OutbackGliders, There are many different diets available for your sugar glider, each diet has it's ups and downs. It really is controversial as to what the best diet is for a sugar glider in captivity. Although any diet you choose, keep the following in mind: A healthy diet is VERY important, serious health conditions will arise if your glider is not feed properly. Keep a positive calcium to phosphorous ratio, use calcium supplements that are non-phosphorous. A sugar gliders diet should consist of a protein source, vitamins, fruits and vegetables. Use vitamin supplements when necessary, but don't over do it, too many vitamins can be just as harmful as not enough. Start out by feeding about 3-4 tablespoons of food per night, per glider. If they eat it all the first night add a little more the next night until they leave only a little bit. Remember a sugar gliders stomach is about the same size of your thumbnail, and only holds less than a tablespoon of food/water. Often times breeders will offer pregnant or lactating mothers extra protein. Before doing this, be sure it fits into your current diet plan. Never add vitamins to your gliders water. Always follow the directions of your chosen diet. Fresh water and a high quality staple food must be available at all times. Feed you glider a varied diet within your chosen diet plan. This will prevent food boredom, and ensures a balanced diet. Example, feed various fruits, juices, vegetables, etc.
Cat food or pellet base diets of any type are not recommended.
Sugar gliders are sap suckers, by feeding large amounts of hard food can lead to an infection in the jaw known as “lumpy jaw”. Do not mix diets. Each diet is balanced with the right amount of vitamins and minerals. Mixing diets can affect these balances resulting in either too much, or not enough of something. Give the diet a chance before deciding your gliders don't like it. Sugar Gliders can be like 2 year olds, and have similar eating patterns. One week they will go without touching any fruit, the next that is all they will eat. Here Are A few examples of what other sugar glider complete nutrition system that produces healthy, happy sugar gliders. The system Includes protein/fruit/vegetable diet with vitamins. This well-balanced system, together with lots of care and attention to allowing the gliders freedom of movement...See our other accepted Diets and Fun Recipes On Bottom of the page
The Sugar Glider Exotic Diet (The Pet Glider Diet) Ingredients: 25 oz unsweetened applesauce 4 oz Dannon non-fat plain yogurt 3 oz concentrated calcium fortified orange juice, no water added 3/4 c Old Fashioned Oats (NO QUICK COOKING OATS) 1 T fresh ground flax seed or wheat germ, refrigerated In a large mixing bowl, with a wooden spoon, mix the applesauce, oats, yogurt, wheat germ and orange juice. Divide into two equal portions. To portion one, add: 3 small or medium eggs, scrambled. To portion two, add: 3/4 lb unseasoned, unsalted, boiled shredded chicken. Add 3/4 cup various chopped or precut fruits and vegetables to each portion. then putting the mix into Ice cube trays and covering with plastic wrap - this way the serving sizes stay the sameIn a separate bowl, chop up: 3/4 cups various fruits, 3/4 cups various vegetables (List Below) You may also choose to use pre-cute frozen fruits or vegetables. Mix things up using different fruits and vegetables. Combine and freeze in bags. (I found small Cups with lids make a great storage)
Presentation: Seven Days a week: Basic Mix One Cube feed 2-4 Gliders . Offer the basic mixture fresh the first two nights, then freeze the remaining following the directions above.
Break off a frozen piece of the basic mix. Pull out the chopped fruits and vegetables from your freezer, trying to keep it one part fruits to one part vegetables. If you choose to use pre-cut frozen fruits and vegetables, do not use vegetables which have a high ratio of corn.
Feed at least 4-6 fresh fruits and veggies each day; don’t feed the same combination of this mixture three days in a row.
Offer UNSEASONED, UNSALTED broiled chicken (1 tsp per glider), eggs, or mealworms (3-6 giant) four or five nights out of the week for extra protein. If your glider has a tendency to be overweight, offer less mealworms. Mealworms are high in fat, so only offer them three times per week.
Offer fresh water at all times, I offer them 100% Juice (Apple ,Peach ,Mango...just make sure its 100% juice )nd Diluted ENSURE (Vanilla Flavored) may be given 2-3 times a week. Couple times a week offer them Gatorade- Use fruit flavored Gatorade, and mix the granular kind to you glider’s tastes. The flavored fruit mix encourages your glider to drink more liquid. It contains electrolytes, and also contains some sucrose, a nectar substitute, both very important to them.
