I know; those websites definitely threw me through a loop, but I'm more inclined to believe people with actual physical experience. So then I was right in telling my mom not to buy into their gimmick that they're low-maintenance and everything. *sighs* That's just horrible that people would set up factual-looking websites just to shove gliders off on ignorant people.

I told my mom I'd call her back when I had actual accurate information. This is great you guys..thank you.

Sasami - I liked that one too...however my favorite was this one:

"This is again, an old myth based on VERY outdated information. Over the last decade, Sugar Gliders have become extremely popular as household pets – and if one should happen to get sick, almost any Vet who already works on other small mammals like hamsters and gerbils will easily be able to work on them."

Quoted from the mynasga site. Sure - "any" vet might work on them....perhaps not willingly, and sure as **** not correctly! That's like vets who say if they can handle dogs and cats, they can handle rabbits or guinea pigs.

Dragonrain - Thanks! That's what I've read; that they'll go to the bathroom on pretty much anything. I've also read that pellets should NOT be their staple, but can be used when you're in a pinch, or to keep in the cage as a snack, but definitely not used for their main staple.

Jennicat - I checked out the links you sent.. I'm horrified. That one story of the person who commented on one of their youtube videos not to buy their food, then received an email signed by one of their other organizations closed the deal for me - if I didn't believe it before, I sure as **** believe it now. Right now I'm also checking out the actual pocket-pet website..do you suppose those videos aren't actually from customers and actually members of their organization, instead?

"Fortunately, thanks to tremendous scientific advances in nutrition over the last 10 years, caring for Sugar Gliders is very inexpensive and easy to do. In fact, there are only three basic components to a healthy Sugar Glider's diet, and as a ball-park estimate, it typically costs a total of around $4/month to feed a single animal. 25% of your glider's daily food will consist of fresh fruits or vegetables, and almost anything you already have around the house (like a slice of apple per day) will do just fine."

That is pretty much the exact thing my mom quoted to me from the pamphlet...that it only costs about $4 to feed a single glider, and under $10 to feed two. She also quoted to me the "slice of apple/day".

"Incidentally, this is also the reason why you will almost never see Sugar Gliders in “pet shops”. Because they breed so slowly (again, only 2-3 babies/year on average) it's not really lucrative to breed them commercially. "

This was also on the pamphlet - it said the reason they're not often seen in pet stores is because they breed so slowly. Can somebody validate this?