i never expected my sugg to have a baby.
i really dont know the first thing to do i took off school (i also have a dentist apt) so my moma and i are gonna go in town and get supplies to take care of this little surprise its so adorable first joey id ever seen. Im in love ^_^
but i need to know kinda what to do and go about this. please help with any tips. im gonna keep readin up on this site for more info.
thanks!

i see 12 of you have read this. plz help me out. when do i start feeding this baby? its 1 day out of the pouch. does the mother just feed it? please help.

The best thing to do is read through this site -

www.suzsugargliders.com/

Provide mom extra food(particularly protein and calcium rich items). She will do most of the work hopefully. Get together a rejection kit asap though just in case she doesn't.

Do you have a male and female? If the male isn't around, you will have to help out more with babysitting(keeping the baby warm while mom gets some play time, eats, etc.)

what is a rejection kit
i held the mother and baby this morning i doubt shell reject the little joey. but the father also is in the cage with them. theyre a bonded pair i bought together last summer.

you have a male and female together in a cage but you didnt expect her to have babies? lol...you dont have to do anything with the baby unless it is rejected. Just watch for signs of rejection i.e: if the baby is left in the pouch alone for an extended amount of time, or if you find it at the bottom of the cage. A rejection kit is designed to take care of a rejected joey - it will have everything you need just in case

If you read through the site PutLuv recommended, then you'd know. Suz's site is filled with everything a new glider grandma needs to know about joeys. To answer your question, a rejection kit is a kit filled with supplies in case you have to hand raise the joey because the mother rejects it for whatever reason. If you have a joey, you need the kit, even if you don't think it'll be rejected, you never know about things like this.

Secondly, you refered to the joey as a "surprise" but you have a male and female bonded pair that you purchased last summer, it was only a matter of time before you had babies so this shouldn't have been a surprise. If you don't want anymore joeys then you'll need to have the male neutered because they will keep reproducing for as long as you'll let them.

Not trying to be hard on you, that's just the reality.

Sorry I just repeated everything the person above me said, she posted while I was typing

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by babydoll94</i>
<br />what is a rejection kit
i held the mother and baby this morning i doubt shell reject the little joey. but the father also is in the cage with them. theyre a bonded pair i bought together last summer.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

If you have an intact male and female, joeys should be expected. Please read suz site. It talks about the rejection kit and everything you might need. Rejection can happen anytime - and sometimes its an accidental injury, but as gliders are prone to over grooming, you have to separate them from their parents. Hopefully you wont need it, but its better to have on hand before you do than find out you do at 3 am when all the stores are closed.

Mom needs extra nutrition like yesterday. make sure she is on one of the recognized diets and feed them extra so she can produce milk for them. Did you not notice any lumps in her pouch over the past 2 months?

If you've had them for this long without seeing joeys, chances are they have been breeding and just cannabalized the joeys before they were out of pouch. They do that, and reject joeys, for a variety of reasons - they know when they aren't able to produce enough milk for them or if something is wrong with the joey(even if it looks healthy to us)

Please neuter the male asap as he will continue to impregnate her and the cycle can be hard on their bodies especially if you didn't notice the pregnancy early on to provide extra nutrients.

Best I can come up with, for you anyhow...stop stressing for a moment. If you're just now seeing the joey for the first time, chances are it'll be on the nipple for a little while longer. I agree with the above mentioned reading, and I know it's "possible" that you may have different results, but in my limited experience, suggies are the best parents God ever put life into! To watch Lilly and Kota with newborns just makes my heart swell, they are both so attentive and loving. Granted, I know that isn't always the case and its wise to be prepared, but I hardly feel that the mere sight of a joey is cause for alarm...enjoy it. Love it, awe over it...I doubt you'll ever see anything so beautiful...especially once it starts to open its eyes.

By all means, read up! It's good to be prepared, but unless you see it off the nipple right away (rejected) or some wounds of some sort, I'd say just put some faith in Mom and Dad, they really are fantastic little people, in this level and many others.

Congratulations on your growing colony!

well thanks! i did read Suz page its helping a lot. I expected babies just I had no idea she had a little one in her. It was a delightful surprise.

