of the cage; sort of like a sugar glider sleeping bag! These sleeping pouches are very popular with sugar glider owners. Sleeping pouches can be washed when necessary. Be sure to clip any hanging threads inside the sleeping pouch. A hanging thread can get wrapped around your glider’s paw and cause a lot of damage.

It is not absolutely necessary that your sugar glider’s nesting box have bedding in it. You can, however, add plain shredded paper (NO newsprint or magazine print), strips of fleece material or aspen wood shavings.

Never use cedar wood shavings, as the volatile oils in them are toxic to sugar gliders and many other small animals. As a precaution, try to avoid pine shavings because they have volatile resins that can be toxic to gliders.

If your sugar glider eats its nesting material, remove the nesting material, because the sugar glider could wind up with an impacted digestive system. You can put a piece soft fabric in the nesting box in place of shredded wood, paper, etc.

Litter versus bedding material:

One of the facts of sugar glider life is that gliders cannot be litter trained. So an actual litter box is not going to change their nature. However, gliders’ stools are small and quickly dry to hardness, like mouse poop. They usually urinate while on the wire of their cage or on one of their branches. So your best bet is to line the bottom of their cage with absorbent material, such as wood shavings (NOT cedar shavings, however) or even unscented cat litter. Ideally, you want your sugar glider’s absorbent bedding to be unreachable by the glider. If you can find a cage with a slide-out tray and a layer of wire over the tray, that will work best. If you construct your own cage, put a wire layer over the bedding to prevent the sugar gliders from walking around in their own waste.

Food and water containers:

The first principle of feeding and watering sugar gliders is to place the food and water high up in the cage. Gliders feel comfortable eating up high, because they are tree-dwellers. For a food container, you can use anything from a heavy “crock” type pet food dish that can’t be tipped over to bird dishes that clip onto the wire. Be sure to dump out and clean the food dishes every day, in order to prevent food from spoiling and making your glider sick.

For a water container, you can also use a heavy “crock” type pet food dish, or a sipper-type of water bottle. Water bottles work nicely because your sugar glider can’t pee and poop in them, as they might in a dish. However, until you are sure your glider has gotten “the hang” of sipping from a water bottle, also include some water in an open dish.

Toys:

Sugar gliders love playing with bird toys. Make sure that the toys do not have small parts that can easily be bitten or pulled off. They also love to hide in PVC pipe! You can give your sugar glider a chew bone, but do not use poultry bones, or pork or lamb bones.

An important note about hamster wheels: Some people think gliders and wire hamster wheels are a natural combination. However, they can cause injuries to sugar gliders. Tails can get caught in the wire wheels, and if one glider jumps on the wheel while another spins it, the first glider’s legs or paws may get caught in the wheel. Use a solid wheel, such as Wodent Wheels from Transoniq. Another benefit of the solid wheels is that you can put fine-grade sandpaper in the wheel to keep your sugar glider’s nails trimmed. There are specialty products designed to fit inside the Wodent Wheel so that it automatically trims your glider’s nails as he runs on the wheel. I recommend the 8″ Wodent Wheel for joeys and the 11″ Wodent Wheel for adult suggies.
Here’s what a Wodent Wheel looks like:

© 2006 SugarGliderAuthority.com. Excerpted from Sugar Gliders: The Ultimate Guide. All rights reserved. No portion of this website may be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written consent of the copyright owner.

What is the proper temperature for keeping sugar gliders?

Sugar gliders should be kept at a temperature between 65° F (18° C) and 75° F (24° C). Luckily, this is the temperature range in most homes, so no special arrangements are usually needed. Some breeders report that they keep their sugar gliders at 80° F (26° C). However, if your home gets very cold in winter or very hot in summer, you will need to provide heating/cooling for your glider. Do NOT use a reptile “heat rock” to heat your glider’s cage! The surface temperature of the heat rock is too high for a sugar glider’s feet. Additionally, the heat rock will require an electrical cord – a dangerous item to have near a curious sugar glider! (I will be writing about “Sugar Glider Safety” in the near future.)

How often should the cage be cleaned?

Cage hygiene is very important, both for your health and especially for the health of your glider. Dirty cages can become a breeding ground for bacteria and fungi. The cage should be spot-cleaned on a daily basis. Keep food and water dishes very clean. Check the nesting material and the absorbent material at the bottom of the cage to see if it needs to be replaced (do not let it get overly soiled, smelly, etc.). Spot clean toys and exercise wheels.

Once every 1 to 2 weeks, remove everything from the cage, including the sugar gliders, and clean everything with a weak bleach solution or other disinfecting solution. Be sure to rinse thoroughly, so that there is no bleach or soap residue left on the cage or toys. Some people find it convenient to take the cage outside and use a power washer. Other clever owners put their cages in their trucks and take them to a self-serve car wash (the kind where you hose off the vehicle yourself). Wait until everything is dry before you return your gliders to their cage.

(To be continued…)

© 2006 SugarGliderAuthority.com. Excerpted from Sugar Gliders: The Ultimate Guide. All rights reserved. No portion of this website may be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written consent of the copyright owner.

If you build your own sugar glider cage, do not use screen material designed for screen doors! Your gliders will incessantly get their claws caught in it, which could cause injury.

Sugar glider cages can be built of plywood and galvanized wire. There are a couple of considerations if you decide to build out of wood and wire. It is recommended you rinse the wire before using it, to remove as much zinc residue as possible. You should paint the wood so it does not absorb urine. BE SURE the paint is non-toxic, such as high-gloss latex paint! Also be sure the paint is COMPLETELY DRY before you let your sugar glider(s) get in it. Galvanized wire is also harder to clean than commercial enameled wire. Over time, as the gliders urinate on the galvanized wire, it will build up a white deposit unless you clean the urine off regularly. So if you decide to use galvanized wire, you should commit to a more frequent wire-cleaning schedule.

