The Sugar Glider (Petaurus breviceps) is a native animal of New Guinea, parts of Indonesia and the continent of Australia. They are small furry animals and are called sugar gliders because they eat almost anything sweet tasting and possess a thin layer of tissue stretching along their feet to their hands which allows them to glide like the North American flying squirrel. Sugar gliders are kept as pets but are not popular because of their natural needs, behavior and some states even prohibit individuals from owning one.
The sugar glider is said to exist from the Pleistocene era which is about 1.6 million years ago.
It’s known to many as “Short Headed Phalanger” and “the Lesser Flying Phalanger”. This adorable animal is a marsupial living in the rainforest that loves to venture within the trees. When trees are not available, they buld their dwellings in brushes. They are social and territorial animals that live in a small group. During daylight, they rest in hollowed trees and are active mostly at night making them nocturnal creatures. About 7-12 gliders live in a nest at the same time for warmth They can glide to almost 150 feet.
These creatures weigh approximately 100 to 160 grams or 3.5 to 5.7 ounces. They have a length of about 27 centimeters or 11 inches. Their eyes are large and black, nose is pointed and ears which are also large in contrast with the head. It has short fur, soft and more often grayish-brown with a white to not-so-white belly. At their head to the base of their back is a black stripe while the tail is commonly brownish or grayish black tip. There are also albinos which are white having pinkish eyes while Leucustic are white and have black eyes. The females have small pouches wherein her young are commonly twins; they continue to eat and grow for approximately 70 days while males all have tinyl furry sacks descending from the lower abdomen, also called a pom, which contain their testicles.
Undomesticated sugar gliders eat different kinds of insects and plants. In the summer, insects are the main component of their diet. However, during winter, insects are lesser in their diet consisting of plants, like the eucalyptus, nectars and acacia gum. Manna, which is the sugar from sap flow and honeydew which is left by insects are also eaten. As pets, their diet is typically vegetables and fruits, vitamins, crickets and mealworms. This is the reason why the sugar glider is a rare pet.
Having a sugar gliders as pet can be fun. They are very lively creatures but are hard to maintain because of the attention, diet, and cages. Nocturnal as they are, playing with them at night can be very difficult. Owning at least two gliders is recommended because the owners need to consider that they do better when they have a companion. Most often, gliders as pet die due to poor nutrition or depression.
Legal issues about having gliders as pets exist in some states. In Alaska, California, Georgia consider it illegal to have sugar gliders as pet. Some require permits such as the state of Massachusettes, Maine, North Dakota, New Mexico, and Utah.
