A common question that I see on glider forums is about gender. Quite a few people wonder if their glider is actually the gender that the breeder said (unfortunately backyard breeders can mess this up quite frequently) or they get rehomes from poor situations where the previous owners didn’t know the gender, didn’t care, or got it wrong. This is important to know so that you can separate unneutered males from any females and prevent unwanted pregnancies.
It is very easy to tell the difference between unneutered, neutered, and females. All you need to do is to get a good look at their underbellies. This can be challenging if the glider isn’t bonded to you. If you can, coax it to the side of the cage and get it to stand still with a treat. If that isn’t possible, you can use a soft towel or piece of fleece to gently restrain the glider and get a good look at their underbellies.
Unneutered Males
Sexually mature unneutered males are the easiest to identify. They will have a bald spot on their forehead caused by oils from their scent glands. They’ll also have a scent gland on their chests. This is often stained by the oils and is quite noticeable.
You’ll also be able to see the large pom just a few centimeters above the beginning of his tail.
If your male is a joey, they may not have the bald spot yet, but they will have the pom and that is very easy to locate.
Neutered Males
Neutered males are harder to identify and can often be confused with females. They lack noticeable scent glands. If you can get a good look at their bellies, you’ll see nothing at all. No pouch slit and no pom. They are also typically larger and more laid back than unneutered males.
If the glider had a pom-on neuter where the testes were simply removed and the pom left intact, it can be easy to mistake them for unneutered. However, the pom will be much smaller and shrunken and it will feel empty. You also won’t see the scent glands. This method of neutering is less common.
Females
Females are fairly easy to identify. Generally, they are smaller than the males. They will have no noticeable scent glands. On their bellies, you will see a long slit about half an inch in length. This is their pouch.
Identifying Joeys
It is incredibly easy to identify the gender of joeys. This can be done as soon as the joeys come OOP. Do not attempt to do so before as it can detach the joeys from the mother’s nipples and they can’t reattach by themselves and will starve.
Simply wrap the joey in something warm and gently tilt it so that you have a good view of its underbelly. The males will have a tiny ball and the females will have a very small slit.
There is the male, just over two weeks OOP.
The female at the same age.
~Hattush
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