rickets is usually down to vitamin d problems, vitamin d being essential in processing calcium. many animals produce vitamin d in their bodies from exposure to sunlight, so rickets are a pretty common problem in indoor animals. a lot of chimps in zoos suffer from it if not given vitmin d supplements, and milk in Canada often contains added vitamin d to avoid rickets in people in winter. i wonder if that's the problem with the flying sqirrels...
From everything I've read, it's something that is common with them in the wild. Something about their diet not having enough calcium or vitamin d to compensate for their nocturnal cycle.
I wonder if it's actually metabolic bone disease that the flyers are prone to? Gliders are very prone to that, as are reptiles if they don't have enough UVB light. They need very specific amounts of calcium, vitamin D, and phosphorus in order to properly metabolize the calcium. It sounds very similar.
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From everything I've read, it's something that is common with them in the wild. Something about their diet not having enough calcium or vitamin d to compensate for their nocturnal cycle.
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I did not know that gliders were prone to that too. But yeah, pretty much what they require.
And since they tend to be a bit heavier than gliders, better to anchor your lamps as those are what they tend to like landing on.