Posted By: Fay
One Suggie Dead and Worried About the Other One - 11/27/19 04:01 AM
Hello, this is not the first post I imagined making on these forums...but here I am.
TL;DR
- I'm a new owner
- I had two intact male sugar gliders 5-6 yrs old
- one (Bingo) was timid and quiet
- the other (Bongo) was energetic and vocal
- I picked them up yesterday, fed them the food they came with (dry pellets, vitamin powders, dried fruit, yogurt treats, "Glider-Ade" drink)
- Today I bought ingredients/made them the Pet Glider Exotic Diet (Priscilla Price Diet)
- Bingo died in the bonding pouch within the past hour, before I had a chance to feed him the new food
- I plan to take him to a vet for diagnostic autopsy tomorrow morning
- Bongo seems fine, but I am worried and want to hear more experienced opinions on the matter
CONTACT:
I'll be sitting here at the computer, staring at this thread for the next few hours. If you feel Private Message is more appropriate, feel free to message me as well.
DETAILS:
I re-homed two sugar gliders yesterday, intact males that were 5-6 years old. I found them from a listing on Craigslist. One named "Bongo" was an energetic and spunky little mate, the other named "Bingo" was a lot more submissive to the first and didn't make much noise. Both responded well to treats and to being in a pouch, but preferred not to be directly handled by me (understandable, we haven't had a chance to bond yet).
I set up their cage, recently cleaned with hot water only (I didn't want to use chemicals that might harm them). Their water bottle was filled with Glider-Ade, and...here's where my mistakes come in.
I was under the impression that the former owners would provide me with the food they'd been feeding their gliders, so I didn't have any glider friendly foods in my cupboard at the time. After looking in the box of supplies they gave me, I realized that they'd only provided the pelleted food, the powders for their calcium and multivitamin supplements, the Glider-Ade powder, some dried fruit treats, and some yogurt drop treats. I didn't discover this until late in the evening, and while it wasn't ideal, I figured that they'd be alright for one evening having pellets, dried fruits, and some treats, in addition to the Glider-Ade they drank.
Today, I went out and gathered all the ingredients needed to make their proper diet, the Pet Glider Exotic Diet (aka the Priscilla Price Diet). This evening, I put Bingo the Timid in the bonding pouch, and was surprised at how willingly he let me handle him...but I figured it was because he was a more relaxed personality than Bongo the Bold. I wore him in the pouch for an hour, then handled him briefly. He was very calm, but kept wanting to hide in the folds of my hoodie, which I took as a sign that he wanted to go back in his pouch where he had an apple slice and a yogurt treat. So, I put him back in the pouch, and then after another 20 minutes I went to the cage and offered the open pouch to Bongo the Bold. He excitedly clambered in, I zipped the pouch shut, and then went to the kitchen to make their food.
I made the food, I put most of it in the ice cube trays as recommended, but kept out two servings from the batch and put them in their respective bowls. I was told not to feed them together, so I had one bowl in their cage for the bolder glider (Bongo) and had a small container set aside to feed the more timid Bingo his meal. I'd been wearing them in a bonding pouch while prepping their food, and when I opened the pouch in front of the caged bowl of food, Bongo the Bold zipped right out and started chowing down!
...but when I put the pouch in front of the other bowl for Bingo...he didn't budge. So, I figured I'd have to reach in and bring him out gently to show him his meal. When I grabbed him...he didn't react much, which concerned me. I pulled him out, and saw one of his eyes closed and the other only half open and I thought that he was severely lethargic. Immediately, I started to get on the phone to call an Emergency Vet Clinic to let them know we were inbound. And then I realized...he wasn't moving at all...and he was very stiff, as if rigor mortis had set in.
So, I put the phone down, took Bingo the Timid to the kitchen, and put his body in a sealed container. First thing in the morning, I'm taking him to a vet to be autopsied, so I can understand why he died, and hopefully keep the same fate from happening to Bongo the Bold.
...that said, I'm not certain what caused his passing. Perhaps he was already ill when I got him, or perhaps I made a terrible mistake in feeding them dry food yesterday...or perhaps something else entirely. So...I'm here to ask if any of those symptoms sound familiar to you more experienced owners, and ask for your opinion as to whether or not my other sugar glider needs to go to the vet right away.
They both played a LOT last night in their cage, and Bongo the Bold has seemed energetic and eager for food this evening...but I still worry.
