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"Flying squirrels" the latest popular pets

8:24am Friday 12th September 2008 in News

Sugar Gliders Sugar Gliders

IT is a house where the fur flies every day of the week.

The bizarre squirrel-like creature can be seen gliding through the home of Southampton breeder Sian Bailey who has seen demand for the animals, called Sugar Gliders, rocket.

Soaring up to 12ft across the sky the gliders are fast becoming an unlikely popular pet.

The furry, nocturnal animals have flabby skin that forms a perfect square when their legs and arms are outstretched, helping them glide.

Watch the Sugar Gliders in action and an interview with breeder Sian bailey - click Play

Miss Bailey, trainee veterinary nurse and breeder with Southern Sugar Gliders, said interest in the animals had soared.

“Sugar gliders are becoming more common as pets and people are travelling all over the country to get them.

“They have a membrane which stretches out to help them glide in the air which is quite fascinating to watch.

“In the wild they can glide up to 200ft to escape predators and find food but domesticated ones run up curtain poles and glide across a room for exercise.”

Because the marsupials are so rare and so unusual people are paying up to £150 to own one.

But Miss Bailey warned potential owners should be aware of the extra care the animals need.

“They are very cute, however they do require a lot of care and attention – far more than a cat or dog.”

She added: “My only concern with them becoming more popular is that some people will buy them because they are unusual and then get bored.

“I have already seen one that has ended up in a rescue centre which is very worrying.

“Before anyone buys any of my gliders I bombard them with questions to ensure they are suitable. The unusual creatures also need a diet of 75 per cent fruit and vegetables and 25 per cent protein mix.”

The bizarre meal is handmade using warm water, honey, shelled boiled eggs, high protein baby cereal, nutri-bars and vitamin supplements.

Yet they can be given drinking water in a rabbit bottle.

John Hepburn, who sells the gliders at his exotic pet shop, Pets Love Us in Southampton, said: “Sugar gliders are becoming rather popular as pets.

“They are extremely pretty and very tame providing the owner bonds with them – if not they can give a nasty nip.

“The best way to bond is to wear them around your neck in a material pouch – some people even take them to work in one where they will sleep all day.”

Comments(18)

Remmington says...
9:54am Fri 12 Sep 08

The RSPCA should close them down and prosecute. Treating any animal as some sort of toy trophy is cruel.

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Adrian Smith says...
10:25am Fri 12 Sep 08

Remmington wrote:
The RSPCA should close them down and prosecute. Treating any animal as some sort of toy trophy is cruel.
These will become the chav must have xmas present.

Then next year we will have reports of abandoned flying rats, flying rats taken to the Common for a walk and getting lost in the boot of an uninsured/untaxed car and the New Forest will only be allowing them in certain car parks.

Stop the stupidity now.

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Remmington says...
10:30am Fri 12 Sep 08

The Sugar Glider is protected by law in Australia, where it is illegal to keep them without a permit, or to capture or sell them without a licence (which is usually only issued for research

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Adrian Smith says...
10:51am Fri 12 Sep 08

Remmington wrote:
The Sugar Glider is protected by law in Australia, where it is illegal to keep them without a permit, or to capture or sell them without a licence (which is usually only issued for research
Perhaps the Echo can launch one of its famous campaigns to have a similar set of rules in place here?

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JB Soton says...
11:20am Fri 12 Sep 08

I dont like the idea of this at all.
Leave them alone!

Before 'chavs' etc do aquire one I hope they realise they are going to need at least 200ft long lounges so that these poor creatures can get some exercise.

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juliusevola says...
11:44am Fri 12 Sep 08

The Echo should be ashamed of itself for promoting the keeping of this poor creature.

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Remmington says...
12:30pm Fri 12 Sep 08

These poor exploited substitutes for radio controlled planes sell for around £150.00 each

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claxxy says...
12:44pm Fri 12 Sep 08

Oh dear help me! Why is there always negative views on this sort of thing. Know one ever thinks about the other side just negative, negative all the time!

Next you will all be saying that dog and cats shouldn't be kept as pets?!

The fact is an animal like the Sugar Glider would have a much better life as a pet (if looked after properly, like all pets should be!) They are feed, excercised and have no preditors.

