Towheeblog

An animal rescue center in New England has a few dozen with more on the way. They are Australian marsupials who like to crawl into warm pockets. They are also found northward into Indonesia and on New Guinea.

Their popular name down under is….wait for it…sugar glider. They glide through the air much like our flying squirrels. The are active at night, very curious–they get into things unless you cage them cruelly. And as the person in Massachusetts learned they reproduce efficiently and often.

PETA warns people not to buy one as a pet even though they are apparently sold legally in Australia. And the sugar baby cartel is cruel, according to PETA: “When kept as ‘pets,’ they are denied everything that’s natural and meaningful to them—the companionship of their own species, fresh air, the outdoors, and the opportunity to climb or do almost anything other than pacing or sitting and peering out of a tiny cage. In the international pet trade, they’re bred in hellish facilities similar to puppy mills. Untold numbers of sugar gliders and other small animals are stuffed into tiny containers (sometimes even plastic water bottles) and shipped all over the world to be sold to unwitting consumers.” 

Counting tail they are up to a foot long and weight 4 to 5 ounces as adults. They are omnivorous so one would share your meals if invited. The large eyes are suited for nocturnal living.