Working for a Living | Robert Mills and the tiny marsupials

“There is nothing cooler than a tame sugar glider,” said Myrtle Beach resident Robert Mills.

He should know.

Mills, 47, owns a business called The Spoiled Pet – located inside the Grand Strand Flea Market, formerly the Myrtle Beach Flea Market. For the past six years, sugar gliders have been a highlight of his pet and supply business – along with hedgehogs, hamsters, guinea pigs and more. There is also a menagerie of reptiles on hand as well as the occasional bird.

Mills moved to Myrtle Beach from Long Island, N.Y., 10 years ago when his wife was able to secure a job transfer.

“My mom and dad moved here years ago,” he said. “We used to come and visit all of the time. It’s just a nice place to be.”

At 20, he took a job at a pet store on Long Island and later joined a pet product manufacturer, where he stayed until he moved here.

“I did quality control on their product for about 14 years or so, including some warehousing and things – so I got to know the industry really well.”

Flash forward: The Spoiled Pet carries a varied of supplies for every animal out there – from pet strollers to terrariums – even ferret shampoo, and Mills is constantly doing special orders.

The shop is licensed by the USDA, enabling Mills to sell the sugar gliders and hedgehogs. He said he could sell other unusual animals if he was outside of Myrtle Beach city limits.

But back to the sugar gliders, which Mills said are in the marsupial family and related to kangaroos, koala bears and possums.

“They have little pouches like kangaroos and born the size of like a grain of rice,” he said. “They crawl up in mom’s pouch and they are in there for about 10 to 12 weeks.”

Full grown, these little critters usually reach the size of a 5- or 6-inch body with a matching tail, according to Mills, about the size of a chipmunk.

“They look like a flying squirrel a little bit because of that extra membrane in between the front and back legs for gliding – but cuter. They are soft and hypoallergenic and don’t require shots,” he said.

Sugar gliders bond by scent, and Mills said it’s important to hold them often, especially at first – and it is best to get a baby because they impression bond very young.

“Impression bonding means that the more you hold them and they smell you, that smell becomes who you are and what their family is. So they impression bond to your scent. When you are around them and they feel comfortable with you, you basically become their family.”

He added that sugar gliders can also bond with dogs and cats. Also – they can bond with a group of family members, provided that each person does their share of hand-holding.

Mills himself takes his glider, Max, with him everywhere he goes. They travel perfectly in pockets.

Cool enough, but who is in the market for a hedgehog?

“Believe it or not, I wish I could get some more in now,” he said. “I only deal with a couple of breeders that I trust, so I am waiting,” he said, adding that when he does have them, they go fast.

“They are cute little animals – not as cuddly as the sugar gliders, but they are different. People like their animals for different reasons.”

Mills says he is constantly in motion. He and wife Bonnie Mills live in Carolina Forest and have two daughters and one son: Raina, 13, Zachary, 10, and Remi, 5.

“I am a man on the move,” he said. “I’ve got kids in school, I’ve got a business to try and run. I am always running somewhere.”

Downtime might include a meal at ART Burger and Sushi Bar on Ocean Boulevard or a night at Tavern in the Forest.

Like many, the allure of moving to Myrtle Beach is, well, the beach. But sometimes life and work intervene.

“You know, it’s funny,” he said. “I think I went twice last year and once this year so far. It’s crazy.”

This story was originally published August 28, 2015 at 1:43 AM with the headline "Working for a Living | Robert Mills and the tiny marsupials."