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Malnutrition and your Glider!
#5674
03/14/03 04:40 AM
03/14/03 04:40 AM
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Anonymous
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Anonymous
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Hi everyone. I work for a breeder in the Dallas, Texas area. Today, we got in a rescue of two little 1 1/2 year old males. We are the only ones in the area who neuter at this time, so when we saw one was missing some parts, we knew he was ours. We sit down with people buying our babies and older animals and talk with them for an hour, sometimes more, about the needs of this beautiful creature we know as the Sugar Glider, even sending them home with 12 pages of literature on their dietary needs and helpful hints, even after having said this all upon purchase. They also go away with a video about suggies and a 30 day health garauntee. We do NOT sell sick animals or babies that have not been weaned naturally. The state the neutered male returned to us in was an absolute disgrace. He's a beautiful grey with an extra long tail, but he's only 75% of what his weight should be. In the last month, his former owner says, he has gone blind and started to walk funny. Her other male appears to have no visible malnutrition, but we can't be sure. I was ashamed for her and shocked to find out that she had stopped feeding protein of any kind. No cat food, no crickets or other insects. 'They just weren't eating it much' she said, 'so I stopped giving it to them.' I have no doubt that if this had continued, this sweet animal would have died in the next 3 months, if not sooner. My employer does not currently have extra cage space for housing and taking care of a sick animal. We had two options. Either I take it home...or we euthanise it. Why? Because a woman did not fufill her duties to a pet she agreed to take care of. That agreement never goes away, folks. Stop suggie abuse. Feed your animal correctly, don't ever let it go without it's needs. He now has cat food, crickets, meal worms, and grasshoppers, but is this too little, too late? I have no doubt that this experience has limited his lifespan, but by how much? A year? Two? Ten? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/nixweiss.gif" alt="" /> (This post is on several threads to spread awareness)
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5675
03/14/03 01:29 PM
03/14/03 01:29 PM
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That is soo sad. I hope better times come for this little guy. You might want to stop feeding the cat food, that can cause even more problems. A real healthy diet is bml. Ill get the site for you. Its a mix you feed with fruits veggies and mealworms,crickets or boiled chicken etc. everynight. Good luck!
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5676
03/14/03 01:43 PM
03/14/03 01:43 PM
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[:"purple"] I posted:
I am not sure why but I could not reply to your post. So here I am posting this. I think it is very sad to hear what has happened. It happens all the time and that is why I no longer breed. People think of animals as just another thing around the house and it p*sses me off! However, I could go on for days on that topic so I won't. The important thing is you have him now so I will go from there. First, I recommend the BML right away. The BML has been PROVEN to bring gliders back from their worst. I know I've done it more then once. I would also, for now at LEAST, get rid of the cat food. In this glider's state I would not feed anything that might create more problems or be of difficulty passing. Don't overdo anything that may cause intestinal discomfort, bloating, gas, etc. Keep it simple and 100, no 110% healthy. Nothing off the ratio of 2:1 at this point until you are sure of his recovery. This is just my thoughts and opinion; I hope you get this post. [/]
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5678
03/14/03 09:08 PM
03/14/03 09:08 PM
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Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 385 Wallis, Texas
mary h
Glider Lover
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Glider Lover
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 385
Wallis, Texas
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...We take in gliders with health problems and we save them. We have a very good vet and lots of experience. We would like very much to have the little boy and help him. He will have everything it takes to live and be happy. Please let us hear from you..." []glidertree@comwerx.net"[/] Mary and Charlie
mary h
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5679
03/14/03 11:15 PM
03/14/03 11:15 PM
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 7,354 Lexington, KY
Lucy
Serious Glideritis
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Serious Glideritis
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 7,354
Lexington, KY
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GliderWebMistress, please contact me by email or PM. We have a rescue group that would be willing to rehabilitate this glider, and is trying to get in touch with you about it. It's a sad story and all too common. GliderCENTRAL will work to do whatever we can to help get get help for this situation.
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5680
03/15/03 01:15 AM
03/15/03 01:15 AM
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Anonymous
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I am currently feeding him crickets, meal worms, grasshoppers, fresh fruit, and a mixture of sweet potatoe and turkey baby food with apple nectar. We have fed purina brand cat food to our gliders for years and there is only one negative effect, and only in gliders who overeat and don't run around their cages much. They get a little overweight. I don't see this as a problem at this time. He is very underweight, and I would like to see him restored to the size he should be.
Thank you all for your offers to give him a new home or put him in a rescue, but I believe I will be taking care of him for now. He will need lots of attention and being watched closely. As my first personal glider, and previous experiences with pets, I have no doubt I can give him what he needs. Thank you all for your suggestions.
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5681
03/15/03 10:23 AM
03/15/03 10:23 AM
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For all of your concerns, please be at ease. This glider is not being euthanised. I am taking care of him, and he is getting protein, love, and attention. Euthanising is a last resort, and only when the vet says there is no other option to still be kind and merciful to an animal. I realise you are concerned for him, but he is in no danger to be put down.
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5682
03/15/03 12:07 PM
03/15/03 12:07 PM
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Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 7,354 Lexington, KY
Lucy
Serious Glideritis
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Serious Glideritis
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 7,354
Lexington, KY
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That's good to know. Thanks for the update.
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5683
03/17/03 11:39 AM
03/17/03 11:39 AM
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Anonymous
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[:"purple"]PLEASE read the following link and consider the BML. If you want to stay with cat food, please soak it in apple juice to make it soft. This will help should any blockage of the intestines start to occur, which has been known to happen with any real dry foods. The apple juice is used because of it's 1:1 ratio not effecting anything. You should be keeping a 2:1 ratio in the diet. Here is the link... http://sugargliderinfo.com/NutritionAndDiets/ [/]
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5684
03/18/03 02:50 AM
03/18/03 02:50 AM
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Anonymous
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After reading the ingredients of BML, I now know that I am feeding something very close to this diet. The cat food I use has been found to not cause the liver problems most cat foods do for suggies, and I soak it in a small amount of apple juice. Blink loves it!
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5685
05/04/03 04:16 PM
05/04/03 04:16 PM
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Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 6,254 Kansas
queenduck
Serious Glideritis
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Serious Glideritis
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 6,254
Kansas
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Glad to hear he at least made his way back to you, sounds like you will be improving his diet over what he has had. Too bad he was not cared for properly, it happens too often.
Alicia aka Queenduck, Bentley's Nana
We need role models who are going to break the mold ~ Carly Simon
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Re: Malnutrition and your Glider!
[Re: ]
#5686
05/04/03 04:34 PM
05/04/03 04:34 PM
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Anonymous
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Anonymous
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There is a proven diet tho not very widely used that includes catfood. It is the Caroline McPherson diet. I used it for a month to transition my glider into something else and he is as healthy as can be. It is on the diet links from the gliderCENTRAL main page. How is everything going with this guy ?
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