Nine Ways My Life Has Changed With Ink and Dreamer

When a pet is added to your life, things are guaranteed to change in some ways. Both good and bad. Here are nine ways that my life has changed since I got sugar gliders.

One: Nocturnal Animals

Sugar gliders are nocturnal and thus not awake during much of the time that I am. XD Ink and Dreamer wake up somewhere around nine to nine-thirty.  I let them play around in their cage for about an hour so that they can eat, fully wake up and *ahem* go to the bathroom quite a bit (so that it doesn’t get all over me/the carpet).

I used to go to bed not terribly late. But when I couldn’t sleep no matter how early I went to bed, I started staying up later. XD For a while I wasn’t even laying down until one or two. I don’t do that much anymore because I have school. XD But I stay up until eleven or twelve most nights. I used to read or write or listen to music before bed, but now I play with my sugar gliders for the majority of that time. It took some getting used to at first, and I struggled to find time to read. XD But I’ve gotten into a routine now that works quite well.

Two: Waking Up At Random Hours of the Night

Having five younger siblings means that I was already kind of used to being woken up at weird hours. But sugar gliders bark sometimes and they naturally make a lot of noise. (And they’re two feet away from my bed, so I hear most of it). So I’ve had to get used to getting up and playing with them or calming them down when they’re scared.

Three: Being Bitten

Two words. They bite. They’ve gotten much better at not doing it since they’ve bonded more with me, but I still get bitten and scratched at least two or three times a night. They’ve scratched up one of my hands pretty well and they constantly messed with the scratches and things that were trying to heal. :I If they feel anything unusual on my skin, they will bite it. They have amazingly little sharp teeth that can draw blood. :I

Four: Animals Smell

Alas and alack, my room does not smell like it used to. We now have four animals and three humans living in one room and because of that, there are smells. Keeping the sugar gliders cage clean and feeding them a good diet is incredibly helpful when it comes to limiting the smell. Even so, they are animals and they have a natural odor that will not go away.

Five: Making Their Food

I make their food every month or so. I cut up vegetables, fruits and proteins and blend them together and then freeze them in two-tablespoon chunks. It takes a couple hours to make food for the month. But put on an audio or music and it is really enjoyable.

Six: Spending My Money

In the past, I used most of my money to buy books, birthday gifts for friends/family or craft/writing related things. Since getting Ink and Dreamer, I’ve used a lot of my money to buy them toys or accessories for them so that they don’t get bored and depressed.

Seven: Clean Room

This is a two part point. First of all, I let Ink and Dreamer run around my room (while I supervise them, of course) when I play with them. So I have to keep all unsafe things up off of the floor or locked away somewhere because they are AMAZING climbers and will climb seemingly impossible things. (Dreamer has an obsession with attempting to climb the walls XD) I’ve been careful to keep chocolate and coffee out of reach/smell/sight as well as any scented things that they might mistake for food and try to eat (candles, tea, perfume, etc.) And I’ve learned to keep drinks out of reach because they can’t swim and will drown very quickly. 😣

Secondly, Ink and Dreamer go to the bathroom when they are out of their cage. :I So I’ve found myself vacuuming a lot more. XD And spraying the carpet with cleaner and scrubbing the little spots. XD

Eight: Clean Clothes

Again with the whole bathroom thing. XD I’ve gotten very used to wiping off my clothes and scrubbing little wet spots. *grins disgustedly* They also LOVE to climb around in my closet and get in and around all of my clothes.

Nine: Research

I research sugar gliders a lot. Especially since I’m a relatively new sugar glider owner. Whenever they’re acting stranger or abnormal, I research to figure out what’s going on and if I should be concerned or not. There is always more to learn and more to figure out! I spend quite a bit of time studying and learning. 🙂

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I love owning sugar gliders and they are awesome pets!

~Hattush

Do you have pets? If so, how has your life changed after you got them? What is your dream pet?