A Creature of Habit

Virga and Cirrus were rehomed with us after seven years with another family. The "ladies" as we call them, are sisters. We didn't quite know what to expect with them. They had come from a home that had over time acquired four cats, so they were pretty wary and skittish. Virga,  the largest of the two gliders, seemed to be the more scared of things than Cirrus. She would crab the loudest and assume a defensive position at times in their pouch. She would crab at the slightest noise, and we wondered if and when she would come around.

It is just about a year since they joined us, and the change in Virga has been remarkable. She is somewhat of a character but is a sweetheart of a glider. Virga likes to be around us. She is the only one of our four gliders who will readily climb on to your arm if you offer it.  When Virga is running around the office or the tent with the others, she is the one who regularly will climb up to your shoulder to make sure you know she is still there. She also enjoys being petted and doesn't mind being picked up. Virga is also more prone to be grooming us, letting us know we are accepted.  M has a bunch of "Virga hickies" on her arm as a result of Virga grooming her when the four of them climb into the sleeve of M's robe in the morning.

Virga absolutely loves her meal worms, and is almost always the first one out when M shakes the container to get their attention.  She is also very persistent when it comes to opening one of the plastic containers we put meal worms in. She will stick with it while the others run off to play. I think they have realized she will get it open eventually and will come and share in the reward when she does finally open it. She seems to have become a little more patient when it's snack time. It can get pretty crazy when four gliders want their meal worms and you are trying to make sure they all get their fair share! Virga does like her food, vegetables in particular. When I place them in their cage after tent/office time each night, Virga is almost always the first and only one to head for the food bowl. The others usually head for their sleeping pouch for a nap first.

She knows there are meal worms in there!

Virga has become my favorite of the three females. In the year she has been with us it has been amazing to see how far she has come and become the friendly, and I would even say affectionate, glider she has become. Of the four gliders, she is also the easiest to distinguish physically. We think she is what is called a black beauty, with much darker markings on her face and on her legs. However, it is her personality that really stands out.