Lecture 38 - Sugar Gliders

Sugar Glider

What small mammal pet is the species P. breviceps, is found in Australia, is arboreal, and is nocturnal? They are omnivorous.

Yes

Do sugar gliders live in groups?

Torpor

What state do sugar gliders enter in cold weather to conserve food?

Scent

What glands do sugar gliders have on the head, chest, and genitalia?

1-2

How many litters do sugar gliders have per year? They are seasonally polyestrous.

7-12

It is best to adopt sugar gliders about how many weeks after they have left the pouch?

Frontal, Sternal

In what two areas do male sugar gliders have extra scent glands?

Pouch

In what area do female sugar gliders have extra scent glands?

Paracloacal

In what area do both male and female sugar gliders have scent glands?

Gliding

What membrane do sugar gliders have stretching from the forefoot to the ankle?

Five

How many digits do sugar gliders have on the front feet? They all will have claws.

Hallux

What is the term for digit one on a sugar glider’s hind feet, which is opposable and has no claw?

Brachyodont

What type of teeth do sugar gliders have? The incisors are specialized for digging tree bark.

Cecum

What GI organ in a sugar glider is enlarged for digestion of gum and sap?

Two

How many teats does a sugar glider’s pouch have?

Adrenal

What endocrine glands are larger in females than in males?

Male

Are male or female sugar gliders larger?

12-14

About how many years is the average lifespan of a sugar glider?

29

How many days is the estrus cycle in a sugar glider?

16

How many days is the gestation period in a sugar glider?

17

After how many weeks does a sugar glider become independent?

Protein

The sugar glider diet should be 50% fructose and gum, and 50% what?

Evening

What time of day should a sugar glider be fed?

Paralysis

Hindlimb what syndrome can occur in sugar gliders due to hypocalcemia, nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism, or spinal trauma, and is signified by weakness, incoordination, and tremors? It is diagnosed using diet history, x-ray, and bloodwork.

Obesity

What condition predisposes sugar gliders to heart and liver disease?

Cataracts

What eye conditions occur in juvenile sugar gliders due to maternal over-breeding or pouch infections, or due to excess dietary fat and sugar, vitamin A deficiency, or genetic causes?

Meloxicam

What medicine can be given for pain in sugar gliders due to trauma?

Poor

What type of prognosis does megacolon have in sugar gliders?

Stress

Self-mutilation, aggression, eating disorders, cannibalism, fur pulling, and stereotyping are all syndromes related to what?

Tail

What vein can be used most often for venipuncture in sugar gliders, though it should be warmed first? The cephalic, lateral saphenous, femoral, jugular, and cranial vena cava can also be used. A 25-27 gauge needle is used.

Three

How many vaginas does a sugar glider have? They have one urogenital sinus and the vaginas are split between median and lateral ones.

Saphenous

What vein is most often used for IV injections?

Interscapular

What region is most often used for SQ injections?