Home / Pet Ownership Vs. Breeding
Pet Ownership Vs. Breeding

We do not get these marvelous colors by pure luck alone.  There is research and years of experience behind us with it.  Not only are responsible breeders getting great colors, but we would not risk harming our animals by breeding too closely or incorrectly.   It takes each of us time to learn this information.

WITH RESPECT TO BREEDERS:

Over the years, I have had a few people question my pricing on my animals.  They say they went to Craigs List or a pet store and purchased an adult pair of grays for very inexpensive.  I think it’s time that I explain why.

Although gliders that are purchased this way may turn out to be great pets that live a long time, others may not.

When purchasing animals in this manner, you are usually getting them from a source that does not know the background of the animals (could be inbred), may never have had a vet check up, and more than likely on a poor diet.  The people normally do not have the experience to teach you how to deal with this new and exotic pet.

These issues could shorten their lives by many years.  I have known more than one person who have taken in gliders from these sources that passed away shortly thereafter.  Sugar gliders are still this side of wild, and have the unique ability to hide their illnesses until it’s too late.  What may have looked like healthy gliders at the location they were picked up at, may not look as good a short time later.  When we stress a glider out by moving it from the environment they are used to, can help to expedite any illness that may have been present that were not noted previously.

When you purchase from a responsible, experienced breeder, you are going to pay more, and here is why.

Responsible breeders have access to a qualified exotics vet, 24/7.  They take in feces samples several times a year to make sure they are parasite free.   When they bring in a new glider from another breeder, it goes into quarantine until the vet has checked it out and they pass their parasite testing.  Only when we are 100% sure the glider is healthy, does it make its way into our glider room.   As stated earlier, a glider that looks healthy at first viewing, doesn’t mean it is.

We are making sure that they are getting the best diet possible, which costs more and takes time.  Many of the diets sold commercially in the US (including Exotic Nutrition), are made cheaply with synthetic ingredients that can easily cause health issues in our animals.  I personally, am feeding a well tried diet with the main base produced in Australia by rescue people.  It’s soy based with just plain old vitamins and minerals.  We are adding water, bee pollen, honey and eggs to it.  We are also feeding a variety of safe fruits and veggies to round it out.

And then, there is the breeding part.  We are not getting these marvelous colors by accident.  There is a science behind that a Craigs List person, or a pet store will simply not know.

It’s called genetics.  We know about the genetics of sugar gliders and how they work.  For many years now, good breeders have kept records of their animals.   We have another breeder in Texas who paid for an expensive database system for our pedigrees.  She worked hard with the original breeders from 25 or more years ago, to get information on our founding gliders.  They were entered into the database, and then we enter as we go along and get new generations.

Most of the pedigrees people have toda, can go back 15 to 20 generations or more.  We can use the database to type in a “test pairing” to help us see if it will be safe.

We know that just one like relative within the first four generations; can produce joeys with defects in the major organs.  The test will come back with a number that will tell us if it’s safe, or if it’s too high (I go by 3.5% or greater), then I need to really look at it by printing out both perspective parent’s pedigrees and placing them side by side to find out what may be the problem, before I decide to put the pair together.

So, not only are we pairing up the gliders to give us the most beautiful joeys and colors, but also with respect to making sure they are not going to be inbred.  It’s a lot of work, but we enjoy doing it.

What do these things ensure the buyer?  That your are obtaining animals from good pairings that could live to their full potential of 10 to 12 years or greater.  I am going to boast here that I have a pair here in Lake Havasu that is in a pet home.  They are retired from breeding.  The female is 16 years old, and I am her breeder.   My vet sees them once a year for their wellness exam and she raves about them.

So, if you have a pair that were well bred, always on a very good diet, and you continue with what the breeder gives you for food and care advice, make sure they get yearly wellness exams with parasite screenings, then you stand a very good chance of keeping them a long time.

Also with a good breeder, you will be able to access our years of knowledge at any time.   We are always here to listen to possible issues and concerns, for the lifetime of your purchase.   We may not always be able to answer right away, but we will when we can.

A lot of thought and consideration has gone into our animals.   Not to mention the hours of care and time that we put into serving all the needs of the animals and our clients.  You are truly getting full service when purchasing from a good breeder.

