I played with the colony tonight. Still need to work with Arwen and Eilonwy on biting. After I was done I put them back in the cage and realized I never got them a treat for the night and came in to find Eilonwy sitting on the hammock with Elric on top. Looked like he was thrusting to mate. Eilonwy seemed fine with it until Dobby showed up and grabbed at her and I blew on him when it looked like he was going to pull her off the hammock. Elric went back at it bit on the back of her head but it did not look aggressive and she was calm.

Both Dobby and Elric are neutered (or I am going to have a chat with the breeder). I know that neutered gliders sometimes mate but the girls are only five months out of pouch and the boys six months. I thought they were still too young. I thought it might be dominance behavior but Elric and Eilonwy are not at the top of the colony and Eilonwy seemed too passive. I have also seen the behavior of climbing on the back and I never saw hip thrusting.

Any thoughts on what it most likely is?

At their age, which is equal to adolescent behavior, is normal. They may also be working on the pecking order of the colony.

I would watch and check them daily for awhile to make sure there are no accidental wounds. IF by chance someone becomes wounded, remove them immediately and they will need to be seen by a vet.

As far as your biters, they do eventually stop... For mine I had to do some fist time first. Have you tried making a "Tsk", "Sshh", or "Tsss" sound when they bite? Are you flinching? If you're flinching, they have learned that it makes you leave them alone. Some may not listen when you make noises. I has one like that. Even when I followed it with a firm No... That's when I had to use fist time... Fist time is basically putting your fisted hand into their pouch. I can talk you through that if you like.

I watched them and when they stopped I handed out treats and checked her over, she seemed fine. I will check her when she wakes up tonight too in case they took it up again.

I do use the hiss and sometimes it stops Eilonwy but Arwen seems to ignore it. If the hiss does not work I have started blowing a puff of air at the back of their head. This almost always work. Sure, what is the first method. I have put my hand into the pouch and usually they just lick it and nip a bit and go to sleep on it. Is this something else?

First, wash hands with unscented soap to remove any tastey scents.

Basically "Fist time" is placing your fist in to the sleeping pouch. Since the skin is tightened, they can't get a hold on it. And when they try to bite, it doesn't hurt, so flinching is easier to avoid.

Once your fist is in there awhile, you can slowly open your fingers. It's better to work fingers to the bottom of the pile to show submission. That you mean no harm. When you remove your hand, you can place it on top of the glider pile briefly. At this point, you'll get a feel for your colony and what they like. Some like belly rubs, some just want to hang on to your finger and snuggle.

Okay, that sounds similar to what I am doing. A couple of days a week when I get home from work and get settled I will take their sleeping pouch out and put in on my bed or couch next to me. Then I slowly put my hand in. Sometimes they nip it but bites on my hand rarely hurt. Eventually they start snuggling up to my hand and start clicking in contentment.

I think the biting problem has to do with clothing somehow as (excepting accidental bites when I am cleaning them most of the bites are on jeans or t shirt when we are playing. Arwen might think she is grooming or think denim is bark and is trying to get to some sap. Eilonwy is the same way but is less aggressive. I am switching to a scent free laundry detergent in case that is the problem. They almost never bite me directly when playing even when grooming my ears and neck.

Edit: I am hoping age will mellow the girls a bit. The boys used to do it a bit but they have stopped and they are older.

My girls are almost 5 years old and Stewie just turned 1. All of them only bite me hard right now occasionally... And I'm used to it and they know they aren't supposed to bite. Stewie still tests me, but he hasn't drawn blood like the other two have.

Mine rarely bite hard except for Arwen and Eilonwy. All nip occasionally and sometimes wraps their mouth around with no pressure before they realize it is me. It was funny to watch Arwen about to bite once but then she looked at me to see if I was watching. Mine have never drawn blood though and only Arwen and Dobby have ever gone into fight mode with me and both times I deserved it or was doing something I generally would not do.

That's when I get my bites. Occasionally when I'm clipping nails.

Dot was a problem child when we got her at 12wks Oop... It was her goal that when she was touched, fed, hand in cage to feed or pick up dishes, was to draw blood... It took her 6 months to give that up... It took 9 months to bond with her. Now she only draws blood when she's really mad. Otherwise, to hoomans, she can be sweet.

I am fortunate that I have never had to clip nails yet. They started to long and I put a wheel in that trims them a little (but a grille keeps it from trimming too much and some coarser branches to climb and play on and they are fine. I was worried at first because Elric fell a few times because he was used to his really long nails but they have all adjusted and can climb well all over the cage, their tent, and me. Before that my arms made it look like I have taken up cutting and stabbing myself with a needle.