The doors on cages should be large enough to allow you to pass a nesting box, or hiding box through it. Make sure the doors have a strong latch as gliders are smart and may figure out a way to open the door if possible. If you use a tall bird cage that has a door that slides up, you will need to secure the latch with something else, such as all-plastic (no wire) trash bag ties.

Where should the cage be located in your home?

Most people keep their sugar gliders inside their home year-round. If you live where the temperature permits you to keep your glider in something like an outdoor aviary, be aware that your glider may be threatened by wandering dogs, cats or hawks and other birds of prey. Lizards who wander into his cage could pass illnesses such as salmonella to your sugar glider, and insects your glider catches and eats could be contaminated with pesticides. Additionally, if your sugar glider escapes from an outdoor enclosure, the chance of your ever finding him or her is just about zero.

Inside your home, put your sugar glider’s cage in a place where there is natural light, so that the glider can get a sense of normal day and night. But avoid putting your sugar glider’s cage directly in front of a window. In the wild, gliders are nocturnal animals who live in trees, so they get very little direct sunlight. Direct sunlight from a window could damage their eyes. Additionally, windows can be drafty, and that could make your glider ill.

Sugar gliders need light and darkness cues to tell them when to sleep, exercise, eat, etc. Gliders kept in basements or in rooms with no windows may become confused. If it is impossible to give your glider natural light, then provide a light with a timer.

If your sugar glider’s cage is not one of the tallest varieties, place your sugar glider’s cage on a table or a countertop, because gliders love to be up high. NEVER place the cage directly on large appliances (like refrigerators) or electronics (such as a TV). Large appliances often give off constant hums, vibrations and noises that can be very disturbing to sugar gliders.

NEVER put your sugar glider’s cage where it is susceptible to disruption from an electronic pest control unit that uses sound or radio waves to get rid of mice, roaches, etc. Remember, your sugar glider is just a little critter, too, and those devices could drive him crazy! They have extremely sensitive hearing.

It is not necessary to place the cage in a part of the house that is very quiet all day. You do want to keep the cage away from very noisy young children and barking dogs. But normal household noise will help your glider become acclimated to your house. Even though they sleep all day, they can tolerate a certain degree of noise and not wake up.

(To be continued…)

© 2006 SugarGliderAuthority.com. Excerpted from Sugar Gliders: The Ultimate Guide. All rights reserved. No portion of this website may be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written consent of the copyright owner.

Note: Be sure to have your sugar glider’s cage already in place and set up with his toys, bowls, etc. when he arrives in your home. You cannot have a sugar glider living in a small cage while you try to find a suitable cage at the mall or on the internet. Any extended time spent in a cramped cage will stress your sugar glider greatly, and will make the bonding process that much more difficult. It may also make him sick.

It is important to put some serious thought into how and where you are going to house your sugar glider(s). Sugar gliders need a fair amount of space, and they need a way to feel safe. Here are some of the major considerations:

What size should the cage be?

There is a lot of debate about the proper size cage for sugar gliders. But one thing is clear: the bigger (and especially taller) the cage the better! Remember, in the wild, sugar gliders glide from limb to limb and from tree to tree. So the bigger and taller cage you can provide, the better. It will make for much happier sugar gliders. If you don’t have a lot of space in your home and you need to keep your cage toward the smaller side, then you definitely will need to let your glider out of its cage for significant amounts of time, so it can climb around and exercise. (They love to run to the top of bookshelves, cabinets and curtain rods to survey their world!)

Some breeders recommend a minimum cage size of 20″ x 20″ x 30″ high for one or two gliders. Other breeders recommend 18″ x 18″ x 36″ high. The folks at Glider University recommend a minimum size of 48″ x 48″ x 60″ (4 x 4 x 5 feet) high for a single glider, and a size of 48″ x 60″ x 72″ (4 x 5 x 6 feet) high for a pair of gliders. They note that you can get away with a smaller cage than their recommended minimum only if you have a safe room where the glider(s) are permitted to run freely for at least 4 to 6 hours. Sanctuary developers and rehabilitators in Australia go even farther, recommending a cage that is 9 x 9 x 9 feet.

While it is understandable that most people will be unable to provide a cage that is the size of a small room, you should get or build the largest and tallest cage possible for your sugar glider. 30″ high does not seem nearly high enough, and anything shorter than that would simply be cruelty. Talk to your breeder and other experienced sugar glider owners before you buy a cage.

What should the cage be made of?

There are cages on the market made especially for sugar gliders. They are usually made of vinyl coated 1″ x 1/2″ welded wire. (That maximum recommended width between wires is 1/2″. Remember, a young joey can slip through a very small space.) Sugar glider cages are also usually very tall. Do not buy cages designed for ferrets, even though those cages seem to have the advantage because they are tall. The wire spacing on most ferret cages is 1″, which is too wide.

You might also check out tall finch flight cages available at many pet stores, such as the MIDWEST Collapsible Flight Cage available at PetSmart. Remember that it is always more important to have a tall cage than a wide cage. Do not buy cages designed for large birds such as parrots, because the space between the wires will be too large and your sugar gliders could escape!

(To be continued…)

© 2006 SugarGliderAuthority.com. Excerpted from Sugar Gliders: The Ultimate Guide. All rights reserved. No portion of this website may be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written consent of the copyright owner.