It’s important to note that not all breeders go by these rules. Four questions you should ask before you buy:

  1. (For a breeder) Do your gliders have a minimum of 5 generations of lineage behind them.
  2. Do you test often for parasites?
  3. What diet do you feed?
  4. Do you have a vet who looks at your breeding animals at least once a year?

If you don’t like the answers to any of them, walk away.

You have a very good chance of the animals doing well and living to their full potential, if you take the advice of your breeder or rescue person.  If ever you wish to try something different, always consult them first for best results.

I will leave you with a link to a website from a former breeder, with some of the best information we have out there on sugar glider breeding and learning to read the pedigrees.  It will look very Greek to you and take a long time to fully understand.   If I am your mentor, I am here to guide and answer any and all of your questions.  If you have another good mentor, they can help your though this too:

http://www.glidernursery.com/breeding.html

Shelly no longer breeds sugar gliders, but is kind enough to continue to pay hosting on her website, so that everyone can benefit from this information.

Also, the following information was written by Jennifer Bender some years ago.  Jennifer no longer maintains her website, but she told me I was welcome to share this information with others:

Joey Rejection & Cannibalization

Unfortunately there are many factors that can contribute to joey rejection and/or canalization. It is impossible to say exactly why this happens. Some of the reasons we know of may be preventable, others are not. Here are a few that we are aware of:

  1. Poor Diet or Diet Deficiency: Lactating parents require a very special dietary balance with increased amounts of both calcium and protein. Protein and calcium are directly related to the amount of milk the mother can produce. If the mother does not have enough milk production, she may reject or cannibalize her joey(s). It is quite painful for a mother to have a suckling joey on her teat with little milk production, so she may bite at the joey(s), reject or cannibalize them. To avoid this, we recommend following proven diet plans which you can find here. Remember, a sugar glider mother will put herself before her young. If she is lacking necessary vitamins or minerals, she will dispose of her babies for her own survival and health. If your female was recently on an unhealthy diet, wait at least 6 months after getting her on a proven diet before allowing her to breeding.
  2. Inexperienced and/or Young Mothers: Sometimes a mother may breed too young, and not be prepared for raising joeys. Young mothers may not have developed the instincts needed to raise her babies successfully. In addition, her body is still growing, and may not be able to support proper lactation to raise healthy babies. A female should be at least 9-12 months before attempting to breed to avoid this.
  3. Physical and/or Medical Problem with Joey: Even if the joey(s) may have appeared normal to you, there may have been a problem. Sugar Gliders are very intuitive creatures. Joey(s) that are sickly, genetically deformed, or have other problems may attract predators to the nest. If there is a problem with their young, they will dispose of it as necessary.
  4. Stress: Stress can have many effects on a mother as well as the pair/colony. Remember, a mother will not risk her own health for her joey(s). She will reject and/or cannibalize her young if her stress level is too high. Some stress triggers include:
    1. Relocating or changing their cage while female has joeys in/out of pouch. Avoid relocating or changing cages (permeate housing changes) while the female has joeys in/out of pouch. New sights and smells will make them more nervous until they establish their new “territory”. They may reject or dispose of their young until they deem their new environment safe.
    2. Moving the gliders to a new home while the female has joey in/out of pouch. Try to avoid relocating your sugar gliders to a new home if at all possible when a female has joeys in/out of pouch. The new surroundings, smells, and people may cause the gliders to become very defensive and nervous. They may dispose or reject any young until they have established a new territory and feel safe once more.
    3. Adding sugar gliders to an established pair/colony or changing a females mate. Introducing new sugar gliders to an established pair/colony is rarely ever recommended, this is especially true when breeding. New males will most likely kill another males joeys to produce his own. Newly introduced females may kill or attempt to steal another females young. Introducing any sugar glider to an established pair/colony can create a break down in “pecking order”, cause territorial issues, as well as possible jealousy and dominance problems.
    4. Removing the male from the female. Do not remove the male from the female when she has joeys. Males help to raise their young. Mothers are very much dependant on them to baby sit, keep the joey(s)warm, and to help teach the joey(s) what being a glider is all about.
    5. Seeing or Smelling another glider outside of her colony. Sugar gliders are very territorial. If you have more than one glider pair/colony in the same room, but in different cages, try using a full cage cover over their cage. This way they will not see each other, and it will help keep their colonies scent within their cage. By doing this the pair will feel more secure in their territory. Placing the cages as far apart as possible, or placing each cage of gliders in a different room will help as well.
    6. Mother or joeys being handled with joeys ip/oop before being completely bonded to you. Sugar gliders that are not completely bonded to their human companions may see you as a threat. If you are not completely bonded to the parents, and have had rejection/canalization issues in the past, try waiting to hold the joey until it is 10-14 days out of pouch. After this time period chances of rejection and cannibalization go down. Start off handling the joey in the presence of the parents for short times, and then increase increments as the parents become accustom to you handling their joey(s).
  5. Illness: The female will not risk her own health to raise her joey(s). She will reject or cannibalize her young to save or maintain her own health. To help avoid this, take the pair/colony to the vet prior to breeding to ensure there isn’t an underlaying health issue. Sugar gliders can easily hide illnesses until it has become extremely advanced.
  6. Trio or Colony Settings: Females within a colony setting may fight, steal babies, or attempt to kill each others offspring. Sometimes colonies/trios will work out well with twin sisters or females that have been raise together from a very young age. Please understand that even though the trio/colony works out a few times, it does not mean you are in the clear. Some trios have been noted to work out well for years, and then have severe problems later on.

