Sugar gliders are cute, nocturnal mammals mostly found inAustralia,Papua New Guinea,Tasmania, andIndonesia. They are so named because of their preference for the sweet sap of eucalyptus, gum, and acacia trees. They live in small groups with up to seven members, led by a dominant male. Sugar gliders make their nests in hollows in trees. They glide through the air for a distance of up to one hundred and fifty meters with the help of a thin membrane extending from their fifth finger to their first toe.

Sugar gliders have a lot of appeal as pets since they’re small, warm, furry, and have adorably big eyes. You should keep at least three at a time to keep them from getting lonesome. To house your brood of sugar gliders, you can use a modified bird cage. It is often much cheaper and easier to just build your own.

The size of your cage should be directly proportional to the number of sugar gliders you intend to keep. It should be big enough to allow them to move around and play at night with a suitable den provided for them to curl up in and sleep during the day. You can use a wire mesh with spaces less than an inch in size. The opening of the case should be the type that is big enough to admit the food containers but small enough not to let your pet sugar gliders easily escape. The home made cage for your pet sugar gilders should also have somewhere to hang the food and water containers. You should be able to detach and return the food containers with ease.

Give your sugar glider nest box a homey touch by giving them a bedding of corn cobs. Although corn is not usually found in their native habitat, captive sugar gliders simply love corn cob beddings. The sugar glider nest box should have an opening big enough to admit a full grown sugar glider but not too big to let in too much draft. It could be made of plastic but wood would be preferable. Remember that sugar gliders live in hollowed out trees in the wild, so try and replicate the hollowed tree feel as much as possible. Don’t keep a single sugar glider at home. They usually live in groups of five or more and a lone sugar glider may expire from loneliness.

If you happen to live in a temperate climate, you can even build your sugar glider cage outdoors, but away from direct sunlight. You could build it around a leafy tree or shrub to give your pet sugar gliders somewhere to play in. Just make sure that the cage is secure enough from potential sugar glider predators like rats, snakes, and stray cats.

Keeping sugar gliders can be a rewarding experience with their cheerful disposition and amusing antics. Given enough time, you can even tame them well enough to take them out of their cage and play with them in your hands. Just make sure to feed them a balanced diet to keep them away from disease or infirmities.