Got Possum?

[Danglerb]

My black 85 has been sitting near a tree with some kind of small inedible plum or something. Really small fruit that's mostly seed, and generally rolls off without any remains. Thursday I had it towed home because the parking area it was in is getting a new coat of blacktop, and I decided to clean it up a bit. Blowing off the leaves etc I pop the hood and start blowing out the cowl area (no cover), and out crawls one, maybe two possum.

Cute little buggers with sharp rodent teeth, so I stood there like an idiot and watched them crawl out from under the spider and disappear down the side of the block. Hopefully they will wander off into the hills behind my house after a couple nights, but soon I will be pulling stuff out to make sure they are gone. They were a bit smaller than a small rabbit, so I do have some concern they may be too young to survive on their own, but not sure what I can about that except maybe take them back to the area the car was parked in and turn them loose.

Good side, no apparent damage, so far anyway. Plenty of cleaning though, pulling the body of the spider and air cleaner minimum.

[MPDano]

Nothing cute about a different colored looking rat. Some feral cat will take care of those if they are small enough.

Which one is the 928 that was always in your friends shop? When is the "Let's get one of DanglerB's 928's Running Party?"

[harborman]

Possums are nothing but a tree rat. When they are mature, they can be real nasty and ugly! My dog had one trapped in the wood pile here one time. If I could shoot my SKS with 30 round clip in town, I would have taken care of it.

[Danglerb]

I'll do some picts later, time for lunch or my wife will scatter my bones in the desert.

[Linderpat]

They aren't rodents, but marsupials. They don't have rodent teeth, but they do have sharp incissers

[MPDano]

If a rat looking marsupial decides to show his sharp incisors to me, he get's the rat rodent treatment. A steel toed boot upside his head.

[rjm65]

Originally Posted by Danglerb

I'll do some picts later, time for lunch or my wife will scatter my bones in the desert.

Speaking of which DanglerB.... when life hands you lemons, make lemonade or better yet possum soup.

1 ea Small possum
2 l Water
1 t Salt
16 oz of corn
1 pinch Celery leaves
1 pinch Parsley
1 tbsp Olive Oil
1 tbsp flour
Fried bread,1 slice per serving

Skin and clean possum, then quarter the animal. Place it in a large pot or camp oven along with water and salt. Cover and simmer gently for 3 or 4 hours. (Tough little devils apparently.) Add vegetables and simmer for another 1 1/2 hours (Still tough. Even the veggies are resisting being associated with this.) Strain soup through a large holed colander when meat has left bone and remove bones, especially small ones. Return soup to the pot and add parsley and celery leaves. Thicken with mixed olive oil and flour. Cut fried bread into 1 inch squares and serve soup over toast, boiling hot.

[Danglerb]

Father in law shot a big old possum and handed it over to his mom to cook. She looked it over a bit and decided it was a job for the pressure cooker, but in the end still too tough to eat even for the dog.

I don't have the heart to eat anything after it smiles at me. First generation to have a choice on either side of the family.

[Plexus928]

Shine a torch in it's eyes, it'll freeze,while you have it's attention, get someone else to get behind him, grab by tail, and swing it round in circles,NO NOT STOP! if you do, it will climb up your arm and rip you to shreds!
The person with the torch is now free to open the trunk of your car, keep swinging, get it in there , and slam the lid, possum (or opossums if they are the Irish type) can now be transported to somewhere far enough away so it can never find its way back to your place.
(don't tell the SPCA about me, OK?)
We get REAL big ones in Australia, the ones that have adapted to city life amuse themselves by jumping out of trees onto corrugated iron roofs, and sliding down,BANG! WIZZZZ! this usually happens in the middle of the night, when they fall off the gutter, they go back up the tree and do it again! After midnight is about the time they start! the initial noise is like a chopper has just crashed into your house!
Don't drive it too far, or it will pi55 in your trunk as well.

[tmpusfugit]

This is seriously off topic but we have a bit of a different perspective on wildlife….

We live in a relative rural area and enjoy a good working relationship with all the opossums, raccoons, skunks, deer, and other critters in the neighborhood. For years we have provided the outdoor critters a decent serving of the very cheapest dry dog or cat food every night. We also on occasion augment the dry food with leftovers, table scraps, and on occasion something like a turkey carcass. By morning the yard is always clean, not a sign of anything is ever leftover, with the exception of salads….nobody wants a stale salad, or for that matter celery.

We have not had any problems with the critters getting into trash cans, or doing any other damages. The skunk does dig small holes in the yard looking for grubs and the like, but no real damage. The armadillo’s are a bit more destructive when they start digging, but we usually only have one of those and he/she has a burrow under the propane tank, with a summer cottage under the tool shed. The deer really love watermelon rines, as well as those from cantaloupe. Slightly stale apples, bananas, peaches, and the like don’t stand a chance. We also feed the deer more corn and sunflower seed than I care think about.

I am of the opinion that animals, given any choice at all, would rather eat real food than chew on our cars, and in our case they really do provide a valuable clean up service. They are also fun to watch and can be quite friendly if not threatened. (We do not recommend trying to make pets out of any wild animals).

Raccoons will sell their furry little souls for marshmallows; we have several generations of them that will take marshmallows out of our hands (also not recommended). On more than one occasion I have had a raccoon follow me up on the porch and into the kitchen door when I have not had a marshmallow for them….one will actually paw my leg to remind me she wants a mellow….. they will bring their young after they stop nursing…..nothing quite like several pint sized raccoon kids chasing marshmallows and arguing over who gets what…baby opossums are also cute, but as others have noted grown up, they are not so cute. Sort of like the neighbor’s kids….but that is another story.

You can see far more about our backyard at photoshare for those with animal interests.

[harborman]

Some of these carry dangerous diseases to humans. Yes, end of topic!

[Plexus928]

[QUOTE=t…baby opossums are also cute, but as others have noted grown up, they are not so cute. Sort of like the neighbor’s kids….but that is another story.

Nice pic's, I realise now that the type we have here is cuter looking, but a lot BIGGER! fully grown, bigger than a house cat,cuter tail -about 2 feet long(the handle) claws about an inch long.No cat will EVER win a fight with one, Dogs up to labrador size are not good betting propositions either.




the handle makes them easier to remove than the neighbors kids
I don't believe in exterminating them, just drop them off where someone else can have a chance to enjoy