It’s Puck. This cat knows how to snuggle himself up!
The gliders are doing well. Their food is tricky. I’m currently feeding them what the rescue recommended, a diet called BML – Bourbon’s Modified Leadbeaters. I think it started as a zoo diet and was modified for pet use. It is different types of baby food, hard boiled egg, fruit, honey, etc. It’s messy and requires a lot of ingredients, some of which have proven hard to find like Gerber Mixed Fruit Baby Juice. The bigger problem is that the gliders don’t seem to eat it very well. I’ve been messaging with some experienced Glider owners I found on Facebook, and I think I’m going to switch them to another diet called CritterLove. It’s a powder. You mix it with water, and serve it with fruits and veggies. We’ll see how it goes. The problem is that gliders in the wild eat nectar and honey, insects, leaves, berries. Not all of it is easy to replicate and in the right combinations in captivity. I did learn that in the wild Sugar Gliders only have a life expectancy of 4-5 years. In captivity, I’ve been told they live an average of 12 years!
Reading more and more about gliders, I’m learning that they can be really tough to get along with. I see stories of people getting bitten all the time. I guess I’m really lucky with the boys I adopted. They don’t love me yet, but they tolerate me. I can take their pouch of of the cage and stick my hand in to pat them without fear of bites. They crab and complain sometimes, but that’s the worst of it.
I think little Tiny Miney is starting to trust me. More than others, he will climb onto my hand when I open the cage. He will hang out on my hand and eat a treat while I pat him. Each day that goes by, he hangs out with me a little longer before he choses to go back to his cage. I know a Mom shouldn’t pick favorites, but this little guy is definitely stealing my heart.
All four of them sleep on top of each other in a pile in one of their fleece pouches. I guess it is a good way to keep warm! So the gliders overall are doing really well. I’m enjoying learning more about them, and they are settling down.
Update on this WoPet fountain I purchased, I returned it. I really liked it to start. It was easy to clean, and the pets were definitely attracted to it. After a week or two, I started having more problems. The pets were drinking so much, which is a good thing, but I was having to fill it every day, sometimes twice! While the base looks like it holds a good amount of water, the pump stops working when the water level gets down to about half. With the very shallow bowl on this, when the pump stops working, there is very little water available for the pets.
While trying to figure out a way around refilling all the time, I started having another problem, the bowl seemed to be leaking. I don’t know how. I took it apart, cleaned the filters, I have no idea how it could possibly be leaking, but it was, and not a little. I was putting towels on the floor under the bowl and they were totally soaked. When looking the bowl up on Amazon, I realized my return window was still open, so I just packed it up and shipped it back. I’m back to using my ceramic fountain. No leaks, plenty of water, the pets are happy. My quest for a stainless steel fountain continues!