Feeding schedule should be: and all meals should be Sprinklled with Vitamin Enrichment Supplement,
Monday, Wednesday and Friday: Basic Mix, Fresh Fruit /Veggies ,J uice and /Or Diluted"Ensure" and Biscuits Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday : Basic Mix , Fresh Fruit /Veggies , Yogart and Gatorade
Daily I hand feen my gliders living Mealworms (about 10-15 Smaller or 3-4 Giant Mealworms per glider)anthis helps bonding and is a treat for the gliders and not thier diet .
Saturday: One Day a week I try to mix it up and give them somethin special - Bolided Eggs or Chicken, Fresh Fruit /Veggies and dry cheroos ,both Juice and Ensure
Don't feed them beef, seeds/nuts, Grapes , raisin or cottage cheese to your gliders. These are high in phosphorus. Avoid feeding anything with preservatives, sugar, or color additives. Keep the diet low-fat.Below is a complete list of Foods to Avoid.
Daily exercise is vital. Exercise helps bones absorb calcium and stimulates bone thickening. Always try to aim for a high Calcium to Phosphorus ratios.
*Optionable -ZooKeepers Secret or Sugar Glider Cereal)*
*Drink Treats :Pure juices diluted with half purified water 3-4 times per week and Ensure (Vanilla with Calcium) diluted with half purified water 2- times per week and - some time both
*Food Treat: Eggs or Chicken (Either Hard Boiled or scambled Eggs ) or Boiled Chicken servered once a week instead of the Mix - They love the change
Daily Vitamin/Mineral Supplement: Multivitamin, sprinkled on food daily(Sugar Glider Vitamins FROM The Pet Glider or Exotic Nutrition Pet Company)
Please, only use this list as a guideline as gliders are individuals and everyone’s situation is different. You should try different things to find out what your particular glider likes but remember that they need variety. As a general rule, never, feed a glider the same thing two days in a row. Varying their diet will keep them interested and eating healthily. But remember that the glider must be eating some of everything in the bowl for diet to be effective. Make the portions of each item small enough that the glider must eat some of most of what is in the bowl, and can not eat only what it likes best. Joeys can get themselves in trouble this way; they become bored with their meals and then they are not eating very well. The wet food, and protein you give the glider will nourish it on a daily basis, but the dry food and the vitamin supplement are what will keep your glider healthy long term. For that reason it is imperative that you get the glider eating the supplements no matter how difficult it may seem. Joeys especially will not know what is good for them so it is up to you to do what needs to be done to ensure that your glider will remain healthy.
The one most important concept that a glider owner should keep in mind is that the key to everything is the diet. If you are attentive and careful with your glider's diet, it will likely never be unhealthy and you will likely never have a reason to take it to a vet. Place food inside a Clear Box to help control there Mess.
Supply A Proper Diet for Health Gliders!! One MORE thing, I have heard that some glider owners feed Dog/cat food to their gliders(Sometime sold By Pocket Pets as sugar glider food - BUT its Just re-labeled dog food !). This is a very bad idea and it will lead to tragedy. DO NOT FEED DOG OR CAT FOOD TO GLIDERS. This food was formulated for a dOGS/cats' physiology not a gliders'. THE food will eventually cause an intestinal blockage which will can potentially cause the loss of life. It doesn’t happen over night but the result is usually the same. Cat food is high in protein but there are so many other great sources of protein why take the risk?
List of Best nutrition and mostly widely accepted foods.
Protien Source- (Protein should be 25 – 40 % of a glider’s daily diet) chicken (Steamed or boiled without skin), eggs (hard boiled) ,on the rare occation turkey (boiled without skin) insects (farm raised such as crickets and mealworms) , yogurt (also good for calcium), , wheat Germ , PREMIUM SUGAR GLIDER DIET or INSECT-EATER DIET (Canned Food) From Exotic Nutrition.Com or ZooKeeper's Secret™
Some Good foods but should not be used every day for long periods. Beans, beets, broccoli, Cabbage, cauliflower,Corn ,cottage cheese,Grapefruit , Kale , Nectar, greens (mustard, kayle, collard, stalks, turnip) oranges, parsley, peas, Spinach, turnips. Eating onions (also turnips, cabbage, garlic, ...), destroys red blood cells in animals which can result in anemia.
