feet & abdomen questions.. HELP PLS!!!

are gliders' feet for the last two toes sort of like sticks together? mine looks like they're stuck together but you can actually separate them.. both feet are the same.. and the nails for those two toes are shorter than the rest.. is it normal??

and also i just found out that there is sort of like a bald patch on her abdomen area.. how does a female glider pouch look like? i actually have never seen it.. and the bald area i;m not sure issit a hole on her skin or not.. i'm really worried sick... but that patch is not red or very pink in colour..just like a patch of hair missing.. the shape is rounded and quite big..well.. slightly smaller than the smiley faces here.. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

pls.. thank you so much anyone who can help me!!! i'm so afraid she's biting herself..she hasn't been making any noises.. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crying.gif" alt="" />

If you look at the top of this page, you'll see a statement (in blue) about glider sounds and "uncensored" pages which show the anatomy. I don't know how to give you the link but it's there for you to click on - if you can't find it, I'm sure someone will be along soon to help. I have two females - I'm guessing you don't have major worries but I'm not an expert yet.

[:"green"]Relax... both are normal.
Gliders have two fused toes on their hind feet. This is a built-in grooming feature so that they can "comb" their fur. When trimming her nails, you will not need to trim them on those two toes. Also, her thumbs on her hind feet don't have nails at all.
As for her belly: yes, that sounds like it's her pouch in all likelihood. It's a small vertical slit opening about where you'd expect her belly button to be. Depending on how old she is, she might not have as much fur around it as on the rest of her belly.
For more information on glider anatomy, you can check out BMX Girl's Gliders Uncensored page and also my page on Your Joey's Appearance.

And I just learned something new now about their feet by reading this post. This forum is great!

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Gliders have two fused toes on their hind feet. This is a built-in grooming feature so that they can "comb" their fur. When trimming her nails, you will not need to trim them on those two toes.

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Is this true for most people? On Sabriel, these two nails seem like the only ones that ever grow. And they get really long, really fast. They are also her only nails that are sort of "square" instead of sharp and pointy. Should they not be growing as much? Thanks in advance!!

[:"green"]Since they are rounded at the tips, that is why they don't usually need to be trimmed. If you feel that they are too long, you can trim them, but not as short as you normally would the other nails.

oh..thank you so much guys... i was almost worried sick.. i'll go check out the page first.. thanks!!

Shannyn, no it's not true for every glider, but it's not common, either. The toes being fused is, but I have two gliders that yes, I do have to trim the grooming nails along with everything else. Riker's grow faster than his other nails, and if they get too long they're useless for grooming with. I don't know why some few gliders do grow these nails, but some do, so don't worry. Just trim the tips, but trim them sideways so the blade is against the flat part of those nails (I do all the nails sideways to prevent splits, but these are especially important to cut only that way)...you may have noticed they are much flatter than the others. If you trim from the top, the nail will split, and put a lot of pressure that your glider is likely to react to badly.

I also wanted to say to the original post...do check out the glider's uncensored page...I'm wondering if the bare patch in question could also be the cloaca?

i saw the pic in the page is actually a slit on the abdomen area... mine is a round patch without hair on it.. im not quite sure what is it..

oh..i think the bare patch is not the cloaca.. the patch that i saw is not that low down.. however it does seems like where the pouch would be...just that it's round in shape...

Maybe she's a neutered male?

Okay..next question..DOES she have a pouch slit? It wouldn't be the first time someone ended up with a glider that was not the sex they thought it was. A neutered male who has had the pom removed entirely will have a very small bare patch where it used to be-but if a male will not have a pouch opening..

oh man..this is getting complicated..lol.. well..i can't really check properly..she woulnd't allow it.. but she definitely does not have the bald patch on a male's head..i'll try to find the pouch slit on her..

ok.. i saw that the patch without hair is actually well.. a hole..there's no skin definitely..but below the hole there's sort of like fur inside..it's not red or..well.. fleshy..there's more fur inside.. but it really is a round hole..not a slit.. so is it still her pouch??

Well, if there's more fur inside, then likely, yes, it's her pouch. The inside fur will be more coarse and not really thick, like on the outside. Now I'm wondering why it is exposed like that, or if she is overgrooming for some reason. If you haven't yet, it might be worth taking her in for a vet check to rule out a possible yeast or bacterial infection in there...if it's bothering her she might be overgrooming it, hence the hair loss. A pic would be helpful, but it looks like you definitely have a girl...now just need to figure out what the hair issue is.

its not that she's losing hair on that part..if im not mistaken what i see.. the pouch opening is actually a round hole instead of a slit..it's just a small round hole...den with hair inside.. however when she stretches it would look like a normal pouch slit..not when she's sitting..i can't get a pic of her as well because she would not sit still for me.. anyway, do they groom their pouches opening?

A round hole in her pouch slit? Is she with joeys? Does she have a male with her as a mate? That was my first thought when you mentioned a round hole and that there was fur inside the pouch. I could be wrong, though.


Jen

no... she's alone..definitely not pregnant..had her for 2 months..now im wondering is she normal?? do i have cause to be worried about her pouch??

Unless it's inflamed or red/sore looking and not got an odor it's sounds normal. If you are worried maybe you could take her for a vet check, sometimes that's what it takes for peace of mind.

alrite.. thanks everyone!!