Totally agree! Let mama & daddy do their thing, and don't hold the baby just yet. If you stress her out she WILL canabalize the joey, it's happened time and time again.

Mama needs to be on a good diet so she can feed the little one, again, if she feels she can't provide for it, she will destroy it.

Read through Suz' site and learn everything you can while giving them their space.


Edited to add.....

And you really need to start preparing now for either the cost of a neuter or a seperate cage. You will not be able to leave this family together without a neuter. If the joey is a F the father will breed with her. If the joey is a M he will breed with mom. You DO NOT want inbred gliders. If you have no intention of fixing them then you will have to seperate them then you will have to consider getting the little one a friend so it's not alone so again, you will be dealing with some cost.

i found the baby outside the sleeping pouch and it was almost screaming a bit. i picked it up and the the mother also came out of the pouch and started loving it up so i think itll be a good mother and wont reject the joey. But ill get a kit just in case

PS...take heed to what the others have stated above, and read read read! I realize now that I've reread my response that I may have sounded like "Oh, it'll be fine", and while I hope this is the case, it isn't always so. I've been particularly blessed with the most wonderful glider parents. It would be all too easy for me to forget all that could go wrong, and it's best to be prepared now, rather than noticing a problem at 3am and trying to go from there (as stated above).

Oh no...wait! You found it alone, outside the pouch?

If you spend time with your suggies every day and are just now aware of a joey being brought into this world, it really worries me that it would be off the nipple so soon. How much fur does it have? Does it appear to be nursing again? Can you attach photos?

From the time I first get to see Lilly's babies, it's usually a week or two before I see them left alone and off the nipple. Kota is such an awesome Pappa, and equally great babysitter, but I'm slightly alarmed that they may be 'off nipple' too soon. I used to have Lilly with me at all times though, so I doubt I could have possibly seen such things any sooner. Hate to bombard you with qhuestions, especially since I'm no expert, but I figured it was right to ask.

Please please please post a picture so we can see how old it is. At the moment I don't have a good feeling about this! I also would like to know what time of day you found it. Was it last night while mom and dad were up or was it this morning after they went to bed? If it was this morning my opinion is that it is being rejected. If that is the case you need to get it to the vet now! You do not have the time to put together a rejection kit and try to figure out how to save it.

Edited: I just went back and saw the time stamps on your posts. You found the baby out of the pouch this morning?! There is something WRONG!! I have experience with this, so please trust me!!! Mom will come out and lick it and be caring, but there is something wrong with the joey and you MUST get it to the vet ASAP!!

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by autotech1011</i>
<br />Oh no...wait! You found it alone, outside the pouch?

If you spend time with your suggies every day and are just now aware of a joey being brought into this world, it really worries me that it would be off the nipple so soon. How much fur does it have? Does it appear to be nursing again? Can you attach photos?
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I agree. Most people notice a baby bump while handling there female and by the time the joey is OP the bump is unmistakeable. So I too am wondering if she pulled the joey...but still, I'm just not coming up with any scenerio where it's not obvious a female is pregnant, I mean I've seen pics of females before joeys' emerge and they are HUGE! Most often by the time the joey is OP bits and pieces of tails and limbs are popping out of mamas' pouch so if this went unnoticed either mama isn't handled often or the joey is/was too small to be noticed in which case it could be in danger of rejection if it's OP at this stage.

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by babydoll94</i>
<br />i found the baby outside the sleeping pouch and it was almost screaming a bit. i picked it up and the the mother also came out of the pouch and started loving it up so i think itll be a good mother and wont reject the joey. But ill get a kit just in case
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That is NOT a good sign. Please make sure you get the rejection kit together and also have the emergency sugar glider contacts on speed dial(connie and val) http://www.sugargliderhelp.com/pages/econtact.php

You really need to get the male neutered - first you said you weren't expecting joeys, and now you say you are. You didn't notice mom had joeys in pouch and that is NOT good as she needs extra nutrition throughout as nursing requires extra calories to produce milk. It also seems to me that there is a reason that they've not successfully had joeys for many months and now with finding the joey out of the pouch, that is VERY concerning and there might be something wrong with their joeys(gliders can and will inbreed and chances are your pair could be closely related). Please get the male neutered asap to prevent more heartbreak.

