In Reply to: Questions for owners posted by Jen on February 11, 19100 at 11:50:55:

: 1st question: Should I purchase one glider in the intial beginning to bond to and then sometime later get another one? (I feel they need atleast one glider companion) Or should I buy two right away?

i have always had two. i just take turns bondong with them.but yes one will probably bond faster to you. i just think they like to play with their own kind.

: 2) Are they difficult to take care of? I have read soooo many opinions on their food and diet.. Is it hard to keep up with them? How much more interaction do the little guys need beyond carrying them with you during the day and letting them out of their cage for an hour or two to run around?

once you get their diet down pat, its not that hard:) i was really worried at first but i found something they really like and ive been feeding it over a year now and they are active and healthy. i feed a modified ledbeaters every night (they LOVE it), it has fruit, vegetable and meat baby food, baby cereal, omnisaur rep vits (its high protein), grated carrots/sweet potato, bee pollen, linatone for dogs, all mixed together with honey melted in apple juice, it looks gross but they love it. if i run out of rep vits, i give some calcium and chicken. mealworms as treats, nuts rarely. some nights i skip the mix and give fresh fruits and vegetables. i just thaw out some good quality frozen vegetables, and offer them broccoli or whatever vegetable they haven't had for a while. remember they are small animals so they don't really eat that much at once, mine often wake up in the afternoon for a 'midnight' snack. they do love variety but don't offer too many kinds at once, they'll get finicky, like a cat.

in their cage they have lots of bird type toys. especially rings or circles they can run through or carry around, they only play at night though. my boy loves to run in the hamster wheel all night. i use shredded newspaper as bedding (shavings wouldn't work in their cage). and they have branches to run on and chew, make sure they aren't from aromatic woods.

: 3) Is it true that your arms are all scratched up? It is easy to clip their nails? I know about the sand paper, does that help?

i used to try to clip their nails. it was too difficult and i was afraid oc clipping their toes. i have left them unclipped now for many months. yes my arms get scratched but i don't mind. never tried sandpaper.

: 4) Do they and their cages smell up a room (I will be getting females only)? Being that I would be putting them in the most populated area in the house (the living room) I can't have the room smelling terribley..

i have a female and nutered male. they don't smell at all. i clean their (big) cage once every week or so. i scrub the wires because they do smell after a while since gliders are indiscriminate about where they go bathroom. my cage is also in the living room.

: 5) Do you find they urinate and deficate on you and their surroundings a consiterable amount? (My hubby may not like to hug me much if they do... JK =) )
yes, especially after they wake up. they can't be potty trained. i just wait till their done before they come out of their cage
: 6) Gliderade, Accufeed, etc.. these are Glider products.. Are they beneficial to have? Do you feel that there are better things to use? How do you make sure that your gliders are getting what they need??
: I have read about the Ledbetters diet and that seems an excellent and easy way to feed them, but I want to make sure they receive the best, closest diet to their natural habitat as possible..

don't have any of those products available here, so don't know.
: Luckily most of my questions have been answered by the help of you fine folks and the information I have received here on the net.. For the most part, I get the feeling, once you become an owner - you find that these are wonderful loving pets.. I have not heard one person on here say that they have regretted getting one. So I will take that as a good sign.

: Thanks Again everyone and I look forward to reading you comments!

: Jen

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