Close Encounter of the Marsupial Kind

[pomba gira]

OK I know raccoons can be dangerous to pets, but how about opossums? I heard a scratching outside my back door last night and thought one of the neighbor cats was trying to tear open the bag of used kitty litter that I was too lazy to put in garage. So I turned on the porch light, opened the door to shoo it away, and there at my feet was a smallish possum looking up at me. Kind of disconcerting especially since the damn thing just sat there looking at me for several seconds (prolly blinded by the porch light but I didn't think of that then). Then it turned and walked under the gate (small wooden gate to the stairs down into the back yard), and stopped at the top of the stairs... I could see its tail sticking out from under the gate. Interestingly, Chango was sitting on the gate but didn't seem at all perturbed by the possum, so maybe it came over to party with my pussy posse. All this time I'm going "shoo! Go away possum!" like a complete idiot... I thought about shaking the broom at it but didn't want it to leap on me and fasten its little possum claws to my face or something (haha if you listen to Bob & Tom you know how fast those marsupials are!) So it sat under the gate for a while, then walked down the stairs and wandered off across the backyard.

So... do I need to worry about this critter harming my kitties? Chango didn't seem too worried by it or even interested in it. I don't mind it hanging around as long as it won't hurt any of us, or try to take up residence in my basement for the winter.

[Guest greyhalo]

Virginia or American opossums (the kind we have in N. America) really get a bad wrap. Though they are illegal to have as pets, many people do take them in, esp. when they're babies. They will hiss and show you their teeth when frightened, but it's basically a bluff. They're not known to harm other animals. They basically just want food, and they will pick through your trash and make a mess. I wouldn't worry about opossums hurting your kitties. You should check out peoples' opossum pet videos on YouTube. They're really quite cute.

[pomba gira]

Cool, maybe I'll leave treats out for it... wouldn't mind having a possum friend as long as it doesn't bother the posse. I thought it was rather cute... kind of like a big shaggy rat. Of course I've seen them before but never this close up- it was literally sitting on the doormat when I opened the door. No worries about it getting in the garbage, don't have a setup where that's an issue (as long as I don't get lazy about taking the 3 steps across the breezeway to the garage). Thanks for the info!

[Guest greyhalo]

Cool, maybe I'll leave treats out for it... wouldn't mind having a possum friend as long as it doesn't bother the posse. I thought it was rather cute... kind of like a big shaggy rat. Of course I've seen them before but never this close up- it was literally sitting on the doormat when I opened the door. No worries about it getting in the garbage, don't have a setup where that's an issue (as long as I don't get lazy about taking the 3 steps across the breezeway to the garage). Thanks for the info!

Since this one came to your door, it might already be used to people and other animals. They eat cat food, so it could be attracted to your trash. Opossums will eat mice and insects, so some people like having them around to keep rodents and bugs out of their homes.

[jynxxxedangel]

I dunno, I actually had one launch itself at my face once!

I'd hosed out a rubbish bin, and left it with the lid open so the inside could dry, tilted against the side of my house. About three that morning, I awoke to a loud THUMP! I went out to investigate with a flashlight. The rubbish bin was sitting upright, with the lid closed. Figuring it was just the wind, I went to open it up and lay it the way it was again-- and I'll be damned if a small opossum didn't come flying outta there, like a bat out of hell!!

That shook me up right proper.

[Homicidalheathen]

...i hear there is a 6 ft opposum on the cc dumpster...

personally i think they are ugly

unless they are doing this..

i saw a family of them once doing that on my way to school as a kid

its a big huge rat with a pouch

dont they carry rabies and bacteria in their bite allot of times?

[Homicidalheathen]

wow

[Destroit]

I LOVE possums! They are SO cute! Easily top three cutest animals to me are possums, rats, and kittehs. So it's needless to say I know quite a bit about those furry little peeps.

Possums, although having a bad wrap, are actually quite tame. Most of them would never attack a human, unless of course they had rabies, and would either run or use their special defense attack: playing possum (it's really funny to watch). Even so, it's shown in numbers that possums have a drastically lower incidence of rabies than do raccoons. As a matter of fact, much of the nuisance activity 'caused by outdoor wildlife is generally caused by raccoons. Possums normally just want to be left alone, shouldn't harm pets (but I wouldn't count on the pet not attacking the possum, which could cause the possum to attack your pet, especially cats), and enjoy free food is all. I want one so bad!

[Guest greyhalo]

I LOVE possums! They are SO cute! Easily top three cutest animals to me are possums, rats, and kittehs. So it's needless to say I know quite a bit about those furry little peeps.