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by JazzNZoeysmom</i>
I agree. Most people notice a baby bump while handling there female and by the time the joey is OP the bump is unmistakeable. So I too am wondering if she pulled the joey...but still, I'm just not coming up with any scenerio where it's not obvious a female is pregnant, I mean I've seen pics of females before joeys' emerge and they are HUGE! Most often by the time the joey is OP bits and pieces of tails and limbs are popping out of mamas' pouch so if this went unnoticed either mama isn't handled often or the joey is/was too small to be noticed in which case it could be in danger of rejection if it's OP at this stage.
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You can notice a lump by 2-3 weeks in pouch(far too young to survive and likely wouldn't even resemble a glider at all), but small lumps are visible very early on and it would be hard to miss at this stage in the game unless they never see the gliders awake. And sometimes she says joeys and sometimes she mentions joey, so I wonder if there is another in pouch?

Here's a picture of a very pregnant female sugar glider, if you didn't notice this (it's kind of hard not to) then the female may have pulled the joey.



Here's a picture of two ready to be out of pouch joeys (they're a little dehydrated and premature but can survive at this age). Hopefully your joey looks similar to this, if it resembles a pink jellybean with translucent skin/eyelids and no hair then it's far too young to be out of pouch and chances of saving it are slim to none.

(Neither of these images belong to me)

i was just reading this thread and it makes me really sad

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by kimbo6605</i>
<br />i was just reading this thread and it makes me really sad
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Yes well.. I'm sure you're not the only one or it would not have had 12 views before anyone ever commented. =/

You didn't expect it?
http://www.sugarglider.com/glidergossip/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=34464

What were you expecting? Chickens!!!

Any updates as to whether it is with momma again?

If momma and daddy do their jobs, there is nothing you need to do other than give momma extra protein (give extra food at dinner time).

Congrats :-)

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Catman</i>
<br />You didn't expect it?
http://www.sugarglider.com/glidergossip/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=34464

<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

That was a LONG time to prep for possible joeys.

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by kyro298</i>
<br /><blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Catman</i>
<br />You didn't expect it?
http://www.sugarglider.com/glidergossip/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=34464

<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

That was a LONG time to prep for possible joeys.
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Seriously..When my gliders were expecting i read up and prepared months before...I hope she gives us an update soon!! Maybe this baby was premature considering it was a surprise

Let's just skip all of the get a kit and be prepared. If the joey is just out of pouch today and it is already being left alone outside of the cage it is being rejected. Don't even try to give mom a chance. If the joey is still alive, start supplementing it now and don't leave it alone with mommy at all!!! I agree, they have probably canibalized other joeys. You need to know how much this one weighs and if it is dehydrated. Tent test - If you pull up the skin on the back of the neck, and it stays up, it needs liquid. If you don't treat this as a rejection, IMO this baby will die.

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Catman</i>
<br />You didn't expect it?
http://www.sugarglider.com/glidergossip/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=34464

What were you expecting? Chickens!!!
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Sorry...the chicken comment made me laugh!!!

I have to agree that this scenario does not sound well. Please post a picture of the baby for us to see how old it may be.

Also, keep the baby warm! Keeping it in your bra snuggled in fleece would be a great way to do so. You will also need to make up an incubator and the instructions should be on Suz's site as well. Or do a search on the forum for it and you should find something.

PLEASE do not disappear on us! Let us know how the lil one is doing.

If mom is taking the joey back and doesn't leave it alone again, I wouldn't be so quick to pull it.

Is everyone wondering if the outcome was bad, I hope not but why has the poster not come back to update or ask more questions? I am worried. Hoping all is well, but worried, please update

Maybe she did not come back because the wolves came out making fun of her for not knowing her glider was pregnant and for not knowing what to do. I hope everyone who was guilty of this behavior is proud of themselves.