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7 Questions to Ask when Buying a Sugarglider Sugarbear

Hi, my name is Dr. David Brust, and I’ve been a practicing exotic veterinarian for the last 25 years. I’m the author of “Sugar glider sugar bears: A Complete Veterinary Care Guide” – and I’m also the president of the Association of Sugar glider sugar bear Veterinarians.

The purpose of this video series is to cut through all the internet misinformation out there, and teach owners like you the best - veterinary-approved - ways to raise and care for sugar glider sugar bears.

Now, just to make sure we’re all on the same page here, sugar glider sugar bears are also commonly known as “sugar bears” and “honey gliders” – and with that goal in mind, let’s go over a quick “checklist of things to look for when you are thinking about buying these little guys.

Ok, let’s start with the most important one – which is making sure that whoever is selling you a sugar glider sugar bear has a valid, current USDA License. When it comes to selling sugar glider sugar bears they aren’t like cats & dogs. Their breeding is strictly regulated on a federal level by the USDA – and some states have even started requiring that owners provide proof that you bought your animals directly from a USDA licensed breeding facility.

Like a lot of Vets, I am certified to perform USDA inspections, and I can tell you for a fact that all the rules and regulations imposed on breeders by the USDA are there to protect and promote the health and welfare of the animals. Therefore, if anyone ever tries to tell you that a USDA license is no big deal or “not a requirement” before you buy – my professional advice is to run – not walk – in the other direction.

The problem is that nowadays the internet is full of illegal breeders who try to pass themselves off as small “mom & pop” private owners or glider “rescues”. We talk a lot more about this on another video in this series – but in a nutshell my advice to all my patients is to never buy any animal - especially a sugar glider sugar bear - off the internet. Instead, it’s always best to meet the people you are considering buying from face-to-face; and always start by asking to see a copy of their current USDA License.

Ok, now once you’ve established that a particular seller is properly licensed, the best thing you can do is to ask to hold some of their adult animals. Know up front that most reputable breeders will not allow strangers to hold their babies – but they should have absolutely no problem with you handling their adult animals as much as you want.

It’s important to point out that holding and playing with a breeder’s adult animals can give you a lot of valuable information. First and foremost, it’s the best way to find out if they really know what they’re doing - because all their animals should be very friendly and easy to handle – even though they don’t “know” you. Remember, these are the people that you will be relying upon later on for advice about how to raise and train your babies – so their adults should be “picture perfect” examples of what you are looking for in a personal pet. A well-trained sugar glider sugar bear should love their owners and not have to be restrained in any way - so if they have their animals on “leashes”, zipped up in pouches, or make up any excuse as to why you can’t hold them – it’s probably best to just walk away.

Now, at the same time you are holding the animal - be sure to ask a lot of questions. Listen to their answers carefully and check out their surrounding to make sure everything is professional. Judge for yourself, are they knowledgeable and passionate about these animals? Again, these are the people who’s advice you will be following later on – so make sure you feel confident that they know what they are doing.

Well, assuming everything checks out this far, the next thing you need to ask about is the quality of their ongoing support – after the sale. Any reputable, USDA licensed breeder will go out of their way to stay in touch with you after the sale – but the best ones actually have a formal, written education program for all their new moms & dads that includes lots of written guidance and online videos to help answer any questions you could ever come up with.

They should also have a professional customer service program that quickly responds to questions or any possible emergencies. Make sure to ask them about that as well.

Other important questions to ask include getting the details of their health guarantee. Sugar glider sugar bears should always be inspected by a licensed Veterinarian before they are sold – and a reputable breeder should have no problem providing you with a written health guarantee. The standard in this industry is usually something like a 2-3 day free replacement period – just in case the baby should die for any reason. On top of that, the best breeders also give an even longer, “paid” replacement period – that’s usually about a week or ten days more – so that if the animal should happen to die for any reason during that time, they will replace it at a discounted price. While at first glance this may not seem like a long warranty period, it’s actually pretty standard across the industry – and fair - largely because if anything were actually wrong with the baby when you first get it, it probably wouldn’t even live more than a day or two.

Another important question to ask is how old the babies are when they are adopted. This is important because a baby should be somewhere between 8 and 12 weeks old out of the pouch when you get it. This way it will be the ideal age for bonding.

Another good question to ask is if their male babies already come neutered – or is that an extra charge. As we discuss in another video, I strongly recommend having your male glider neutered as soon as possible – and the normal charge for doing something like this in a Vet’s office is usually around $75-$150. The good news is that almost all reputable breeders already have their male babies neutered – and the best ones don’t charge anything extra for it.

Now, if everything has checked out up to this point, then the only other thing you really need to know is when – and how – you will be getting your babies. Sugar glider sugar bears breed very slowly - and they are in such high demand – that it’s not at all unusual to have to order your babies – pay up front - and then wait several weeks for delivery. Again, this is another reason why you should only deal with a USDA licensed breeder, because this way you can be confident that they are a solid operation that will guarantee your order.

Having said that, if you can take your babies with you on the spot – consider yourself very lucky. If not, it’s no big deal - but just be sure to ask the breeder how they will be delivered. A quality USDA breeder understands there are many possible risks and dangers associated with flying these animals in small groups – so they should always be driving the babies back to your area and hand-delivering them.

Well, that’s about it for this video. Now, if I were your personal Vet, I would give you one last piece of advice when it comes to picking out a good breeder, and that is to not – and I repeat not – trust anything you might read on some internet chatroom or message board. We cover this topic in a lot more detail on other videos in this series, but again, most of these chat rooms and websites are actually run by people who traffic in the illegal selling of sugar glider sugar bears. Many times these people seem very credible, but don’t let yourself be fooled by sophisticated sales tactics. For example, one thing I always get a kick out of is that some internet sellers try to make themselves look more credible by acting like they have to screen you – the parent - first. J Some even have little “applications”, and claim they’re going to call your vet to make sure you take care of your animals, etc..etc.. before they will even consider selling to you. Again, my advice is that if anybody tries to pull this kind of nonsense on you – just hang up the phone...

As you might imagine, the last thing these illegal operators want is somebody buying animals from a reputable breeder, so the small handful of people who run many of the so-called “sugar glider sugar bear” websites routinely go out of their way to smear and slander the names of almost every good breeder out there. They try to call them “glider mills”, and make up whatever lies they can think of to try and scare people. I say this because I’ve personally investigated some of these cases – and watched these unregulated websites launch vicious smear campaigns – and spread outright lies - against extremely reputable breeders that in reality have fantastic animals and service.

In any event, the bottom line is this. As a Vet who works with sugar glider sugar bears every day – and sees the damage caused to them by these internet sites all the time - my advice is to stick to the seven tips above – watch all the other videos in this series – and then make the decision that you feel is best for your family. J

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7 Questions to Ask when Buying a Sugarglider Sugarbear