Flurry has been with us a week now. He has calmed down some and will let us pet and handle him, but he still a nervous and at times scared glider. M has been carrying him a bonding pouch every day and he does pretty well. He crabs a little, but he is also curious and will pop his head to to check things out. M has been taking him in our small bathroom for his morning yogurt and a chance to run around and he seems to enjoy that.
For some reason he is particularly skittish and nervous when he is in his cage. We wonder if he had a bad experience in a cage in one of his earlier homes. The owner we obtained him from purchased him at a local pet store because he was by himself and didn't look very good. He had been purchased previously by someone else but they brought him back. You don't normally see sugar gliders in pet stores. Apparently one of the employees there had sugar gliders of her own and they had joeys, and then tried to sell them through the pet store. So, there is no telling what he might have been through before his last owner. He probably has been by himself for most of his life. It's also possible that he was ignored and not socialized a great deal, if not mistreated, at some point. We inadvertently freaked him out a little this weekend when we cleaned his cage and washed his toys. He did not know what to make out of all the new smells and lack of familiar smells.
We are not sure how old he is, but he is probably close to a year. He has been eating very well his first week here which is good to see. Flurry tipped the scale at 100 grams at the weekly weigh-in yesterday, which is as much as CB and Rossby.
Monday, February 3, 2014
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Meet Flurry, Our Newest Addition
Long time, no posts! With the holidays and some other things going on here in the household blogging hasn't been a the top of the list - just not enough time. That, and there haven't been a lot of new developments to report. CB and Sprite, and Rossby and Foehn are still getting along as pairs. We've recently started efforts to get Foehn and Sprite reacquainted, but more on that in a future post.
Yesterday we brought home a new glider. M checks out the local Craigslist listings occasionally just to see if there are any gliders posted. In the first week of January she pointed out an ad from someone who had a single glider they were trying to rehome. It was like other ads of that type, but there were a few photos of the little guy. She made vague probes about what I thought but I didn't bite. With everything that has been going on (not necessarily with the gliders) it was the last thing I was going to worry about.
Yesterday she noticed that the ad had been reposted with a little more info, including the rehoming fee. He was a lone glider, and the owner could not devote the time to him between working and caring for a new baby. After some discussion M emailed the owner and asked if the glider was still available. He was, and she was willing to take a lower fee since we were going to have to take him to the vet for a check and to get him neutered. So later in the afternoon we drove over and picked him up. The owners liked the fact we had gliders already. They were intent on finding a good home for him, even having turned down an offer from someone they didn't feel good about. We left with Flurry, a pouch, and some of his toys.
Once home we placed him in the cage we had set up (the cage we got with Virga and Cirrus). He was a scared little guy and has done a lot of crabbing the last 24 hours letting us know that. He's getting better about it, though, and we have been talking to him and trying to reassure him. He ate well last night, and ended up sleeping in the pouch we placed in the cage for him. I just went to put his dinner in the cage and he was peeking out at me from the pouch with only a bit of crabbing. Flurry is doing pretty well so far. He's been though a lot in his short life so we hope he will thrive in a more stable setting. I'll have more on his background in the next post.
Yesterday we brought home a new glider. M checks out the local Craigslist listings occasionally just to see if there are any gliders posted. In the first week of January she pointed out an ad from someone who had a single glider they were trying to rehome. It was like other ads of that type, but there were a few photos of the little guy. She made vague probes about what I thought but I didn't bite. With everything that has been going on (not necessarily with the gliders) it was the last thing I was going to worry about.
Yesterday she noticed that the ad had been reposted with a little more info, including the rehoming fee. He was a lone glider, and the owner could not devote the time to him between working and caring for a new baby. After some discussion M emailed the owner and asked if the glider was still available. He was, and she was willing to take a lower fee since we were going to have to take him to the vet for a check and to get him neutered. So later in the afternoon we drove over and picked him up. The owners liked the fact we had gliders already. They were intent on finding a good home for him, even having turned down an offer from someone they didn't feel good about. We left with Flurry, a pouch, and some of his toys.
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| Flurry, our new arrival. The spot on his head is his scent gland. That will gradually disappear one he is neutered. |
Once home we placed him in the cage we had set up (the cage we got with Virga and Cirrus). He was a scared little guy and has done a lot of crabbing the last 24 hours letting us know that. He's getting better about it, though, and we have been talking to him and trying to reassure him. He ate well last night, and ended up sleeping in the pouch we placed in the cage for him. I just went to put his dinner in the cage and he was peeking out at me from the pouch with only a bit of crabbing. Flurry is doing pretty well so far. He's been though a lot in his short life so we hope he will thrive in a more stable setting. I'll have more on his background in the next post.
