Neutering your male pet glider just as he is reaching sexual maturity will make him an easier pet and happier glider. Neutering eliminates the strong urges nature has programmed into a sexually mature animal for finding a mate, claiming her, protecting her, and making her pregnant. When a glider is neutered just as he is becoming sexually mature eliminates their focus on procreation so they are able to focus on playing, eating, being your friend and just enjoying life.
There are several surgical methods and the best one is the one your experienced vet prefers. Some vets leave the pom, some remove it. The most important aspects of this surgery are: pain medication, no stitches, no glue on the outside of the body.
In one very successful procedure [very successful means no gliders have ever sm'd after this procedure], the vet requests that the glider eats the evening before and then the food is removed by 6 a.m. The vet also requests that the owner bring the glider's favorite fruit treat and a clean pouch with the glider.
The vet anesthetizes the glider using isofluorane, injects lidocaine and long acting pain meds into the skin around the area, shaves a small area around the pom, opens the pom to reveal the large blood vessel that runs the length of the pom, ligates the vessel, and removes the pom at the abdomen. No sutures are used in the skin and the pinpoint surgical site just inverts and closes. In this procedure, the purpose of the lidocaine is to deaden the entire area so that the glider just ignores this area. The long acting pain meds are for the comfort of the glider and to prevent sm'ing from pain.
Upon completion of the surgery, a vet tech surrounds the glider's face with bits of the favorite treat. As the glider wakes, his first impulse is to chew so the tech puts the treat up to his mouth so that he chews on the treat rather than his surgical site. The tech continues to do redirect the glider's attention to the treat rather than his body until he is ready to crawl into his clean pouch which is on the table next to him.
The owner is instructed to pick up the glider as soon as fully awake and he waits in his own pouch (probably around the neck of a vet tech that has fallen in love with the glider ). The glider will sleep most of the day and most owners will want to watch the glider just to make sure that he just licks and cleans the area around his neuter site.
Post surgical activity is not restricted and the tiny pinpoint incision closes over the next few days.
Some vets prefer to incise the pom, ligate the blood vessel, and remove the testiclesonly thereby leaving the pom. It is important that the incision be very small to avoid the use of glue or sutures. If sutures or glue are used and the glider can feel them when he grooms, he will try to remove the offending foreign object and likely injure himself in the process. If the incision is very small and the blood vessel is properly ligated, no glue should be necessary. Long acting, injected pain meds are important in this procedure.
Neutering is also beneficial even if your glider has reached sexual maturity. Since females can have multiple pregnacies w/different gestational ages developing at the same time, two joeys just oop often means more are on the way. So neutering your male is essential to prevent future pregnancies. In the wild, female gliders only reproduce once or twice each year and have time to recover in between. In captivity, they become baby machines and this is hard on their bodies.
If a male is neutered after he has become fully sexually mature and is housed with a female, it mayl take up to about three months until you see his oil gland on his head shrinking enough to become invisible. As this gland shrinks and becomes less visible, his testosterone levels fall and his concern with marking will diminish. He may continue to mount the female when she comes into heat, but he will not be fertile.
Neutering, especially using the first procedure as described, is a safe and beneficial surgery. It is important that all glider owners have an emergency first aid kit that includes an e-collar just in case a glider decides to chew his incision site. In the unlikely event that that happens, call your vet immediately. If you cannot distract him from chewing, put the e-collar on until you arrive at the veterinary hospital.
copyright January 2, 2007 all rights reserved
