by Liza Cameron Wasser

Created on: March 03, 2009

A sugar glider requires a high protein, low fat diet for optimum health. Sugar gliders are omnivores and eat a wide variety of foods, but there are some common foods that may make your pet ill.

Avoid giving your sugar glider any processed foods. Most processed foods contain added sugars, salts and fats. Feed your pet only fresh foods or processed foods with no additional ingredients. Organic grocery stores carry baby foods and other processed foods without added sugars, salts, fats or preservatives.

There are also many fresh foods that are not good for your pet's health. Garlic, onions, scallions, chives and other vegetables in the Alliaceae family have been shown to cause health problems in many domestic animals. Although no studies have been done specifically on the effects of these foods in sugar gliders, it is best to avoid them. If you feed your sugar glider baby food meat sticks, check the list of ingredients for powdered onion or garlic.

Sugar gliders are lactose intolerant. Although they require calcium for good nutrition, they should not get their calcium from a dairy source. Do not feed your sugar glider milk or cheese. These can cause serious digestive problems. The jury is still out on whether you can feed your sugar glider yogurt. Some experts say that yogurt is dairy, period. Some say that yogurt contains bacteria that aid in digestion, so that plain, non-fat yogurt is an acceptable food.

Chocolate can cause a toxic chemical reaction in many animals, including sugar gliders. Any product containing caffeine is toxic to your sugar glider. These include coffee, tea and cola. Avoid these foods totally.

Although fresh fruits are healthy, the pits and seeds of fruits are toxic to your pet. Remove all seeds and pits of any fruits you give your sugar glider. Other nuts and seeds can cause constipation in sugar gliders and should be saved for a rare treat or avoided altogether. Citrus fruits may cause diarrhea so do not feed these to your pet every day. Remember, when cutting up fruit to give your sugar glider, cut the fruit in large pieces, as smaller pieces dry out faster.

Raw eggs and raw meat are not good for your pet, but cooked eggs or meat are fine. Do not use fats or oils when cooking the meat or eggs. Hard boil the eggs and buy lean cooked meats without added ingredients.

A sugar glider in the wild gets most of its protein from insects. You can feed your sugar glider live or freeze dried insects, but do not feed him wild insects that you have caught in your yard. These can have parasites or pesticides, which are harmful to your pet.

Knowing what foods to choose and which to avoid will help you keep your sugar glider healthy.

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