Foods To AVOID
Baby foods (containing onions or garlic for seasoning Most do not but check!) Caffeine (coffee, tea, soda, chocolate etc..) canned foods fruit or meat (most contain added salt and sugar) canned fruit cheese (May cause intestinal stoppage or "binding" leading to constipation) chives chocolate It causes a toxic chemical reaction in many animals Dog / Cat food fats (any food with high or added fat) fried foods garlic insects that are wild caught keels iceberg lettuce (non nutritional) milk millet (or other very small seeds) nuts (possible exception uncooked, unsalted penult for rare special treats) onions pinkies (although very nutritious we choose not to feed pinkies because of a few items that suggest feeding pinkies may increase the possibility of mothers eating their joeys. Pinkies are baby mice.) Pits (from fruit) processed meat phosphorus stay away from foods high in phosphorus. use a calcium that does not contain phosphorous. raw eggs raw meat (except for live insects) rhubarb (Stocks can be toxins to mammals if not cooked foliage may contain toxins even if cooked) salt (any food with added salt) scallions seeds (including fresh fruit seeds, possible exception is an very rare uncooked, unsalted seed as a rare special treat) Tofu / soy products (Even though tofu has been thought of as the perfect protein you may want to avoid this or use it very limited because of several recent articles which suggest "The facts are stated clearly - soy products in the diet of the studied animals is believed to have harmful effects on the body's digestive and reproductive systems." Why take the risk of Tofu when there are many other forms of protein.) Sugar (refined sugar, table sugar) or (foods with added sugar)
OTHER DIET PLANS___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Basic Leadbeaters Diet Plan- The Modified Leadbeaters Diet Plan below, is one of the oldest and most proven diets currently in use. Please do not modify this diet in any way. Note that the Back to Basics plan has a specific list of fruits and veggies to be fed, as well as a time that mealworms should be fed.
Presentation: Start out by feeding (per 1 glider): 1 Tablespoon of the BML mix 1 Tablespoon of fruits (apples, grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe, melon, frozen pitted cherries and blueberries) 1 Tablespoon of veggies (corn, peas, carrots and green beans) Feed 10-12 small, 7-10 medium, or 3-5 large mealworms in the morning. If they eat it all the first night add a little more the next night until they leave small amount
Back to Basics BML Ingredients:1/2 Cup of Honey (Do not use honey comb, raw or unfiltered) 4 oz bottle of premixed Gerber juice with yogurt, (comes in mixed fruit or banana found near the baby food isle) Some places this product can’t be found, in that case, mix in 2 oz of plain yogurt and 2 oz of mixed fruit juice.(100% juice no additives) 1/4 cup Wheat Germ 1 Teaspoon of vitamin supplement (Rep-Cal HERPTIVITE is recommended) 2 teaspoons Calcium Supplement non-phosphorus with Vit. D3 (Rep-Cal) 2 2 1/2 oz jar of Chicken baby food 1 Egg boiled or scrambled (no shell) 1/4 cup of apple juice 1/2 cup of dry baby cereal
Directions: Put honey, egg, Gerber juice into the blender, blend until ingredients are mixed well. Add the rest of the ingredients, blend well for 5 mins. Pour into ice cube trays and freeze immediately.
* It will freeze to the same consistency as ice cream. 1 cube is about 2 tablespoons, this recipe should feed one glider for about a month.
Modified Leadbeaters Diet Plan(Judie's Version)-Judies Modified Leadbeaters Diet Plan below was modified by a long time and respected breeder due to some of her gliders rejecting the basic mixture. Please follow this diet plan exactly. Avoid supplementing or modifying ingredients. Please note that there is not a specific list of fruits/veggies with this diet as their is with the Back to Basics BML plan. Variety is important, but do not overfeed items high in phosphorous such as corn.
Presentation: Start out by feeding (per 1 glider): 1 Tablespoon of the BML mix 1 Tablespoon of fruits 1 Tablespoon of veggies Feed 10-12 small, 7-10 medium, or 3-5 large mealworms Other insects gliders enjoy are crickets, june bugs, moths, and grasshoppers. Never feed roaches, lightening bugs, or any bug caught outside or in an area where it could have insecticide on it If they eat it all the first night add a little more the next night until they leave only a little bit.
BML -Ingredients: (a.k.a. Judie’s Version)1/2 cup Honey (Do Not Use honeycomb, raw or unfiltered honey) 1 Egg Hard Boiled w/shell (if your blender doesn't break the shell down, don't use it) 1 oz of Apple Juice (100% juice- no additives) 1 oz of CranApple or CranCherry Juice 4 oz bottle of premixed Gerber juice with yogurt, (comes in mixed fruit or banana found near the baby food isle) Some places this product can’t be found, in that case, mix in 2 oz of plain yogurt and 2 oz of mixed fruit juice.(100% juice no additives) 1 Teaspoon of vitamin supplement (Rep-Cal HERPTIVITE is recommended) 2 teaspoons Calcium Supplement non-phosphorus with Vit. D3 (Rep-Cal) 2 2 1/2 oz jar of Chicken baby food 1 Small Jar of Stage 2 Sweet Potato 1/4 cup Wheat Germ 1/2 cup dry baby cereal (Mixed or Oatmeal)
Directions: Put honey, egg (with shell on) and apple juice into the blender, blend until ingredients are mixed well. Next, add the chicken baby food, and sweet potato, blend. Add the fruit juice, yogurt juice, and vitamin supplement, blend well. Add the wheat germ and baby cereal, blend well. Pour into ice cube trays, or in a bowl and freeze.