Possums, although having a bad wrap, are actually quite tame. Most of them would never attack a human, unless of course they had rabies, and would either run or use their special defense attack: playing possum (it's really funny to watch). Even so, it's shown in numbers that possums have a drastically lower incidence of rabies than do raccoons. As a matter of fact, much of the nuisance activity 'caused by outdoor wildlife is generally caused by raccoons. Possums normally just want to be left alone, shouldn't harm pets (but I wouldn't count on the pet not attacking the possum, which could cause the possum to attack your pet, especially cats), and enjoy free food is all. I want one so bad!

You could get a short tailed opossum like the one I have. They are very small and easy to care for. However, some exotic pet dealers do actually hand-raise and sell American opossums, even though it's illegal.

[Destroit]

You could get a short tailed opossum like the one I have. They are very small and easy to care for. However, some exotic pet dealers do actually hand-raise and sell American opossums, even though it's illegal.

Do you happen to know why it's illegal? That seems kinda dumb, I don't get why it would be.

[Guest greyhalo]

Do you happen to know why it's illegal? That seems kinda dumb, I don't get why it would be.

I guess it's just generally illegal to take in a native critter as a pet, although people often do. Many people take in abandoned baby squirrels and raise them as well. The trick is just finding a vet who works with exotics who will see your critter.

Like I said, there are lots of videos on You Tube of pet American opossums. They are awfully cute.

[pomba gira]

its a big huge rat with a pouch

dont they carry rabies and bacteria in their bite allot of times?

I love seeing them w/all the babies (pups? cubs? kits?) on their back... sooo adorable!

From Opossum Society US.org:

Any mammal can get rabies. However, the chance of rabies in an opossum is EXTREMELY RARE. This may have something to do with the opossum's low body temperature (94-97º F) making it difficult for the virus to survive in an opossum's body.

AFA bacteria, don't know... doesn't seem real likely since they aren't carrion eaters or the kind of semi-scavenger carnivore that NEEDS to have a toxically septic bite (like monitor lizards or their big cousins, komodo dragons).

A farm-owning friend says they carry parasites that could infect my kitties. I'm inclined to think she's prejudiced 'cos she has horses and possums carry a parasite that's implicated in some horse disease or other. So, if the possum wants to hang out around my yard it's welcome but I may not actively encourage it by putting out food. Now, if it shows up in the spring with babies... we'll see!

oh yeah, Chernobyl- Greyhalo is right, it's pretty much illegal to take in any native wild animal. As I recall, you're supposed to have a license even to rehab wild critters. I think there are several reasons, including the possibility of disease (especially diseases that can be spread to livestock) and the general nuisance factor (most wild beasties really don't make very good pets).

[Destroit]

I love seeing them w/all the babies (pups? cubs? kits?) on their back... sooo adorable!

From Opossum Society US.org:

Any mammal can get rabies. However, the chance of rabies in an opossum is EXTREMELY RARE. This may have something to do with the opossum's low body temperature (94-97º F) making it difficult for the virus to survive in an opossum's body.

AFA bacteria, don't know... doesn't seem real likely since they aren't carrion eaters or the kind of semi-scavenger carnivore that NEEDS to have a toxically septic bite (like monitor lizards or their big cousins, komodo dragons).

A farm-owning friend says they carry parasites that could infect my kitties. I'm inclined to think she's prejudiced 'cos she has horses and possums carry a parasite that's implicated in some horse disease or other. So, if the possum wants to hang out around my yard it's welcome but I may not actively encourage it by putting out food. Now, if it shows up in the spring with babies... we'll see!

I believe your friend is either misinformed or just plain ignorant on the matter. I could be wrong on this, but generally speaking, when it comes to both diseases and parasites they're generally species specific. The only time you would really get anything parasitical from another animal is if it was literally that parasite's last stand and they had no other choice. Either way, our pets fleas can't reproduce using our blood, and vice versa. You should probably be fine.

The only reason I put in there "I could be wrong on this" is because there are a few diseases, very few that is, where it can be passed from one species to another freely. AIDS for instance, is definately transferable between other primates than just humans. Bubonic plague is another that comes to mind as it's transferred from rat fleas, etc. But chances are your kittehs should be fine.

[Guest greyhalo]

I'll tell you from experience that exotics don't make the best pets for everyone. They are unpredictable and still have their wild instincts. Sometimes these instincts don't come out until after a couple of years too. I just took in two Southern flying squirrels, and they're currently a pain in the ass. Had I gotten them as babies, they'd be easier to work with, but they are already over a year old. But, I won't give up on them.

Actually, Southern and Northern flying squirrels are both native to Michigan. Since the Northern squirrels are on an endangered species list, they are illegal to have as pets. However, for some reason Southern squirrels are becoming more common as pets--kind of like sugar gliders.