Firstly, I have a vet appointment set for tomorrow.

I noticed that my momma glider (nursing two six week old girls) was showing very, very mild signs of lameness in her rear left leg Sunday night. Thinking it was a lack of calcium, I starting dosing her with extra calcium during mealtime. I got home from work last night very late and then fixed up their dinner. When I checked on her, her left leg had twisted up behind her and was locked like that.

Against my better judgement, I readjusted the leg back into a 'normal' position. The bone seems intact and in place (not dislocated), but the vet will tell me for sure tomorrow. She didn't crab or anything (but she is my sweetie pie) and she isn't acting abnormal. I wish I had thought to take a picture, but you have to understand that when I saw my princess with a twisted leg, that was the last thing on my mind.

The vet told me to pull her into her own cage today and keep her separate from the other gliders to keep her from nursing, mating, or otherwise straining herself. I'll do that between jobs today and she will probably be heading off to work with me tonight just so I can watch her.

There are no loose strings in the pouches, but I pulled them all out anyway and replaced them with brand new. I have no idea how this could have happened other than a fall and I just don't think that caused it. I would still think HLP except that the other leg seems fine. It almost has to be an injury (vet said the same thing).

She is showing no signs of SM, but I'm watching her like a hawk just in case.

Any ideas?! I've been a big ol' mess all day. I just wish I knew of one other person who dealt with this. I've never heard of a stiff leg rotating up like that. After I adjusted the leg, she limped on it and it seemed pressed inward toward her belly rather than kicked out like I'm used to seeing. I'm worried. I'm scared. HELP!

Oh, all of my gliders on the BML diet. She is the only one acting this way.

And when I moved her leg, it rotated easily and without strain. It wasn't stuck rigid or anything. It was just stiffer than it should be.

Please try and take in a deep breath and relax...I know this is frightening and can totally understand your fear and concern.
I haven't heard of this particular problem, but to me it sounds like it could be the beginning of HLP. It doesn't necessairly start equally, it can and has been known to start in one limb and gradually tranfer over to the other.
I'm happy that you have a vet appointment tomorrow, however, is there anyway you can get her in today? If it is HLP it can progress quickly, and she is going to need somthing stronger....Please keep us posted....Keeping you and her in my prayers......

Tomorrow was the soonest my vet of preference could see her. Dr. Erwin is really good with my suggies. I have an ER vet I could take her to (as in they do take gliders), but they don't know half as much about gliders as I do. I feel like I'm paying them to have me teach them. I have a feeling they would say to euthenize.

Even if that were the suggestion from them, YOU as the owner has the say! I understand about not having a knowledgable vet, and if you know more than they do, you can give them suggestions, or you can have them talk with your vet, get a diagnosis and treatment if necessary and then bring her to her appointment tomorrow for a followup. It's just that the sooner you have her looked at the better the chances are that whatever is going on can be caught early enough. Time with these little ones is critical, they do go down hill fast. I'm not meaning to worry you any more that what you are, but I think you would feel better getting her looked at as soon as possible.

I called and they said they could talk to my vet and try to help. I'm at one job now (with joeys down my shirt) and then I'll be going into my second job tonight. I tried to call off, but there is no one to cover a manager slot. I'll talk to my boyfriend about taking her in for me...I just worry about not being there myself. He knows his stuff though, so it should be okay.

ER vet said they will most likely hold her overnight if she is as rough as I've described to treat/watch her 24/7 until the vet visit tomorrow. The absolute soonest I can get her into the ER vet is in about 2-3 hours depending on how soon Cody can get off work. They will perform the x-rays and initial exam and send the results to my vet to prep him. They did tell me I'm more than welcome to stop in after I get off at my other job (close to 1:00 a.m.) to get some info and visit with Sprocket (assuming she's stable).

*sigh* That is about all I can do for right now.

I'm so glad that your going to have her looked at today! I'm sure this all is extremely emotional and nervewrenching for you trying to juggle two jobs, sitting with joeys, and now having to worry about Sprocket. It sounds like this ER vet is going to do what's necessary for her tonight, and that is awesome! I will keep you and Sprocket in my prayers, and please keep us posted.

Jenny, I'm sorry you're going through this. Unfortunately I can't offer any advise as I've not had any experience with this, but I just wanted to let you know that you & Sprocket will be in my thoughts and prayers. And as Linda said, please keep us posted.

I'm keeping you and Sprocket in my prayers! I hope everything works out and she gets better soon!

When Spryte broke her leg, she wasn't using it but acted like she was in no pain what so ever. She was climbing all over the cage and acting almost completely normal, just dragging the leg behind her.

I took her into the vet and the xray showed a broken thigh bone. The vet (Dr. Teresa Bradley, Belton Animal Hospital 816 331 3120) said we could do one of two things.

First was to amputate the leg. The problem was IF something went wrong, there would be nothing left to try.

