Sugar gliders are tedious groomers and will never need actual baths. Do not ever attempt to bathe this animal because it is smelly, because they naturally have a musky sent and there is no getting past that.
if you find this musk offensive, there are a few things you can do to decrease it:
- make sure you keep the poo tray, cage, toys, & pouches clean
- make sure you're feeding them a healthy diet & cleaning the food bowls & kitchens every morning
- get your males neutered as this will decrease senting
- put an air filter & humidifier in the room they are kept in
- clean the area around the cage reguarlly, you can also drape shower curtans or fleece covers over the cage to minimize any debre being thrown about
A glider that is dirty due to not cleaning itself after eating should be seen by a veterinarian because this could be the sign of a serious illness. The only time a glider won't properly groom itself is when it is sick, or in some cases if they were bottle raised. A joey who was rejected by its parents sometimes takes awhile to figure out how to groom, and only in this case should cleaning be done. The parents usually teach the joey how to groom itself, so it can take a month or more for it to figure this routine out for itself.
If you absolutely do have to 'bathe' a glider, you should take precautions and do it properly. Bathing a glider does not mean soaking it-and getting a sugar glider to wet can cause it to chill quickly (especially in young joeys) and die. You should only do this in a very warm room. You should get a small soft cloth slightly damp (not at all wet) and get the mess off of the animal with this cloth. Dry any remaining liquid from the fur right away.