There was a possum in my yard!

**Megareader** · 09-16-2011, 06:41 PM

Early this morning I saw a possum in my back yard! Those things look like giant rats.

**Beejay** · 09-16-2011, 06:55 PM

I can't stand 'em !!!!!

**savvy_sniper** · 09-16-2011, 06:56 PM

My German Shepherd kills them ALL the time. They are ugly!

**zakity** · 09-16-2011, 07:09 PM

I walked outside one night and there was one off the porch. She had several babies on her back and I swear she had that "bedraggled mom" look. I felt sorry for her.

**Megareader** · 09-16-2011, 07:09 PM

Originally Posted by savvy_sniper

My German Shepherd kills them ALL the time. They are ugly!

Can your dog come over to make sure the possum is gone? Do a thorough search of the yard and shed? Bark, growl, snarl, and generally make anti-possum noises?

**Michelle68** · 09-16-2011, 09:18 PM

We have those in our backyard all the time, along with the occasional raccoon...and we live in an urban area. (Although we are on the outskirts of the city) I agree, they are pretty danged ugly, but they are harmless and as Zakity says, I sometimes feel sorry for them too.

**Trishagirl** · 09-16-2011, 10:40 PM

We had one in in our back yard a couple yrs ago in a bad winter in the deep snow looking for food I guess. A friend had one in their garage and it was mean showing it's teeth and snarling at them! He ended up shooting it! Yuck!!!

**Spirit Deer** · 09-16-2011, 11:52 PM

We were in Oklahoma on vacation a few years ago and saw so many road-killed possums and armadillos we started keeping count of each to see which was 'winning' in road-kill representation. As I recall, it came out almost, pardon the pun, dead even. I swear, I don't see how there could have been either a live possum or live armadillo left anywhere in eastern Oklahoma, there were so many of them.

**Contrary Housewife** · 09-17-2011, 12:31 AM

They are ugly, but harmless. They are nearly blind, and they put on a good show but will not hurt you unless you attack it, and even then they will try and get out of your way as fast as possible, or "play possum" and act dead. They eat fruit, insects and snakes and any garbage they can find, so they may actually be beneficial to you.

**Neeley** · 09-17-2011, 02:38 AM

We live in smack dab in the middle of a huge, heavily populated city with no country and no woods anywhere near us and we have them in our yard nightly. They come up to eat the cat food. Our front door is mostly a solid glass pane. They will come on the porch to the bowls, look up from the eating, glare at me through the door and then go back to eating. Some have crossed our street in front of our car, only to stop in the center of the road, stare at us for a few seconds then mosey on across the street.

When I was little my mom's friend had one as a pet she had raised from a baby. My step-mom had a raccoon as a pet when I first met her.That thing freaked me out a little.

**savvy_sniper** · 09-17-2011, 06:39 AM

The possum is more afraid of you than you are of it. It was probably just passing through. That is not to say you won't see it again.

FYI - Ace got another one last night! We live in the suburbs and there are always dead ones in the streets all over the neighborhood. We must have a large population and Ace hasn't put a dent in it!

Originally Posted by Megareader

Can your dog come over to make sure the possum is gone? Do a thorough search of the yard and shed? Bark, growl, snarl, and generally make anti-possum noises?

**Lora88** · 09-17-2011, 07:05 AM

Have them in the yard all the time I live in the woods and have deer fox bear and occasionally a raccoon love em all Gods creatures

**RaineyDaye** · 09-17-2011, 08:23 AM

I live in the suburbs and they are really common here. When I was putting dry cat food out last winter for stray cats, I had an opossum come to feed. I kind of like opossums because I loved Pogo comic books when I was a kid.

**freebs** · 09-17-2011, 09:04 AM

I had one in my house a few weeks ago

**cab54** · 09-17-2011, 09:19 AM

Originally Posted by zakity

I walked outside one night and there was one off the porch. She had several babies on her back and I swear she had that "bedraggled mom" look. I felt sorry for her.

I know that look. I used to see it in the mirror, LOL!

I had a really old possum in and out of our yard a couple of years ago. He had one foot he dragged and really had trouble getting around. I used to put apple cores, sunflower seed, bread crusts, and stuff like that out between a couple of front bushes for him. I finally didn't see him anymore and assume he died