The second option was to do surgery and put a pin in the bone. A portion of a hypodermic syringe (needle) was used as a "pin". Dr. Bradley said, IF it does not work, we still have the option of amputation of the leg.

The pin worked and Spryte was able to keep her leg.

Please take Dr. Bradley's number with you. Spryte was the first glider to ever have a bone pinned. Dr. Bradley will do phone consults.

Pain management is VERY important. Also, keep her in a cage where she can't climb and risk falling or twisting the leg again. I suggest a large plastic storage tub (with lots of holes drilled for ventilation) and place everything on the bottom of the container.

Please update on this, or tell Cody to, as soon as there is any news. I'm going to be worried sick! Hang in there, Jenny. I know you love your baby, and will do everything possible for her!

Just got home from work. Heading to check on her. Will update tomorrow. Cody gets up at 5:00 a.m. and is already fast asleep so no updates for me to share yet.

She was walking just fine this afternoon when I briefly got to check on her. She crawled right to me and onto my hand...using her leg perfectly. Hopefully, this is something that isn't as bad as it originally looked. That leg twisted up really scared me. Perhaps it is just the very beginning stage of HLP (which isn't good news, but at least I'd understand what is going on). Either way, I'll let you guys know how everything goes tomorrow.

Thanks for the advice and well wishes. I took down Dr. Bradley's number just in case. I think my vet would like to be able to consult with him one way or the other anyway.

Keep Sprocket in your thoughts!

Praying your baby is okay. Hoping it was just a cramp of sorts like we get sometimes and can't move it back too well. Please let us know when you know something!

Well, we found out she is suffering from HLP. X-rays from the ER vet showed nothing abnormal. The vet ran several tests eliminating diabetes and tumors as the cause of the lameness. This means that it is most likely a calcium deficiency. He did some tests for neurological problems and she was responding well to every test. She has feeling in her legs, rear, feet, and toes. She is alert and healthy is every way other than the issue at hand.

I should also tell you that while visiting my vet today, Sprocket hung from my arm by her rear legs with no trouble at all. vet said I really know how to watch for symptoms to have noticed anything at all. I contribute all of that to this website and you wonderful people.

He told me to pull the two joeys (6 weeks OOP) and to keep her out of her big cage for awhile until she starts really recovering. He expects a full recovery. He said that because her symptoms are so mild, I should see improvement pretty quickly once the joeys are out of the cage. I was told to keep her calcium intake increased until further notice. She will have to go in for several follow-up visits to ensure that she is recovering properly.

He put me in touch with a zoologist in the area that has experience with the sugar gliders located at the St. Louis zoo. He also gave me the number of an exotic specialist that runs his own office and generally uses word of mouth to advertise (which is why I had never heard of him). My vet highly recommended both guys for any issues I have with my gliders in the future should I ever want a second (or third) opinion.

I set Gizmo's (her mate) neuter appointment today as well. I don't want her being a mommy to ever cause her problems again. She is my baby girl!

While it was a stressful day, everything turned out okay. *big sigh of relief*

Thank you all for your help and support.

Jenny-
This is wonderful news! I needed some!

It is so cool that you have those two references, too!

Oh I am so "happy" to hear that she is going to be alright. Thank goodness it was caught early enough to prevent any further complications. I will be praying for her and hope that she will be back to her self soon.
If you pull the joeys, you might want to check Sugarglidersuz's site out fo any special precautions you might want to look for. 6 weeks is not to bad, they should be alright, but it's best just to be prepared.

I hope your other gliders neutering will go well.

You've sure had alot to deal with this past week, Kudos to you for being on top of things in the midst of the whirlwind. Good luck, and keep us posted......

My vet called today to discuss with me some ideas he got from a fellow vet that is also a breeder of sugar gliders. Here are the suggestions I was just given:

1. Add a full spectrum reptile light 18" above the cage. Replace the bulb every six months. I hope I say this part right...the light helps produce Vitamin D which in turns helps the glider in processing the calcium it intakes.

2. Feed her one almond per day. He said I can give one almond (no salt or anything...just plain) to each glider per day. I've always avoided nuts, so this one was definitely one I hadn't thought of.

3. Dust food with Tums. I have RepCal, so I don't really see why it's needed, but he did say I could use Tums safely in small doses.

4. There is a product called (bare with me on spelling) Neocalglucon. He said to add 1 ml or cc per oz of water in their bottle.

So, that's the update for now. Anybody heard of these before?

I should add that Sprocket is doing very well.

I'm glad that Sprocket is doing well. On the Tums, is he talking like the human chewable calcium pills - then just crush them up? That's kind of interesting. I also know nothing about reptiles so I don't know what the full spectrum light is, but I'll have to check that out! sounds like you're doing great.

He said to scrape the Tums and make it a dusting.