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| Flurry shortly after he was placed in his new cage. |
Friday, November 22, 2013
Maybe There is Light at the End of the Tunnel
CB and Sprite have been getting along great the last several weeks and have really bonded. We have been switching cages between the pairs every week and that has generated some interesting behavior. Sprite lived alone in the smaller cage for several months and it was her domain. Once she and CB paired up and we started switching cages, she has behaved somewhat the same as Foehn when she was camping out at one end of the big cage to watch Sprite. When she is in the big cage Sprite goes to the end near the smaller cage and makes a low crabbing sound at Foehn in the smaller cage. I wasn't quite sure what this was about at first but I think she is trying to let Foehn know that the small cage was her territory and not Foehn's. She isn't nearly obsessive about as Foehn was when she is in the big cage. As they have all gotten more used to the arrangement even Foehn seems to have mellowed out a bit and doesn't spend as much time checking on Sprite and Rossby.
For the first time in over a month we reunited Rossby with Sprite and CB today. M carried them around in a pouch all day, and I had them in the tent together tonight. I'll probably take Foehn, Rossby, and CB tomorrow night and see how that goes. M said Foehn stuck her nose in the trio pouch today while giving them yogurt, but did not go after anyone. That's a small but good sign. Maybe we'll be able to get all four together yet.
This evening M was giving Sprite (and then Rossby) a drink of cranberry juice. They really like it (actually all of them do) and they will readily climb out for a drink. I took this photo of them while they were out getting their drink tonight.
For the first time in over a month we reunited Rossby with Sprite and CB today. M carried them around in a pouch all day, and I had them in the tent together tonight. I'll probably take Foehn, Rossby, and CB tomorrow night and see how that goes. M said Foehn stuck her nose in the trio pouch today while giving them yogurt, but did not go after anyone. That's a small but good sign. Maybe we'll be able to get all four together yet.
This evening M was giving Sprite (and then Rossby) a drink of cranberry juice. They really like it (actually all of them do) and they will readily climb out for a drink. I took this photo of them while they were out getting their drink tonight.
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| Sprite and Rossby having some cranberry juice. |
Monday, October 28, 2013
Success!
It's been a month since my last post, not necessarily for lack of things to write about. I've been trying to shake a cold/respiratory thing for over two weeks, and it's one of those things that drains the energy out of you. By the time I was done with the gliders I was done for the night myself.
Well, back to our success. About two or three weeks ago we decided to try a different strategy. We moved Sprite's cage within a few inches of the trio's cage, in hopes that Foehn would get used to her being in proximity and relax. The second thing we did is to limit play time to Sprite and CB together by themselves. One thing that was occurring was that once Foehn got everyone riled up by chasing Sprite, they wouldn't settle down again even if she was removed from the cage. Our hope was that Sprite and CB would be more likely to feel comfortable around each other without other distractions.
Over the course of the last couple of weeks we did see small signs of progress. They would briefly approach each other, but then one of them would bolt and that scared the other one. The one very positive sign was that they were not chasing each other down and balling up. CB seemed to be the one who was more skittish about everything and once spooked he tended to keep his distance. It was, for a while, a one-step-foward-two-steps-back kind of thing. Last week we saw the first major step. CB was running on the wheel while in the tent and Sprite jumped on the wheel to join him. Instead of jumping right off as he usually did, he stayed on the wheel for a minute or two. No crabbing, no chasing, just two gliders running like crazy on the wheel. Since that night they have been pretty neutral about things. For example, on Saturday night after I gave them their mealworms CB curled up on a pouch to sleep and Sprite found a spot under the tarp in the tent to settle down. That was it until it was time to put them back in their respective cages.
Last night was the game changer. I had all four gliders in the tent for mealworms. After they all had their fill, I coaxed Foehn and Rossby back into their sleeping pouch and M returned them to their cage. Sprite was in a bonding pouch (M had carried her most of the day) and CB was on my lap. To my surprise, he slowly entered Sprite's pouch. There was one small bark (not sure who it was from), and that was all. I looked in the pouch and Sprite and CB were getting themselves comfortable in the bottom. We couldn't believe it at first. We went so far as to double-check it was in fact CB with her and not Rossby (made that mistake before). Sure enough, it was CB in the pouch with her. We had decided some time back that if these two ever got together, we would leave them together. So last night CB spent the night in Sprite's cage.
