Alright, so I need some suggestions. My gliders are both chubbers lol. You can see them in this thread:

http://www.glidercentral.net/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/1108176#Post1108176

Background:

I'm really good about their diet. They get the recommended amount of HPW Complete for 2 gliders (2 TBSP water mixed with 1 TBSP powder fresh everynight, I don't freeze it), plus 1 TBSP each of fruit and 1 TBSP each of veggies.

Treats are not plentiful. Two or 3 times a week, Ruthie will get an unsalted almond slice (Gizzy doesn't go for them), then for nightly treats they each love a piece of dried papaya or a dried banana chip. Yogies are reserved for nail trimming days, once every 2 weeks or so. Licky treats include chicken and sweet potato babyfood. Other OCCASIONAL treats include a Cheerio each, a piece of Jill Marie's cookies, and a sugar cane stick. They get a treat apiece before going to bed for the day.

They aren't big fruit eaters so it's not that - Ruthie will usually eat part of HALF of a grape and maybe half of a cut up piece of canteloupe. Gizzy will eat most of a small piece of watermelon and 2 or 3 pieces of HALF of a blueberry, so it's not the fruit (I offer a wide selection of fruits, and sometimes they'll pick at other fruits, but that's mainly their MO).

They get plenty of out of cage time; in fact, I've increased it in the past month or so to two 1 - 1 1/2 hour times out of their cage, one around 8pm and one around midnight, upped from just 1 hour - 1 1/2 time out of their cage. So that's anywhere from 2-3 hours playtime everynight.

The only issue is: they don't use their wheel and I can'y figure out how to change that. We had a Wodent because I wouldn't have been able to fit a CC, Stealth, or regular sized TGI through my cage doors, but I recently bought the 9" TGI, which is perfect. I'm guessing this is part of the problem, but how do you make a glider get on a wheel and run lol????

I could use some suggestions here, I'm at a loss. I'd like them to lost some weight, but I feel like I've exhausted all of my options! Any thoughts or ideas on what I can do with my rolly pollies lol????

My chubby girl won't use a wheel. So to get her to lose 20 grams I came up with new solutions. I set her on top of a door and make her glide to me. I started off close to her and now I stand across the room. I also made a mealie tent. I pity her in a mesh hamper that I modified to zip closed and make her catch her mealies. I also made a bunch of foraging toys and put fruits/veggies in them. I swap them out and move them daily.

I actually just weighed her.. she lost 30 grams total so far. She's down to 161. Oh I also bought the cat feather toys/fishing toys n have her Chase them when she's out. I don't use the ones with feathers but it was the best description.. its a little stuffed toy at the end.

I also switched her from hpw to bml. She was originally on that, once I switched to bml she lost some weight. It was a suggestion by my vet. She said that gliders that tend to be heavy seem to lose weight better on bml. She said once weight is maintained I could switch back if I wanted. But she said she saw better weight loss in gliders on bml. She was saying the protein is higher in hpw and if its a fat glider the protein doesnt do anything other than make them chubbier. which makes sense because its the same with people. I got horribly sick and lost weight so I started taking protein without working out to gain some weight. It works.

I hope this helps! I know you like the hpw and maybe the exercise tips will help, but if not try switching to bml.

Oh one last thing, a friend got her glider to use the wheels by putting them in it and slowly moving it until they started using it on their own. It didn't work with Suggie she just stayed in place. She thinks its her glider kitchen lol. She takes food down to the wheels to eat in them. I have tried wodent wheels, stealth wheels, cc wheels.. the most she's used a wheel is the wodent wheel. I think its the easiest for her chubby body to operate.

I have more tips but I gotta go to work. Pm me if you would Luke more. Again, I hope this helps! They are cute though.. nothing cute than a chubby glider .

LOL, I think your rolly pollies need some more exercise. They are beautiful by the way.

I haven't had problems with any of my gliders figuring out how to use the wheel except for Boesman, he is a rescue that came to us with HLP, and was very under developed. He used to think the wheel was a very nice couch. It took him a while to take to it, but once he did, there was no stopping him.

We had to hold treats in front of him to encourage him to run his wheel, then we rewarded him with treats every once in a while after he gave the wheel a spin. To this day he will bark at night to show us any new achievements, I bet it has something to do with getting a treat when he "gets" it.

Do you put moving foraging toys in their cage? This can also help. Don't know if your babies glide, but encouraging them to glide or even just jump can also do wonders for exercise.

I do not have a Custom cruiser wheel, but I have heard great things on how the CC will tone several other muscles of your gliders.

Hope you get some fluff off of them soon.

Isn't the biggest risk (other than overheating of course) of hamster balls getting toes or nails snagged on carpet through a hole and then getting their toes broken? I can see avoiding that using either a hamtrack or only on solid floor.

I was making some foraging toys and had seen something I think by Brown's that was a foraging supplement; it was really twists of tissue paper that you could mix food pieces in (dried fruits or pellets of course) to make them dig through it to find the food. Anyone think that would be safe for gliders?

Do you put their food on the floor like in a kitchen there or do you hang the dish off the side of the cage? Mine are more apt to grab a bite and run off with it or hang to eat if the food isn't already on the floor. if you are doing a kitchen you could always hang the kitchen from the top instead.

I wasn't suggesting other people try to make them. It took me a good year or more to perfect it to where it had significant airflow, and no way of injuring toes/feet. Everything I make is with gliders in mind. I don't just whip stuff together and hope that it will go well.



"100 years of tradition unimpeded by progress."

The danger comes from the holes in hamster balls. Gliders can get their nails caught and with the speeds at which they move, they could get a nail caught and ripped off before you know it's stuck/ I'd love to know how this ball has been modified.

You can achieve the same thing by using strips of fleece. You can drop them into a container just like you would use for a ball pit. You can also stuff strips into large wiffle balls and stick a small yoggie inside it. I wouldn't use the tissue paper.

I used a silicone to put into the slits. I smoothed it completely on the inside to prevent them from being able to pull on it. I then made very small holes (smaller than their toys) throughout the entire ball. This has allowed it to have airflow. Not just a small amount either. It was the biggest pain in the keister and took FOREVER to do. I tested it by hooking up high velocity driers (I used to work at petsmart in the groomshop) they allowed me to use them and test it after & before hours. I made a solid seal around the drier too so I knew it wasn't just coming back out the hole entrance. PLUS I'm a nerd and tested it on myself lmao. I actually held it to my face for a good hour to see if I had enough airflow. I did the entire time. I am an asthmatic and if I don't get enough airflow I go into full blow attacks. So obviously if I had difficulty breathing I stopped and went back to modifying. AND AFTER GETTING ALL THE TINY HOLES DONE, I made sure there weren't any sharp stuff poking out from the holes made.

Like I said before.. it was long, and miserable doing this. But I had help with ideas as well as my job to allow me to test it.

I'm a nerd and wanted my sugar glider to actually use something other than just sit in her wheels.

AND despite all of this effort to make sure it was usable for an hour or more, I WONT use it more than 15 minutes at a time.

Sorry that's so long, I was trying to explain it to the best of my ability.

The worst part is, I thought of easier solutions AFTER making this.

That's always my luck too! Go through something painstaking and tedious just to think of something better later.

I may have missed it, as I am sleepy at the moment, but did anyone suggest feathers to use as teasers to get them to run?

I also put treats ALL over the room in high places so they have to climb to get them. All good exercises.

Yeah I suggested feather toys, but I found one that's like a fishing reel and has a little plush toy at the end. THEY LOVE IT.

put them in the wheel, then hold a piece of food in the wheel, they will start to move! lol

OK, let me try to answer all of you.

Foraging...got it covered. They have regular food bowls, MOVING/SWINGING foraging toys from Davie at Spoiled Rotten Suggies that I put HPW and fruits and veggies in, hanging containers with HPW, and Easter eggs that they have to open up to get to the food, so yes lol, foraging is covered for sure.

Gliding....ugh, such a pain this is. Neither will....ever. I literally waited for 47 minutes one night (I obviously had nothing else to do but watch the clock) as I waited to see if Gizzy OR Ruthie would jump to me from the top of the door I had put them on. No, they sat there, waiting me out. After 47 LONNNNNNNNNNG minutes, I knew it wasn't happening, so I took them down. They're really big about running around on the ground. I have an EXTREMELY glider-proofed bedroom, so they get full use of the room and they use every square inch of it. They run and chase eachother, climb up clothes in my closet, run along the top of my headboard on my bed, run along the bars in the closet that my clothes hang from. In fact, both of them have bonked their heads off walls because they run so fast they skid right across my wood floor and into a wall lol! They just much prefer being on the ground and running, and I dont think running around for an hour, hour and a half could be any WORSE for them than gliding, right??? I hope???? Please?????? lol

Liezl, I give them LOTS of playtime, like I said, 2-3 hours nightly out of the cage (honest to God closer to 3 by the time I round them both up and get them to go back into the cage), broken up into two sessions. I don't know if it's that they don't know HOW to use their wheel as much as they're lazy and don't WANT to lol. That's what's driving me nuts!!!!!!! Read above as to what they do during playtime, they're pretty darn active!

Teasers....they work for about 10 seconds. They'll run after it, realize I'm going to keep making them chase it for exercise and literally stop dead in their tracks, give me a death stare for "teasing" them and trot away haha. So much for that idea.....

They were originally on BML for 2 years, but stopped eating it, so that's when I switched to HPW Original and now we're on the Complete. Honestly, I think it has to do with the darn wheel not being used and not the diet, ugh! So frustrating lol!!

As for the balls, for me personally, I'm not comfortable using them, no matter what modifications have been made. There's a difference between me holding my mouth up to it and breathing in and them running around at top speed and getting out of breath. We each have our own ideas for our gliders, so I mean no disrespect, but I wouldn't feel safe letting my suggies use one.

Holding a treat in front of them in the wheel is a good idea, I'll give that a try. It'll have to be something they really love to get them going, like a small piece of plain chicken or scrambled egg.

The CC wheel is also a really good idea, but that will have to wait until summer when I get the huge Martin's cage and the doors are big enough for the wheel to fit through. My doors aren't nearly big enough to get a big CC through. Again, the issue will be getting them to USE IT . AS of now, they have a TGI.

Thanks for the support and ideas everyone, I appreciate the support. If anyone has any other unique or weird ideas, feel free to share lol!

Your stories made me laugh.

Lol, thanks Jill Marie, these two make my life a CIRCUS! In a good way, of course

Jess, I have one thing to say: Your babies are spoiled and got you well trained. I really enjoyed your feedback, lol, made me giggle. Our babies just do whatever pleases them and get away with it, don't they?

LOL, let me know if you can get them to use the CC! I bought mine for my chubby girl and she just uses it as her new food eating perch! I have tried her to use her wheel and she just uses her little ninja hands to snatch the treat. She sat in the wheel staring at the food for almost an hour the one day. As soon as I moved it A TINY BIT CLOSER... ninja hands got it. She may be "fluffy" but she's quick lol. If you figure out how to get them to run on the wheels be sure to let me know! I have tried treats, gently turning the wheel so she walked on it, and I just don't know of any other ideas lol. I got the CC, but it's really just a more expensive perch for her lmao.


*** As for the modified ball ***
Using the high velocity driers on it, even when secured to it, if there weren't enough holes it would shoot the ball across the room lol. So trust me it had PLENTY of air flow after almost knocking myself out with the hamster ball . I didn't realize how fast it would shoot off of it if there holes weren't plentiful lmao. (What baffles me is the fact that she likes using the ball, she hops right in it, but she WONT use the wheel?) The high velocity driers come out very hard and are only used on large sturdy breeds lol. I hit myself in the face with one of these driers one too many times.. doesn't feel good (which is why they are meant for body of dogs and not their face). ***(Not trying to argue, just trying to clarify that these things were fully tested and I almost pegged myself with one every time it didn't have enough holes in it LOL. I don't suggest anyone else make one unless they have the proper equipment and time to make it the right way.)***

Now I know you said they have lots of foraging toys, but are they all in the cage or do you swap them out? I know that seems to have stimulated my chubby girl a bit. She went from sleeping and eating to--> sleeping, eating, and exploring the different toy options.

