hi so i have one male sugar glider and he is very mean, he will bark and stuff if i look at him and bites a lot. i just adopted him from another owner who wasnt abusive at all. i want to convince my mom to let me get another one but she doesnt believe i need another one and says hes not lonely when he obviously is. please help me convince her and maybe provide facts and such saying why i need to get another one!!

First of all

Next, relax. I'm not sure the age of your glider, how long he's been alone, how many homes he's had, or if he's neutered. What I can tell you is your new little guy is not mean, I know, I used to feel the same way about one of my girls in my first female pair. (I now have a trio, after adding a lone male). Your little guy is very scared. If he was attached or at least cared well for by his previous owner, he may just be afraid due to new surroundings and new human. This would be easier for him to overcome, but even if he had a poor experience with humans, there is still hope.

You can't make him love you, and you can't make him trust you overnight. It's going to take time. I strongly recommend first that you read all you can on building a relationship with your gliders. Research here on the forum in "bonding & Relationships, starting with these reads Building a Relationship & Into the Bonding Pit

There are also many, many other good threads on peoples experiences and what we have learned about these wonderful critters.

Make sure you have him on a good diet, appropriate cage and accessories, and be patient and persistent.

As for helping to convince your mom on getting another one, show her first how you can be responsible in caring and building trust in this glider. After you have proved you can, talk to her again how even though your little guy has you, he's missing a sleeping and play buddy when you can't be there. Everyone needs one of their kind around.

Oh, he was the same way with the old owner, a family friend. he hates being held and would bark. hes an unneutered male about 6 years old. he is scared, but was scared at the old house too.

Was he always a lone glider? And if he's unneutered, you may want to get that done if you're planning on a cage mate. He may be used to being alone at this time, so I recommend just concentrating on trust building, and getting to know his full personality, you'll be amazed!


Okay, it could be that if the previous owner had tried to hold him, that could be why he was scared, gliders don't typically like to be held. Or maybe proper trust-building methods were not used. I guarantee you, if following proper trust-building methods were used, he's going to come around.

Now, each glider is unique and will bond at different rates, and to varying degrees. You will se some who have gliders that are extremely bonded to them, that doesn't always happen to that extreme degree. Make sure you're willing to except your glider's potential.

Also, though both articles give a great insight and explain very important trust-building steps, you do not have to spend hours a day. Every day should have some time spent, but most people do not have hours to dedicate to trust-building steps, and that's okay. I made progress with my Lulu, as also my other gliders and didn't spend hours & hours a day. The more time you have to dedicate, the better is true, but just saying, if you can't, do not fret over it. I do think at least one collective hour a day is crucial, and if some days you can do more, do it. When I say collective, this means it doesn't have to be a one-hour session, it could be a 30 min session 2x day, or even 2-15 min sessions, and a 30 min throughout the day. I started with spending 10-15 minutes with my gliders in the early morning, either through the cage or later (as trust grew) on me, just standing outside the cage, offering treats and light, slow touches. Then later in the day spent about another 10-15, or even 20 min of "pouch time", and more time later in the evening, again at first through the cage bars, then out on me. Eventually, being I didn't have a tent, or a place to set one up, I used my small bathroom, carefully glider-proofed, and let them have 3 evenings a week of about 40-60 minutes of out of cage play, as well as daytime "pouch time" and early morning cage visits.

I hope this helps encourage you to follow trust building steps with your little guy.

:welcome2:to GC!

I have to agree with Terry.

You need to be able to handle him somewhat before you think about another glider. And because of his age, neutering is a great idea before you think about getting him a friend.

He is set in his ways, and has to un-learn a few things... Biting makes humans go away. He doesn't trust humans.

Does he have a sleeping pouch that hangs on the side of the cage? Does he have toys or a safe wheel?

Xut some fleece into 4" squares. Rub them on your neck or stuff them in your pillow case to get your scent on them. Tuck them into his sleeping pouch so he can get used to your scent. Change out every other day. Lay an old worn by you t-shirt on top of his cage too.

Sit and read to him. It can be anythong. He just needs to hear your voice. Talk softly and sweetly. Sing to him. Be patient. I have one that took me 6 months to quit biting, another 3 months before she trusted me.

Please keep us posted on your progress. I think you may be surprised what a little calm voice and patience do to help soothe your little man. Also feed him treats through the cage bars when he comes out. Good luck !

You have been given some great information.

bonding with this boy will take time and you must let him set the pace, sit next to his cage and read to him.

Sit there and do your homework, read it outloud to him.

I am going to move this to bonding and relations. Please keep us posted on your progress.

Thank you everyone for the help! I'll try talking and singing to him (I have been doing that but I guess he's still new and doesn't trust me yet. But I still think I should get another glider to make him less lonely

sugarglidher6,

Yes, it would be good to get him another glider... someday. Please, in the meantime, you need him to be comfortable with you. The process of introducing a new glider to another one takes quite a bit of time from everything/everyone I've read here. It involves many, many nights or pouch swapping, sent sharing, & after all that, introductions attempts. It really is an attempt with no guarantee of success.

Work with you boy. You should at least get to a point where he wants to meet you as you approach the cage & doesn't run or bite if you stick your hand near him. It may take a couple months, or more! Then would be a time to consider a partner, who will have to go through the same process as you. If he trusts you, he'll be that much less nervous about others changes (like meeting new gliders).