Sugar Glider

United States

Sugar gliders are small marsupials that are native to the forests of Australia, Indonesia, and New Guinea. They are omnivores that spend most of their lives searching the treetops for fruits, insects, eggs, and a wide range of other foods. Sugar gliders are specially adapted to arboreal living, and were named for their unique ability to glide from one tree to another on wing-like membranes between their front and rear legs. They also have prehensile hands and feet for clinging onto bark and tree limbs, as well as semi-prehensile tails.

Sugar gliders are extremely gregarious animals, and in their natural environment prefer to live in groups of ten to fifteen. People who keep them as pets find that they can easily establish strong bonds with their gliders as a result, and they can comfortably carry them around in public without any fear that they will run away. Female sugar gliders have pouches in which they raise their young; a shirt pocket often becomes a substitute pouch for pet gliders. Since they are nocturnal animals, many an owner has found it convenient to let a glider sleep the day away in their “pouch” while he or she works.

Sugar gliders require about the same level of attention and investment as any other pet. They are happiest when they have company, whether it’s human or another glider. Commercially marketed pet foods are now available that are tailored to the specific dietary needs of sugar gliders, so it is relatively easy to keep them healthy and happy. Most owners find that keeping gliders is a fun and rewarding experience.