few questions :D

[basky]

im finally getting a pair of gliders 1 neutred male and 1 not neutred. they come with wheel, 2x pouches, 2 food bowls, water bottle and toys. im going to go out and get fruit and blending it then freeze in ice cube blocks, but i have a few questions.

1. can i put honey in with the fruit? if so can i do this instead of buying bee pollen?

2. is fruit and iams ok as stable diet? obviously varied fruit.

3. which vits and calcium powders do i need? there seem to be loads.

4. is there anything ive forgotten?

5. oh also they come with a cage but i would personally like to keep them in a viv (natural type set-up) thats 5ft wide x 4ft height x 2ft depth, would this be ok? would it smell any worst?
thanks kate

[Amalthea]

Hiya!!  I am glad Sam got you to come along

Honey really shouldn't be a main part of their diet, because it is just pure sugar and will make their blood sugars peak and then drastically fall.  A low blood sugar is incredibly dangerous, especially in the colder months.

Have a look in the diet section...  There are fruit/veg ratios already worked out for you.

A viv is fine I don't know about smell, but Tillie on here has her gliders in a viv, so maybe she'd be the one to ask.

[Mark]

I wouldnt use the honey at all, its not really needed, you can use ripe fruit blended which is sweet.  Tille has a MASSIVE VIV, yours seems a good size but height is the most important thing for them, and good ventilation.

[basky]

oh ok no honey then the current owner told me to use that :S
i can replace the back of viv with mesh then thats no problem.  thanks

[Mark]

you may not need to replace the whole back, just put in more ventilation

[Rhianna]

vivs are a great idea i think. if there wasa viv outt here to hold 6 gliders, thats what i would use.

dont worry about what the owner told you. i got told to feed grapes when my mam got her first two, and only when i came on here did i peice together why our gliders where dying and had bad coat conditions. but deffo no honey. i use it every so often e.g. christmas day, if i have a sick glider to encourage it to eat medicated food, but NOT as part of a staple diet. not really as part of a diet.

[jungleflockmom]

I'm taking the liberty to quote Marie's post from another thread here:
"Basically I stick with a 2:1 ca:p diet, using 50% veg and 50% fruit.  My protein of choice is a high quality cat biscuit, now bear in mind the differences in US and UK pet food industries, in the UK the pet food companies are strictly regulated, so all the hassle I got on the US forums was because of the US companies and their less than desirable practices, and also ... it doesn't cause lumpy jaw!

I use boiled egg as a protein source maybe a couple of times a week, on those nights I add calcium powder as egg has a poor ca:p ratio. 

I give bee pollen a couple of times a week, a small sprinkle over the top (of the powdered kind).  (as well as cat biscuits)

I give acacia gum a couple of times a week and also as an enrichment aid.  Acacia gum is a valuable source of soluble fibre, insoluble fibre is the kind you get in the cat biscuits - the roughage, and to help it through the gut soluble fibre is needed, the gum provides this.

I give gliderade or nutraglider a couple of times a week as a treat.  I also now use Yucca powder as it aids digestion and improves the absorption of nutrients. 

The supplement I use is Glider Booster, and as I said, Glider Cal when the ca:p ratio is bad.

I like to use this diet because you can give so much variation, it doesn't really matter what fruits and veg you use so long as the ratio works out to around 2:1.  Because I have so many suggies I make a fresh batch nightly, it is all blended with any supplements to ensure that everything is evenly distributed. 

The cat biscuits aren't soaked in fruit juice before hand (unless I have an ill glider which is very rare!), a crunch in the diet is good for them. 

Diets don't need to be 100% precise, we all want our animals to be as healthy as possible, but try to break free from the strict 'oh you need exactly this much protein' because it just isn't the case.   

This type of diet has been used successfully in the UK for over 15 years now, I've been keeping and breeding gliders for 6 years or so and I've never had an issue with the dreaded HLP, obesity, diabetes or any other diet related illness.  One of my girls was unlucky to get caught up on a pouch and she had to have a leg removed, we took that opportunity to have it sent away for bone analysis, the results came back with no sign of calcium deficiency, Dinx is a glider that I class at the lower end of the health scale for various reasons.  "

[basky]

thanks thats really helpful. ive read sooooo much today, just ended up confusing myself.  -.-

[Marie]

im finally getting a pair of gliders 1 neutred male and 1 not neutred. they come with wheel, 2x pouches, 2 food bowls, water bottle and toys. im going to go out and get fruit and blending it then freeze in ice cube blocks, but i have a few questions.

1. can i put honey in with the fruit? if so can i do this instead of buying bee pollen?

2. is fruit and iams ok as stable diet? obviously varied fruit.

3. which vits and calcium powders do i need? there seem to be loads.

4. is there anything ive forgotten?

5. oh also they come with a cage but i would personally like to keep them in a viv (natural type set-up) thats 5ft wide x 4ft height x 2ft depth, would this be ok? would it smell any worst?
thanks kate

Honey I avoid except for in emergencys (see cold, limp glider?), Bee pollen contains calcium and protein, honey contains sugar. 

Iams I use as a protein source, I don't leave anything out for them during the day as they eat well over night and mine don't get up during the day.  Some people choose to leave insectivore fare for them.

Vits and calcium ... Glidercal & Booster are the two I would recommend as a minimum, it's what I've used for years and I swear by it. 

As stated in the above post, I use bee pollen, acacia gum and a nectar mix, but they are a personal choice. 

I have a price list stickied in this section so you can decide what you want and what you don't want. http://www.sugar-glider.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,2630.0.html

[basky]

thanks marie your a star 
so far i need a bonding pouch, Glidercal & Booster, and food.
as im going for a natural set up ill make holes in the branches and put food etc in, what would be best to put in them?

[Marie]

Acacia gum is great to put in holes, mix a bit with fruit juice, maybe add a worm or something and they should have a whale of a time digging it out

[tillie]

Hi vivs are fine as long as you privide plenty of branches or do as I do which is put trellis on the sides and back attached to the viv inside, I also have mesh hung from the roof so they can still go all over it like a cage.  I have 8 vents in mine (I think, Im at work at the mo so cant check) and smell isnt a prob.  The cage I made previously was more smelly.  Make sure you seal all the joints etc with silicone.  I used 6 mm safety glass.

[Rhianna]

i put cat biccies stuck in the gum last night and put one of them wooden logs with the holes in (borrowed from a very unappreciative chinchilla) with the gum and biccie in that, also ontop of hanging toys and under rocks etc. they had so much fun! they were doing that cute little noise they make when they eating, and they went mental! it was great watching them put their mental states of mind into something constructive instead of worrying me! lol

[basky]

that sounds great  i cant wait to get them now  :sg: :sg: