SUGAR GLIDER DIET
by Tony Cueto

There has been much controversy and discussion as to the proper diet of sugar gliders. Until recently, the accepted consensus was that the sugar glider diet should consist of 75% fruit and vegetable, 25% protein. Recent studies are showing that this is not correct and the sugar glider diet should consist of 50% fruit and vegetables and 50% protein. It is important to give them a broad assortment of foods so they get their required nutrition and also so they do not get bored with the same foods. I have found that sugar gliders can be finicky eaters in that they are reluctant to try a new food as an adult. For this reason it is important to introduce your sugar glider to many fruits, vegetables and insects as a baby. Their diet can be broken down into 3 categories: 1) fruits and vegetables 2) protein 3) insects.

1) Offer your sugar gliders a broad assortment of fruits and vegetables. Fresh fruits and vegetables are best. Do not give them canned fruits as they are very high in sugar. Cutting up fresh fruits nightly can be time consuming and at certain times of the year, difficult to find all fruits. For this reason we also feed our sugar gliders Supreme Blend(tm). I like this product because it contains 27 different fruit extracts plus 70 added vitamins and colloidal minerals. Once opened, the blend is good for 45 days refrigerated. At Animals Exotique, we rotate, 3 nights a week our colony gets a variety of fruits in addition to their pelleted food. The other 4 evening we give them the Supreme blend diet in addition to their pelleted sugar glider diet.

2) Nightly we also give them either 1 small piece of boiled chicken, turkey, hard boiled egg, with the shell (they like the shell and is great source of calcium), or a 1 inch piece of Gerber's childrens chicken or turkey sticks.

Always have for your sugar glider a small bowl of pelleted food. There are several different commercial brands on the market. We use Brisky's sugar glider Accu-feed. Do not use cat or dog food instead. It does not contain many of the necessary nutritional requirements for sugar gliders and will lead to nutritional problems. By the same token, I do not feel the commercial diets are a complete diet for the sugar glider. Only by adding fruits, vegetables, meats and supplements, along with a commercial sugar glider feed, do I feel a sugar gliders nutritional needs are met. We give our sugar gliders 2 other products. Once a week, we give our gliders a monkey biscuit. This will last them 3 to 5 days. We give them the monkey biscuits for 2 reasons: one, as a great source of protein, and two, it is good for them to chew on and keep their teeth trim.

The last product we give them is marmoset can diet. This is an excellent source for stabilized vitamin D3 and provides 100% of sugar gliders' required d3 intake. A can of the marmoset diet cost about $3 and will last you a good month for 2 sugar glider if you do the following: open the can on both ends and take out the diet (it is solid). Cut diagonally into 1/2 inch slices. Cut these slices into 1/4 pieces. Place the 4 pieces from each slice in a ziploc bag and place in freezer. Have 1 bag at a time in your refrigerator to feed them weekly.

As far as supplements, we use Roudy Bush Lori nectar. This is a great protein and calcium supplement. Either on their fruits, or on the Supreme Blend, we sprinkle 1 pinch of Lori Nectar per sugar glider 4 times per week.

3) Insects - In the wild, sugar gliders eat a broad variety of insects and I believe this is part of giving them a well rounded diet. I feed ours 3 to 4 large crickets, wax worms or mealworms daily (crickets or wax worms are preferable over mealworms because of the high fat contents of mealworms ). Not only is it nutritious for them but they enjoy catching the insect. As additional treats, you can give your sugar glider: cereal (healthy cereals, not ones loaded with sugar), raisins, bread, tofu, honey, apple sauce, yogurt, whole wheat bread.

Remember, keep the fat and sugar intake low. High fat and sugar can cause serious health problems and breeding problems in sugar gliders.

Items to totally avoid - Chocolate, refined sugar, cheese, iceberg lettuce, salt, fried foods, cat food, dog food, ferret food.

Items to give in very limited moderation: nuts, seeds, phosphorus, items high in sugar or fat.

Sugar Glider Diet

SUGAR GLIDER DIET by Tony Cueto

SUGAR GLIDER DIET
by Tony Cueto