Man Puts On Boots Then Feels Something ‘Small And Furry’ On His Foot

"We all couldn't believe it."

A few weeks ago, a man in a suburb of Sydney went to pull on his boots when he noticed something furry brushing up against his toes. Confused, he peered inside and was shocked to find that what he'd been feeling was a little animal curled up inside his boot.

At first, he thought the animal was a baby tail possum. He immediately called Australian Wildlife Rescue.

His young daughter was with him, and she was very excited that there was a baby possum in his boots!" Anna told The Dodo.

When Anna arrived, she, too, assumed that it was a baby possum in his boot. But as soon as she reached into the boot to remove the animal, she heard something that would suggest otherwise.

"To my biggest surprise, I heard this loud grunting noise," Anna said. "Which is a sound baby possums don't make (they make a squeak)."

When Anna finally pulled the animal from the boot, she realized the "baby possum" wasn't a possum at all - she was a sugar glider.

"We all couldn't believe it," Anna said. "I have never seen a sugar glider in the suburb of Cammeray in the three years I have been volunteering with WIRES."

Sugar gliders are remarkable animals who have evolved to "glide" between trees. They have wing-like membranes that stretch between their elbows and knees, flat tails they use to steer through the air, and frog-like toes that allow them to climb trees with ease.

When stretched out, the glider can float long distances, like a falling leaf," Anna said. "To become airborne, they hurl themselves from the tree with legs outstretched, the flap of skin between front and back extending like a parachute."

Sugar gliders typically sleep in tree hollows, but this sugar glider just happened to curl up in a different kind of hollow: a boot. When Anna removed her from the boot, she was acting a bit feisty - understandable, given that her peaceful sleep was interrupted.

Anna examined the sugar glider and found that she was perfectly healthy. To make sure she was feeling good before returning to the wild, she gave her some rehydration fluid and some fruit, then waited until sundown so that her predators would be asleep.

Finally, Anna drove to the nearest eucalyptus tree and let the sugar glider go. As she'd never released a sugar glider before, it was a beautiful moment.

"[S]eeing her scurry up the eucalyptus tree was an incredibly special experience," Anna said.

 To support other animals like this sugar glider, you can make a donation to WIRES here