Why do glider cannibalize their young?

Sugar gliders are exotic animals still maintain many of their “wild” instincts. To avoid drawing predictors or sickness to the colony, sugar gliders will cannibalize young. If there are any remains, usually they will remove it as far away from their nest as possible.

She cannibalized/rejected her babies will she do it next time?
There is no way to know for sure if she will or not. The best you can do is rectify any situations that may have caused her to loose her joeys in the past. If the behavior continue, you will need to neuter the male to avoid further rejections and heart ache for you and the sugar gliders. We usually use the 3 strikes rule. Not all pairs/colonies are meant to be parents.

Joey Rejection/Hand feeding
It is very hard to understand why a mother will reject a joey, as there could be many reasons. Sometimes a mother is unable to produce enough milk to support the joey, a diet deficiency may be the cause, or the mother may “sense” something is wrong with the baby. A yeast infection could be another cause, making it painful for the female to feed her little one. What ever the reason may be, you may be able to intervene by supplementing, or if necessary, pulling the joey all together.

Where to start: You will know that the joey has been rejected if it is found on the cage floor, or alone in the nesting area for long periods of time. Always try putting the joey back in with mother. If the mother finds no interest in the baby, then it is your choice on what to do. The first thing to do when finding a rejected joey is remain calm, animals sense stress. Next check to see if the joey is warm, if not wrap it in tissues or warm fleece scrap, and place under your shirt. Next, look to see if your baby is hydrated by checking the skin. Should it be slightly shriveled, try feed .20 ml of water or Pedialyte with a supplemental feeding within a half hour of the feeding. If the glider is severely dehydrated, you will need to get it to the vet ASAP.

How to mix the formula: Mix the puppy milk, marsupial milk, or Wombaroo to the directions on the container. Next get make the baby BML (mixture listed below). Finally mix one part milk to one part Baby BML. Warm a small amount of the mixture in the microwave for about 10 seconds. Stir and test with your finger to be sure mix is not too hot for your baby joey baby. Mixture should be warm to the touch, but not hot. Fill a 1cc syringe with the warmed mixture. Cover and store the remaining mixture in the refrigerator for later use. If the joey develops diarrhea, mix Pedialyte in with the powder every other feeding.

Joey BML Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 1 boiled egg, shell removed
  • 4 oz bottle premixed Gerber Fruit Juice with Yogurt (Banana or Mixed Fruit)
    if you can not find this, then use 2 oz of fruit juice and 2oz of plain yogurt.
  • 1 teaspoon RepCal Herptivite Vitamin Supplement
  • 2 teaspoons RepCal Calcium Supplement with Vitamin D3 Phosphorous Free
  • 4 oz of Chicken Baby food (NO GARLIC OR ONION)
  • 1/2 cup of Honey
  • 1/4 cup of apple juice
  • 1/2 cup dry Heinz or Gerber dry baby cereal (Mixed, Oatmeal, or Rice with Fruit Bits)

Put egg, honey and apple juice in electric blender. Blend. Add the yogurt with juice and RepCal Herptivite Vitamin Supplement. Blend. Add RepCal Calcium supplement, chicken baby food, and dry baby cereal. Blend. Pour into ice cube frays and freeze. This recipe will have the same consistency of ice cream. One cube is about 2 table spoons.