And please...if it was my doing, tell me honestly and without being overly harsh. It's very possible I did something wrong...but these are my first gliders and I've not even had them for two whole days yet.
TL;DR
- I'm a new owner
- I had two intact male sugar gliders 5-6 yrs old
- one (Bingo) was timid and quiet
- the other (Bongo) was energetic and vocal
- I picked them up yesterday, fed them the food they came with (dry pellets, vitamin powders, dried fruit, yogurt treats, "Glider-Ade" drink)
- Today I bought ingredients/made them the Pet Glider Exotic Diet (Priscilla Price Diet)
- Bingo died in the bonding pouch within the past hour, before I had a chance to feed him the new food
- I plan to take him to a vet for diagnostic autopsy tomorrow morning
- Bongo seems fine, but I am worried and want to hear more experienced opinions on the matter
CONTACT:
I'll be sitting here at the computer, staring at this thread for the next few hours. If you feel Private Message is more appropriate, feel free to message me as well.
DETAILS:
I re-homed two sugar gliders yesterday, intact males that were 5-6 years old. I found them from a listing on Craigslist. One named "Bongo" was an energetic and spunky little mate, the other named "Bingo" was a lot more submissive to the first and didn't make much noise. Both responded well to treats and to being in a pouch, but preferred not to be directly handled by me (understandable, we haven't had a chance to bond yet).
I set up their cage, recently cleaned with hot water only (I didn't want to use chemicals that might harm them). Their water bottle was filled with Glider-Ade, and...here's where my mistakes come in.
I was under the impression that the former owners would provide me with the food they'd been feeding their gliders, so I didn't have any glider friendly foods in my cupboard at the time. After looking in the box of supplies they gave me, I realized that they'd only provided the pelleted food, the powders for their calcium and multivitamin supplements, the Glider-Ade powder, some dried fruit treats, and some yogurt drop treats. I didn't discover this until late in the evening, and while it wasn't ideal, I figured that they'd be alright for one evening having pellets, dried fruits, and some treats, in addition to the Glider-Ade they drank.
Today, I went out and gathered all the ingredients needed to make their proper diet, the Pet Glider Exotic Diet (aka the Priscilla Price Diet). This evening, I put Bingo the Timid in the bonding pouch, and was surprised at how willingly he let me handle him...but I figured it was because he was a more relaxed personality than Bongo the Bold. I wore him in the pouch for an hour, then handled him briefly. He was very calm, but kept wanting to hide in the folds of my hoodie, which I took as a sign that he wanted to go back in his pouch where he had an apple slice and a yogurt treat. So, I put him back in the pouch, and then after another 20 minutes I went to the cage and offered the open pouch to Bongo the Bold. He excitedly clambered in, I zipped the pouch shut, and then went to the kitchen to make their food.
I made the food, I put most of it in the ice cube trays as recommended, but kept out two servings from the batch and put them in their respective bowls. I was told not to feed them together, so I had one bowl in their cage for the bolder glider (Bongo) and had a small container set aside to feed the more timid Bingo his meal. I'd been wearing them in a bonding pouch while prepping their food, and when I opened the pouch in front of the caged bowl of food, Bongo the Bold zipped right out and started chowing down!
...but when I put the pouch in front of the other bowl for Bingo...he didn't budge. So, I figured I'd have to reach in and bring him out gently to show him his meal. When I grabbed him...he didn't react much, which concerned me. I pulled him out, and saw one of his eyes closed and the other only half open and I thought that he was severely lethargic. Immediately, I started to get on the phone to call an Emergency Vet Clinic to let them know we were inbound. And then I realized...he wasn't moving at all...and he was very stiff, as if rigor mortis had set in.
So, I put the phone down, took Bingo the Timid to the kitchen, and put his body in a sealed container. First thing in the morning, I'm taking him to a vet to be autopsied, so I can understand why he died, and hopefully keep the same fate from happening to Bongo the Bold.
...that said, I'm not certain what caused his passing. Perhaps he was already ill when I got him, or perhaps I made a terrible mistake in feeding them dry food yesterday...or perhaps something else entirely. So...I'm here to ask if any of those symptoms sound familiar to you more experienced owners, and ask for your opinion as to whether or not my other sugar glider needs to go to the vet right away.
They both played a LOT last night in their cage, and Bongo the Bold has seemed energetic and eager for food this evening...but I still worry.
And please...if it was my doing, tell me honestly and without being overly harsh. It's very possible I did something wrong...but these are my first gliders and I've not even had them for two whole days yet.