They were still a little nervous with each other, and once they were out in the cage they tended to avoid each other. CB spent hours on the wheel and must have been one exhausted glider this morning. They ended up sleeping apart last night, which is understandable and fine. It will take them a little bit to get used to each other, especially since Sprite has been by herself for so long now.
Well, back to our success. About two or three weeks ago we decided to try a different strategy. We moved Sprite's cage within a few inches of the trio's cage, in hopes that Foehn would get used to her being in proximity and relax. The second thing we did is to limit play time to Sprite and CB together by themselves. One thing that was occurring was that once Foehn got everyone riled up by chasing Sprite, they wouldn't settle down again even if she was removed from the cage. Our hope was that Sprite and CB would be more likely to feel comfortable around each other without other distractions.
Over the course of the last couple of weeks we did see small signs of progress. They would briefly approach each other, but then one of them would bolt and that scared the other one. The one very positive sign was that they were not chasing each other down and balling up. CB seemed to be the one who was more skittish about everything and once spooked he tended to keep his distance. It was, for a while, a one-step-foward-two-steps-back kind of thing. Last week we saw the first major step. CB was running on the wheel while in the tent and Sprite jumped on the wheel to join him. Instead of jumping right off as he usually did, he stayed on the wheel for a minute or two. No crabbing, no chasing, just two gliders running like crazy on the wheel. Since that night they have been pretty neutral about things. For example, on Saturday night after I gave them their mealworms CB curled up on a pouch to sleep and Sprite found a spot under the tarp in the tent to settle down. That was it until it was time to put them back in their respective cages.
Last night was the game changer. I had all four gliders in the tent for mealworms. After they all had their fill, I coaxed Foehn and Rossby back into their sleeping pouch and M returned them to their cage. Sprite was in a bonding pouch (M had carried her most of the day) and CB was on my lap. To my surprise, he slowly entered Sprite's pouch. There was one small bark (not sure who it was from), and that was all. I looked in the pouch and Sprite and CB were getting themselves comfortable in the bottom. We couldn't believe it at first. We went so far as to double-check it was in fact CB with her and not Rossby (made that mistake before). Sure enough, it was CB in the pouch with her. We had decided some time back that if these two ever got together, we would leave them together. So last night CB spent the night in Sprite's cage.
They were still a little nervous with each other, and once they were out in the cage they tended to avoid each other. CB spent hours on the wheel and must have been one exhausted glider this morning. They ended up sleeping apart last night, which is understandable and fine. It will take them a little bit to get used to each other, especially since Sprite has been by herself for so long now.
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Still Working at It
It's been four weeks since my last post, but September has been a busy month in this household. Nevertheless we have continued our efforts to get all of our gliders together. There hasn't been a lot of change since the last post, but I don't think we've taken any steps backward. We have made a number of adjustments to the play time routine. On one night CB, Rossby, and Foehn play together, and on alternate nights Foehn gets put back in the cage and Sprite stays with the boys. Foehn was getting too aggressive trying to get at Sprite and we were really worried one of them would get hurt. With the current arrangement we can continue to work on the CB/Sprite relationship. When Foehn started her chasing it got all of them riled up and everyone was on edge the rest of the time.
About a week ago the zipper on the tent we use for playtime broke and since then I have been using one or our bathrooms for this (a replacement tent is on the way). Until recently they have all been pretty quiet. They would come out of the pouch after their mealworms and run around and explore for a few minutes, then go back in the pouch or crawl under the tarp and nap. They have been much more active the last two nights. Except, that is, for CB. He has, for the most part, preferred to remain in the pouch and arrange his blankets. He pulls them into the pouch around him and arranges them to his liking, and eventually settles down for a nap. A few days ago the normally active Rossby raced through the pouch (it was on the floor) undoing all of CB's work. CB came out and pulled all of the blankets back in around him. A few minutes later, Rossby did them same thing. CB looked out at me as if to say "Really??"
Tonight CB came out for a a few minutes, but then retreated to the pouch to arrange his blankets for a nap. I checked on him later and there he was, with his tail around his head trying to sleep.