* It will freeze to the same consistency as ice cream. 1 cube is about 2 tablespoons, this recipe should feed one glider for about a month.
Darcy's Diet (Ensure) Presentation: Feed about a tablespoon of protein source per glider. Such as insects, mealworms, chicken or duck meat, crickets, wax worms, or egg. Also feed nightly chopped fruits and vegetables. Use various fruits & veggies, emphasis on variety and moderation. (No large amounts of any one thing.)
Daily Staple: Zookeeper’s Secret is offered daily as a staple.
Enrichment Supplement: Nekton brand nectar is offered nightly. A multivitamin and protein supplement originally developed for birds. It has a calcium phosphorus ratio of 1:1, therefore it can not be relied upon for a calcium supplement. (similar to glider-aid)
Daily Vitamin/Mineral Supplement: Mix one can of Ensure (8 ozs) with 380 mg (3/8 teaspoons) calcium carbonate (human grade, available at most pharmacies) 2-3 tablespoons Ensure* supplement (NEVER CHOCOLATE) with calcium per glider in a bowl. (If you try putting it in a bottle the calcium will clog the tube.).Optional: 1/4 tsp acacia gum
This diet is especially useful for gliders who are malnutrition or recovering from illness. It is based on using Ensure plus calcium as the nutritional supplement. *Sustagen is the European equivalent
PML Diet-Mix Ingredients: 1 & 3/4 cup of water (bottled preferred) 1 & 3/4 cup - of honey (honey amount can be lessoned to 1 & 1/2 cup if using Australian honey) 2 boiled shelled eggs 1 ounce (30 grams) - of Wombaroo High Protein Supplement
According to Pockets: “I change my amount of Wombaroo HPS I offer according to season - but you do not have to. I use 1 less egg in my PML than is recommended in Oz, as my research has shown a problem with captive possums - possible cholesterol problems from providing to many egg yolks resulting in fatty tumors.”
Instructions: Warm water for 2 minutes in microwave before mixing in the honey (do not make water hot as it can destroy the vitamins in the WHPS). Mix until dissolved Place eggs and warm blended honey/water into blender, blend 1 minute Add 1 ounce (30 grams) of Wombaroo High Protein Supplement & blend again for 1 minute Place in freezer-safe dish & freeze.Presentation: Pockets Modified Leadbeater's (PML) mix nightly; 1 glider portion is 3/4 -1 tbs 1 tablespoon insectivore fare per glider (zookeeper secret) 1-2 tablespoons fruit/veggie mix per glider Tiny portion of Neocalglucon weekly (a type of calcium)*Note Please talk to your vet before starting your sugar gliders on any diet
Fun Recipes - No, I did not create these yummy recipes but my gliders love them so much that I thought I'd share them with you! These are especially good if you have a picky eater.THESE ARE NOT DIET REPLACEMENTS - JUST TREATES ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sugar glider Birthday Cake-1 cup Bisquik (or some other type of similar mix) 2/3 cup Milk 1 Egg 1 Tbsp Dried fruit of some type (I used Sunmaid Fruit Bits, and took out the rasins) 1 Tbsp Insects (mealworms, grasshoppers, ect.) Optional: A pinch of bee pollen
Mix up the Bisquik and pre-heat oven to 375 degrees, Add in the fruit and insects , Put batter in muffin tins and bake for about 12 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean, Cool and watch them go at it! Yeild: 9 Large Muffins worth. You will have a lot left over. Frosting: Acacia Gum with a little water
Fruit Smooth Sugar glider- 5 to 6 pound bag of mixed fruit, 4 oz baby white grapefruit juice(or almost any other juices) 2-4 tablespoons of honey, 1/2 cup of Dannon French Vanilla Yogurt Just defrost your bag of fruit (if frozen) & drain the juice, and then place in blender & blend until smooth. Pour into ice cube trays and then serve 1/2 cube to 1 cube per night per a single to a pair of gliders.
