Hello! I'm new here, so let me preface this by saying that I am an American living in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

I'm relatively new to the world of sugar gliders. We have three males that we acquired about two months ago. Two are brothers, who were 3 and 6 months old when we got them. The other, who we got the same day from a different place, was said to be 8 weeks old but I now think he was younger. At any rate, they all took to each other immediately and get along great.

There is only one vet in my city that I know sees exotic pets. I took the boys there last week to get them checked out and see about getting them neutered. The vet weighed them, took a stool sample from one of them, kind of looked them over and said they looked healthy. He took the stool sample to the back for a few minutes then returned and said it looked good, with appropriate levels of bacteria. He wants to wait until they're 8 months old to neuter, which means the oldest is ready now but it will be a while before we can get them all done. The information he gave us about neutering doesn't totally line up with things I've read elsewhere. Honestly I'm not 100% sure this guy knows what he's doing but there aren't any other vets around who are known for seeing exotic pets of any kind.

When we had a dog we took her to another vet in town who we really liked and trusted. We've seen several other vets around town with our dogs and I have the most confidence in her by far. I doubt she has any experience with sugar gliders, though. I'm thinking of talking to her to see if she would be willing to see our gliders and learn about caring for them. I know there's a list of vets who will consult with other vets. If she's willing to do this, are there any other resources I could point her to?

And lastly, do you think this is a good idea? Is it better to go to a vet that is known for seeing exotics (even though he doesn't give me great confidence in his experience with gliders), or to a vet who you know and trust, who does not have experience with gliders but is willing to learn?

I'm sure I'll have other questions but I'll leave it at this for now! Thanks so much.

Hi! And To Glider Central!

Wow. You are far away from home!

It never hurts to ask a vet you trust. And neuter can be done sooner than 8 months.

Would there happen to be a veterinary college near you? That has an exotics classes? They may even have a refrence where they do internship at a vet hospital that may have an exotics specialty. I have never been to Thailand, so I'm not sure if any of this is available.

I have girls, and I'm not sure what the soonest age they can be neutered, but I think it's 5 months. And it might be a good idea to wait till they can all be done at once. I'd Lazer surgery available? It heals faster and it less intrusive. No shaving prep needs to be done. It will keep them from trying to groom that area.

Please keep us poated, and someone with boys may be able to tell you for sure on age.

Please keep us posted!

There is a list of vets on this site that are willing to communicate with other about gliders. They might be able to recommend some resources your preferred vet could use if she's willing to take on your net furballs. That would also provide her with some contacts in the event she needs further information or assistance. Just a thought as long as she is willing to take them on & get educated.

My boys were done before they came to me at 9 weeks, so (to my mind) 8-months seems awfully long to wait. Did he say what method/procedure he uses, maybe that has something to do with the wait?

He didn't say what method it would be, but he said that the glider would need to fast the night before and wear an e-collar for probably a week afterward. That makes me think not laser. I doubt that would be available anywhere in Thailand except maybe in Bangkok.

There is a university veterinary training hospital here. I don't know if they do exotics but it's possible. The problem there is getting in. Most vets here don't make appointments except for surgeries and things like that. I've heard that for walk-ins it's an average wait of 5 hours on weekends. If I try to call to find out more I doubt I'll get an English speaker on the other end, and I don't speak much Thai. Maybe I can find someone to make that call for me.

Things are just different here. It would be very unusual for someone (even a vet) to say "I can't/don't know how to do that" because they would see it as losing face. So you have to try to read between the lines, all the time. I haven't talked to our former vet about it yet, but I have the sense that she might be open to learning something new rather than feeling threatened or embarrassed at not already knowing it. I was already thinking of waiting until we can get them all done at once so I think I might take the time to talk to her about it and see what she thinks.

Thanks for your input. I'll keep you posted!

Perhaps she would feel more comfortable talking with another woman here in the States. If so, here is an excellent contact for her:

Dr. Teresa Bradley DVM - Belton Animal Clinic & Exotic Care Center updated
http://www.beltonanimal.com/index.html
Phone: (816) 331-3120

It's possible they could even set up a video chat.

I forgot about the "saving face" tradition in Asia. Good catch, I'm sure it is stressful on professionals.

Maybe you could ask vet about a referral to the university. In the the US, the surgery would be a good learning session for students. If you feel uncomfortable qith the vet.Just a thuoght....