Bonding/interacting/handling sugar gliders

Some pics and variation of interacting with a sugar glider while in cage. It becomes a nightly ritual during feeding time and gets the glider use to you being around. It is after they approach the side of the cage and have calmed down in their territory. We like to bond or handle the babies and adults at night and during the daytime.
This is some pics of how we bond or approach our sugar gliders while in their cages, some are walk in cages.
Paulette started with them(Casper and daughter-Snowflake) with them getting a special piece of food out of the dish. Which encouraged them to come to her. Casper was very territorial when up at night but would gladly take atreat from the food dish. If she moved the dish or re-positioned it he got very mad and upset and let her know about it. Even if we were late feeding. She started by having a long dish(pics in Health and Hygeine post) and just slid half of dish in cage so he could get a favorite food. Eventually she could hold the dish inside the cage for him. The girl in the pic is his daughter and followed by coming to her and the dish. We moved him(Casper) and his wife(Princess) and babies into a larger 2 by 3 by 5 ft tall cage.

You also can approach the cage several different times at night and talk to them at first. Also when they calm down and start to watch you or approach the front of cage, then put your face(watch for nose nips or tastes) up against the wire. Sometimes also a quiet single pucker type kiss gets their attention enough that they do it back to you.
The pics below we did all in one night but it didn't happen in one night. We did each photo step for awhile and until baby was comfortable with it. Then tried the next and then on and on. The baby may nip or just put two fingers on your hand or fist at first. Also on your arm but if continued every night, should climb on arm or hand. They seem to like or trust your arm before they will walk on open hand so a fist also helps or fingers curled under. Also taste nip are less intense if baby does that. Don't chase them with your arm or hand, offer it and wait a little bit. If they back off or hunch up then SLOWLY withdraw and try later. When they make a move toward you then slowly put hand or arm, not directly at them or over them at first but kind of a side way forward motion. That way you aren't coming straight at them but going near them, even to the side or from the side. Of course still talk and other things to help sugar glider to get use to you. This is just extra along with daytime pouch or box method bonding/taming/handling.
Here are some pics of a loose order in steps from walking up to outside of cage to having her outside next to the cage. Don't let them out to escape...
Album with pictures of snow flake interacting with mom are all together. Descriptions of photos are below.
https://s108.photobucket.com/user/daddyglider/library/cagebonding?sort=3&page=1

first pic:
Snowflake coming to front of cage to check her human mommy.
Second pic:
Snowflake giving a kiss. Also can make a soft kiss type pop or pucker kiss, not loud though as a loud noise may scare the b

Third pic:
Snowflake coming to her arm and decided to give a kiss. No sudden movements as baby first approaches you as a tighten of your arm or moving may scare the sugar glider into jumping out or off of you. It is what we call a cross roads, will it be a good experience or will you start down the road of scaring the baby with the first contact.




Fourth pic:

Try approaching sugar glider snowflake and see how she reacts to Paulette's hand. Watching that she doesn't scare or chase Snowflake.
If the glider climbs on you just either hold still for a little while or move very, VERY slowly so the baby can get use to it.



Fifth Pic:
Snowflake climbing on her hand(Fist) and being comfortable on the arm as it is in her cage. Moving back and around after a few times of holding still to get use to the arm moving. If the baby is comfortable on your hand or arm then you can move it around slowly or offer the baby to get off on the other side of the cage. Then you can offer hand or arm to the sugar glider to climb on and be moved around. We called this elevator up and had some adults that wouldn't eat unless we let them climb on us and lifted them up to the food dish or the shelf they ate on. The cages were walk in ones. It was and is a nightly ritual or routine that they get use to. You can add other things into it once it is done regularly and with no hesitation or a short wait for them to come and climb on.


Sixth pic:
If sugar glider baby tries to climb out and escape you can cuddle it in your hand or block and guide it back in cage, without scaring the baby. One of the most important precautions is NOT to let your sugar glider escape in a dangerous situation where you have to chase it. You don't want to chase them or give them a reason to fear us humans. You can block them, cup them loosely so not to scare, corral them with both hands and kind of loosely herd them back in cage. These steps are only for or before you start out of cage time but can also be used in a sugar glider safe room. It is to get the baby use to come to you and to start moving forward and/or climbing on you. Have fun with your suggie family, time is always too short with them.
         HTH




written by
Arthur Gibbons