Veggie Relish1 - 32 ounce bag of mixed vegetables, defrosted (green beans, sweetcorn, carrots and peas) Birds Eye Classic is the best. *NO lima beans! *NO salt! 4 - fluid ounces of white grape juice 4 - table spoons of honey Put half of everything into blender and blend until consistency of relish, do same with other half and mix together. Freeze in ice cube trays and give 1 cube per glider
Glider treat-1 cup oatmeal (Quaker Oats) 1 can baby food (gliders preferred flavor) 1 individual sized plain apple sauce 1 egg scrambled (No butter or spray)
If mixture is too thick add some apple juice Mix together, place in ice cube tray and freeze. Serve half a cube or make cubes smaller for one sugar glider, but they are hard to cut in half once frozen.
OutbackGliders, There are many different diets available for your sugar glider, each diet has it's ups and downs. It really is controversial as to what the best diet is for a sugar glider in captivity. Although any diet you choose, keep the following in mind: A healthy diet is VERY important, serious health conditions will arise if your glider is not feed properly. Keep a positive calcium to phosphorous ratio, use calcium supplements that are non-phosphorous. A sugar gliders diet should consist of a protein source, vitamins, fruits and vegetables. Use vitamin supplements when necessary, but don't over do it, too many vitamins can be just as harmful as not enough. Start out by feeding about 3-4 tablespoons of food per night, per glider. If they eat it all the first night add a little more the next night until they leave only a little bit. Remember a sugar gliders stomach is about the same size of your thumbnail, and only holds less than a tablespoon of food/water. Often times breeders will offer pregnant or lactating mothers extra protein. Before doing this, be sure it fits into your current diet plan. Never add vitamins to your gliders water. Always follow the directions of your chosen diet. Fresh water and a high quality staple food must be available at all times. Feed you glider a varied diet within your chosen diet plan. This will prevent food boredom, and ensures a balanced diet. Example, feed various fruits, juices, vegetables, etc. 
The Sugar Glider Exotic Diet (The Pet Glider Diet) Ingredients:
Please, only use this list as a guideline as gliders are individuals and everyone’s situation is different. You should try different things to find out what your particular glider likes but remember that they need variety. As a general rule, never, feed a glider the same thing two days in a row. Varying their diet will keep them interested and eating healthily. But remember that the glider must be eating some of everything in the bowl for diet to be effective. Make the portions of each item small enough that the glider must eat some of most of what is in the bowl, and can not eat only what it likes best. Joeys can get themselves in trouble this way; they become bored with their meals and then they are not eating very well.
Supply A Proper Diet for Health Gliders!! One MORE thing, I have heard that some glider owners feed Dog/cat food to their gliders(Sometime sold By Pocket Pets as sugar glider food - BUT its Just re-labeled dog food !). This is a very bad idea and it will lead to tragedy. DO NOT FEED DOG OR CAT FOOD TO GLIDERS. This food was formulated for a dOGS/cats' physiology not a gliders'. THE food will eventually cause an intestinal blockage which will can potentially cause the loss of life. It doesn’t happen over night but the result is usually the same. Cat food is high in protein but there are so many other great sources of protein why take the risk? 
Basic Leadbeaters Diet Plan- The Modified Leadbeaters Diet Plan below, is one of the oldest and most proven diets currently in use. Please do not modify this diet in any way. Note that the Back to Basics plan has a specific list of fruits and veggies to be fed, as well as a time that mealworms should be fed. 
BML -Ingredients: (a.k.a. Judie’s Version)1/2 cup Honey (Do Not Use honeycomb, raw or unfiltered honey) 1 Egg Hard Boiled w/shell (if your blender doesn't break the shell down, don't use it) 1 oz of Apple Juice (100% juice- no additives) 1 oz of CranApple or CranCherry Juice 4 oz bottle of premixed Gerber juice with yogurt, (comes in mixed fruit or banana found near the baby food isle) Some places this product can’t be found, in that case, mix in 2 oz of plain yogurt and 2 oz of mixed fruit juice.(100% juice no additives) 1 Teaspoon of vitamin supplement (Rep-Cal HERPTIVITE is recommended) 2 teaspoons Calcium Supplement non-phosphorus with Vit. D3 (Rep-Cal) 2 2 1/2 oz jar of Chicken baby food 1 Small Jar of Stage 2 Sweet Potato 1/4 cup Wheat Germ 1/2 cup dry baby cereal (Mixed or Oatmeal) 
Sugar glider Birthday Cake-1 cup Bisquik (or some other type of similar mix)
Fruit Smooth Sugar glider- 5 to 6 pound bag of mixed fruit, 
Veggie Relish1 - 32 ounce bag of mixed vegetables, defrosted (green beans, sweetcorn, carrots and peas) Birds Eye Classic is the best. *NO lima beans! *NO salt!