Yes there are many people out there that shouldn't own animals, but this applies to all animals such as dog's etc

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Remmington says...
1:46pm Fri 12 Sep 08

Major predators are the domestic cat
and pet shop owners

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friday says...
2:20pm Fri 12 Sep 08

This is just so wrong! There should be no exotic animal sales in Britain – I am going to forward this article on to the RSPCA and other groups so that eventually we can shut down this shop – and take away the license of a so called trainee vet. You know stupid parents will buy these poor creatures for their sprogs and the first time they poo on furniture or nip someone all hell with let loose and they will be carted out of the house – these animals could end up in the wild – we are talking about culling gray squirrels because the red are dying off – why are we potentially bringing another species into the country. Let them live in their own land and fly around the trees not in bloody Southampton in someone’s living room – just wrong on all aspects.

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friday says...
2:49pm Fri 12 Sep 08

I Forwarded this article on to the RSPCA and am awaiting a response. I had contacted them before about an exotic pet shop in Scotland, however, they could not do anything there.England it is different and they can do something. We no longer sell puppies and kittens because it is cruel but what about this! These are not snakes or tiny little spiders - these animals have a huge potential of being abused - if they don't perform ticks for their owners! Oh and let's not forget the people who cry poor over school uniforms how are they going to be able to feed these animals. Let’s shut breeders down now - forcibly being pregnant is cruelty on animals. We all think this is wrong - but you have to take action, I allways contact an animal agency if I think i see something wrong - do it with this person - get her breading plan shut down - get a law with the help of the RSPCA to ban non-native exocit animals - act now!

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Bill-B says...
3:54pm Fri 12 Sep 08

I am very fortunate, I live in a rural area and have flying squirrels living in my back yard. They only come out when it is getting dark and they feed on the suit blocks and the seed bars that I put out for the birds. My cat caught one a few months ago and bought it in to the house. Fortunately it did not kill it. It took me quite a while to catch it and release it to the tree that it lives in. My point is that these animals are not suitable to keep as pets they need a large area to forage and roam around in, so please don't keep them as pets, because you will only end up causing them harm no matter what your intentions are.

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Family Man says...
6:53pm Fri 12 Sep 08

You only have to see how many Staffies and greyhounds end up in animal rescue centres to see just how much animals are treated as fashion accessories, only to be given up by their owners who had no consideration for their needs and care. I would not want to go down the road of licensing owners, as there are too many loving and caring owners who would not be allowed to keep animals if bureaucracy was allowed to control who owns what, but there really ought to be some sort of control.

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Finlay says...
10:49pm Fri 12 Sep 08

I knew a girl once who used to make her squirrel fly across the room for a bit of meat.

Tasty too guys.

Ever eaten a squirrel lately? Juicy!



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claxxy says...
6:38am Sat 13 Sep 08

Friday-
Sorry but you just sound like a busy body to me-that has nothing better to do. Your suggestions are way over the top boardering on insane.

If you like we as humans are kept like pets- work, pay tax, get nothing for it....so what about fighting for that?

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Adrian Smith says...
6:55am Sat 13 Sep 08

I see the Echo is running another story about this on Saturday mentioning the RSPCA etc. But we are not allowed to comment on it.

Sigh..

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goard says...
11:13am Sat 13 Sep 08

I think the Echo has done it's job - its encouraged the comments from other readers. Apart from a few self serving I think one can assume that it is totally a bad idea to introduce another little animal into the 'must have'. I have always felt a huge horror of all things: puppies, little kittens in the hands of little kiddies. A concervatory is 100 degrees too hot and little hands can squeeze the life (and injure) little animals - for goodness sake parents, don't get your kids a pet until they are, at least 20 years old.

goard

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ljthor says...
5:18am Thu 24 Dec 09

every one of you people on her that are just complaining should go get a life this is for people who are trying to find the right way to care for these animals not just own them plus they are no different to having dogs, cats, lizzards or chinchillas so just be quite and try finding somethink worth fighting against like crime killings and rape. and the dude from england saying he is reporting it to rspca there just gonna laugh at you ya losser

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