Having them on top of the doorway is a little challenge at first and I had to coax her with treats. I started by standing right by the door with a treat so she just hopped down. Then I would move back a tiny bit. You have to use their FAVORITE treat otherwise they will just sit on the doorway like.. "hey nice view from up here... why are you just standing there staring at me?" lol. Sue gave me this idea. I also have her glide to her favorite place.. the couch! LOL she loves gliding onto our couch and then curling up in our blanket lmao. Sue was saying that gliding would get her to use different muscles than just walking/running. So I would try to get them to glide as much as possible. I had contacted her at her website the one time to discuss my chubby girl lol. To later find out she lived 15-20 mins away from me!

Anywho.. I know this is going to sound weird, but I have done it before. I attached a treat to the end of a long piece of fleece and put it in her cage. Her roomie isn't a big fan of certain treats so I made sure it was one she liked and he didn't. She spent a good 20 minutes trying to figure out how to get it. I hung it so it was dead center of the cage too far from the sides and bottom to reach (I removed some objects that she could have easily hung off of/climbed on to get to it and put them back once she got the food). So she had to actually work to get it. She finally figured out that she had to jump to grab the fleece and then she could pull out the treat. I have done this a few times, but I wait a few weeks each time so she hopefully forgets lol. The one time she crawled down the long line of fleece to get to it haha. So far she still spends time doing it/trying to figure it out (I think she's trying to find the fastest way to get to it), but it's thought!

If I think of any other things I have tried I will definitely let you know lol! This has been an ongoing battle of mine!

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh Liezl, the stories make me laugh AFTERWARD, but when I'm standing there like an idiot talking in a sing-song voice to what my parents who are walking by see as the top of a door, it's just plain bizarre. My mom stood there staring at me as I talked to the "door" - finally she asked who I was conversing with and I pointed out the munchkins sitting there, patiently waiting me out lol.

Tonight, I tried the gliding thing again for the heck of it - I was feeling inspired by all of your posts I got their favorite food in the whole world ready - chicken!!! I put them both on the top of my door and only backed up maybe 3-4 feet. I let them see the "treats" and started calling to them in that ridiculous sing-y voice I use with them lol. Well, would you all like to know the outcome of this experiment? What I'm about to say I could not make up if I tried, my father witnessed most of it on his way out to cook us chicken on the grill. Gizzy, fresh from a nail trim yesterday, tried CLIMBING DOWN THE DOOR. He took about 2 steps in a downward direction, realized he had no traction and actually started skidding down the door face first lol!!!! I ran over and caught him before he got too far, but I was peeing my pants I was laughing so hard. I let him sit on my bed with a glider-sized piece of chicken.

Next, Ruthie. Ruthie's watched Gizzy's disasterous attempt to get chicken and figured she wasn't attempting anything close to that, so she came up with an alternative option, equally as ridiculous, but really cute lol. She stared right at me and started just barking at me, barking at me like I've only heard her bark when something startles or scares her. Really really loud and quick, one right after the other. I ran over and got her. As soon as she hopped onto my arm, she stopped barking, climbed up my shoulder and sat there grooming herself and chirping! Little stinker!!!

The whole darn thing was a WASH UP hahaha!!!!!!!!!!!

What about ladders in their cage? More climbing means more exercise? I also puree my fruits & veggies and mix everything together, so they have to eat the fruit and stuff they normally would snub. Everyone loves their food and eats very well. No one is close to being fluffy. Mine all use their wheels tho. Hard to imagine any glider not loving its wheel. LOL!

Lol 5/6 of my suggies love using their wheels, 1/6 loves eating in it... she thinks it's a great glider kitchen LOL.

Connie, that's a good idea. They do have one ladder, but maybe I will get more. Who sells fun ladders, anyone know????

You know, I have a bunch that come with each cage I order. I don't even use them. PM me your mailing addy and I'll send these to you. I'm glad to be able to send them to you instead of staring at them, wishing I knew someone who could use them!

You're the best