by Megan As Well

Created on: February 25, 2009   Last Updated: March 03, 2009

Sugar gliders, often confused with flying squirrels, are a type of marsupial native to Australia and Indonesia. Sugar gliders are little, nocturnal creatures, about the size of a small hamster or gerbil. Sugar gliders require very specific and extensive circumstances when kept in captivity, and yet this species is growing in popularity in the United States.

Perhaps one of the most difficult parts of keeping sugar gliders as pets is feeding them a well-balanced diet. Unlike your average pet store animals, sugar gliders cannot be fed a diet of dry food or pellets. Sugar gliders need naturally sweet, wet, wholesome foods. In the wild, sugar gliders feed primarily on insects, native fruit and flowers, and sap. They often chew their food to get out all the juices and then spit out the remains.

A balanced sugar glider diet should be split into three parts: meats and protein (about 50%), fruits (about 25%), and vegetables (about 25%). Common meats fed to sugar gliders are mealworms, shrimp, beef or hamburger (well drained), chicken, and pieces of tofu. Sugar gliders can also be fed ham but only in very small portions or as treats because of hams high salt content. Common fruits and vegetables fed to sugar gliders are grapes, tomatoes, kernels of corn, potato (cooked), blueberries, strawberries (well cleaned), carrot, and green beans. All food given to sugar gliders should be cut into small pieces that they can easily grasp.

Because weekly shopping trips for sugar glider food can be overwhelming for some owners, it is acceptable to feed sugar gliders packaged baby food or frozen food which can be thawed in the daytime and fed to them at night. Sugar gliders can be given salt-free nuts or vanilla yogurt as treats. Sugar gliders can also be fed plants and flowers such as roses (with their thorns removed), lavender, lilac, dandelions, and bamboo. Sugar gliders are lactose intolerant but still need calcium. Some sugar glider owners add calcium to their pets diets, but it is not essential to do so.

It is best to feed sugar gliders at night because they are nocturnal. However, be sure to clear out any leftover food each morning, as it can rot, stink, and cause health problems to the sugar gliders if they try to eat it later. It is critical that their diet is well-balanced, as they easily develop vitamin deficiencies which are critical to their health.

Sources:

Sugarglider.com

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