Sugar gliders, small palm-sized marsupials with flaps on their arms similar to flying squirrels, are considered “exotic pets,” but you may not know much else about them.
Last week, the MSPCA took in a group of 33 sugar gliders all originating from the same Western Massachusetts owner who could not continue to take care of them in part due to medical issues.
All of the sugar gliders quickly received adoption applications, but for those new to sugar gliders there a few things you should know.
1. Is it legal to own a sugar glider in Massachusetts?
Sugar gliders are among a list of mammals which can be kept as pets in Massachusetts, according to mass.gov.
However, they are illegal to own as pets in a handful of states, such as California, which has a law in place to prohibit keeping many non-native animals as pets due to either endangerment of the species in the wild or the threat a species poses to native wildlife, agriculture or public health.
2. Where are sugar gliders found in the wild?
Sugar gliders are native to the forests of Australia and the island of New Guinea, according to the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, where they live in trees in small colonies or family groups and are primarily nocturnal.
The San Diego Wildlife Alliance added that their main distinguishing feature, the soft membrane between their wrists and ankles, allows them to glide from tree to tree as if using a parachute.
3. They’re called “sugar gliders” for a reason
According to the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance while small in size, these creatures also have the ability to glide for about 150 feet, or over 45 meters, and they are able to catch insects flying in midair — giving them the “glider” portion of their name.
The “sugar” part of their name derives from their “penchant for eating forest sweets like acacia gum, eucalyptus sap, and flower nectar,” according to the wildlife alliance. However, the marsupials are actually omnivores — meaning they eat both plants and other animals, it added.
4. What should you know about caring for a sugar glider as a pet?
Before you consider a sugar glider as a pet, prospective owners should know that captive sugar gliders can live up to a decade, if not longer — meaning owners must be prepared for a long-term commitment, according to pet supplier Chewy.
Owners must also be prepared to provide their sugar gliders with a large cage which must be cleaned on a weekly basis and should be kept in an area which is quiet during the day to allow the nocturnal animals to sleep, Chewy added.
Sugar gliders can form lifelong bonds with their owners, but must go through a bonding process replete with daily handling and playtime and therefore they require a “great deal of time and care,” according to the Westfield Animal Hospital in New Jersey.
Sugar gliders must also be kept in pairings or groups due to their highly social nature, according to the animal hospital.
The animals, being omnivorous, also require a varied diet consisting of a combination of insects, fruit, vegetables, nectar-based food and commercial pet food in their diets in order to stay healthy, according to the MSPCA-Angell.
- Read more: MSPCA receives more than 5,000 adoption inquiries for sugar gliders after ‘massive’ surrender
5. Their cuteness can come at a cost to them
While the animals’ cute appearance draws many to them — with groups like the MSPCA receiving hundreds of adoption inquiries for its latest bunch and thousands of inquiries for a similarly sized group of sugar gliders in 2020 — some warn that their looks may also lead them to harm.
Groups like PETA say “their very appeal is also their downfall,” with many owners buying the animals on impulse and not being fully prepared for the responsibility of taking care of them.
“Many people who buy sugar gliders on a whim come to realize that their home is simply an unsuitable environment for this type of animal,” PETA said. “When kept as ‘pets,’ they are denied everything that’s natural and meaningful to them.”
PETA also said that buying the animals leads to funding an “international network of suffering” as part of the international pet trade. The group recommended against commercially buying pets and instead only adopting from reputable shelters.