About a week ago the zipper on the tent we use for playtime broke and since then I have been using one or our bathrooms for this (a replacement tent is on the way). Until recently they have all been pretty quiet. They would come out of the pouch after their mealworms and run around and explore for a few minutes, then go back in the pouch or crawl under the tarp and nap. They have been much more active the last two nights. Except, that is, for CB. He has, for the most part, preferred to remain in the pouch and arrange his blankets. He pulls them into the pouch around him and arranges them to his liking, and eventually settles down for a nap. A few days ago the normally active Rossby raced through the pouch (it was on the floor) undoing all of CB's work. CB came out and pulled all of the blankets back in around him. A few minutes later, Rossby did them same thing. CB looked out at me as if to say "Really??"
Tonight CB came out for a a few minutes, but then retreated to the pouch to arrange his blankets for a nap. I checked on him later and there he was, with his tail around his head trying to sleep.
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| "Can't a guy get some sleep around here?" |
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Not Sure Where We are Going...
...but we will know when we get there.
The gliders have pretty much maintained the status quo the last few weeks. One big change is that we no longer are letting Foehn and Sprite share the tent at playtime. When Sprite is in the tent Foehn is determined to get at her to the pint where she doesn't do anything else. To be fair, sometimes all she wants to do is sniff Sprite and check her out, but Sprite takes exception and the result is usually a ball-up and lots of noise. That gets the other two on edge, and then all we have is everyone trying to stay away from everyone else. So, on one night CB, Foehn, and Rossby play in the tent with me, and on the next night it's CB, Rossby, and Sprite. Sprite and CB aren't good buddies yet, but most of the time they leave each other alone. Lately both of them have been venturing closer to each other. Last night I looked down and CB, Rossby, and Sprite were all nose-to-nose in one corner of the tent. Then one of them realized how close they were and took off, followed quickly by the other two. I think they are both slowly coming around, so maybe it will only be a couple of more weeks before we can get them together. In the meantime it will mean two play times, two snack times, etc. However, it will be all worth it if we get get them together.
The gliders have pretty much maintained the status quo the last few weeks. One big change is that we no longer are letting Foehn and Sprite share the tent at playtime. When Sprite is in the tent Foehn is determined to get at her to the pint where she doesn't do anything else. To be fair, sometimes all she wants to do is sniff Sprite and check her out, but Sprite takes exception and the result is usually a ball-up and lots of noise. That gets the other two on edge, and then all we have is everyone trying to stay away from everyone else. So, on one night CB, Foehn, and Rossby play in the tent with me, and on the next night it's CB, Rossby, and Sprite. Sprite and CB aren't good buddies yet, but most of the time they leave each other alone. Lately both of them have been venturing closer to each other. Last night I looked down and CB, Rossby, and Sprite were all nose-to-nose in one corner of the tent. Then one of them realized how close they were and took off, followed quickly by the other two. I think they are both slowly coming around, so maybe it will only be a couple of more weeks before we can get them together. In the meantime it will mean two play times, two snack times, etc. However, it will be all worth it if we get get them together.
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| Sprite munching on one of the blueberries in her yogurt yesterday morning. |
Friday, August 16, 2013
Some Slow Progress
Time in the tent, in close proximity. seems to have been gradually improving the situation between Sprite and CB. Sprite no longer chases CB, and they will actually get relatively close to each before one of them, usually CB, jumps away. I have also wrapped one or the other up some fleece and held one close to the other. Tonight I had CB wrapped up, and Sprite just sniffed him and then walked away. CB wasn't exactly thrilled, but there were no problems afterwards.
We are still having problems with Foehn an her chasing. She goes after Sprite, and sometimes CB. She and Sprite ball up at times, but Sprite has become pretty good at anticipating her moves and stays ahead of her, often ending up on my shoulder.
One of Sprite's favorite things now is running on the treadmill in the tent. She will run as fast as she can to get it spinning, then stop running and hang on. Her head will be at the center and she will hold on until the treadmill stops spinning, her tail straight out over the edge. When it slows down, she starts running to get it spinning again. It's like watching a little kid playing on one of the merry-go-rounds on a playground.
We are still having problems with Foehn an her chasing. She goes after Sprite, and sometimes CB. She and Sprite ball up at times, but Sprite has become pretty good at anticipating her moves and stays ahead of her, often ending up on my shoulder.
One of Sprite's favorite things now is running on the treadmill in the tent. She will run as fast as she can to get it spinning, then stop running and hang on. Her head will be at the center and she will hold on until the treadmill stops spinning, her tail straight out over the edge. When it slows down, she starts running to get it spinning again. It's like watching a little kid playing on one of the merry-go-rounds on a playground.
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| Sprite hanging on for a spin on the glider treadmill. |
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