How to feed: Attach your size 5 cather or feeding tube to the syringe. Cut the cather at about two to four inches in length. Be sure that your hands and the baby is warm. You can warm the baby up by wrapping it in tissues or warm fleece scrap, and placing in your bra or under your shirt. Be sure the baby is warm before feeding. If the baby is not warm, it will have problems digesting food. Once the baby is warm, use your tissues or warm fleece scrap to hold the baby in a slight forward position for feeding. This will help in preventing the mixture from going up the joey’s nose. Feed the joey one small drop by placing the feeding tube on the babies mouth, being careful not to squirt any mixture into the joey’s nostrils or directly down the throat. Some joeys may be stubborn at first. If this happens try adding a little pressure in between the side of the mouth until the baby opens it’s mouth. Make sure the cather is over the tongue so you do not cause the joey to aspirate. Remember to feed slowly. A new joey will eat between .40mg to .60mg of the mixture. In the first day of feeding, it may take 30-45 minutes for each feeding. After several feeding, your joey will get the idea, and feeding will get down to about 15-20 minutes. Overfeeding a joey can be very harmful, and may ultimately kill your joey. If your joeys stomach appears to be bloated, or to be round, then you will need to skip a feeding. You can check to see if the joey is full by holding the joey up to a bright light. In the center of the abdomen and usually slightly off to the left you should be able to see a white patch under the translucent skin if the stomach is filled with milk. If you can not find a white patch, the the stomach is empty.

When to feed:

Supplement feeding: When supplement feeding, you will feed the joey every 2 to 3 hours. Allowing mom to keep the joey warm, taking care of bathroom breaks, and of the “in between” feedings. When supplement feeding, make sure you see that Mom or Dad are doing their job to clean the baby up (making sure it goes to the bathroom). If they are not, you can do it by gently stroking the area between the base of the tail and the cloaca with a warm wet Q-Tip. Sometimes supplementing is all that is only needed for a couple of weeks until the mother’s milk supply catches up with the babies. It is best to supplement feed rather than pull a joey all together, as it is less stressful on the caregiver, and the joey will have the best chance in surviving and growing into a healthy adult. When supplementing the baby always look for more signs of rejection by the mother. If the baby appears to be dehydrated or cold between feeding, look into pulling the baby or feeding more often.
Pulling: When pulling a joey you will need to feed it on demand or every two hours around the clock. Joeys tend to tire quickly when feeding. Place the baby in the warm aquarium until it begins to cry again, then you can resume feeding. You will also have to stimulate the joey to go to the bathroom at least 2 times a day. You can do this by gently stroking the area between the base of the tail and the cloaca with a warm wet Q-Tip. In order to keep your pulled joey warm, it is best to set up a small aquarium or critter keeper, with a vented top. Attach a heat pad to the underside of the tank. Set the heat pad to the lowest setting, and adjust the heat pad as needed. Fill the tank with about 3 to 4 inches of aspen bedding. Check the temperature of the set up often to ensure the joey is not too cold, or that the set up doesn’t get too hot. This process must continue for a least three weeks. At about three weeks you should be able to feed your little joey every four hours. As your joey grows, offer fruits and veggies slowly. Once the joey is 5 weeks out of pouch encourage your joey to go to the feeding dishes, as feeding should only take place during the day. At 6 weeks out of pouch, your joey will be able to eat and go to the bathroom on it’s own.

Joey Rejection Kit
When dealing with exotic animals, it is always best to be prepared for any emergency that may come up and need treated right away. However, always follow-up with a good and knowledgeable vet. Here is a list of items to start your “joey rejection kit”. All items should be placed in a sealed and marked container. Please place your “joey rejection kit” in an easy to reach and find area.
E-mail me if you have anything you would like to see added to our list

  • Puppy Milk Replacer (powdered form or premixed formula) or Wombaroo Supplement. Do not use kitten milk replacer as the fat content is very high and causes diarrhea.
  • 1 French Cather size #5 cut to 2″ in length, this can be purchased from a local vet, or a local hospital.
  • 6-10 1 ml(1cc) Sterile Syringes, with out needle
  • Pedialyte
  • Q-tips
  • Critter keeper or empty 10 gallon aquarium w/vented top.
  • Small heating pad
  • Small bag of Aspen litter
  • Box of Tissues