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Honored Contributor
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Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN


@colliemom4 wrote:

@mousiegirl  Aww. That's a cute little one. I have seen many. Some young, some old, big and small. If you have any kind of food in your yard such as pet food, they are attracted to it. They don't bother me at all. They're harmless. They're also nocturnal, though you may see one out in the daylight sometimes. Not long ago I saw a giant one in my yard around midnight lol. 


 

 

@colliemom4  This rascal was out this morning in broad daylight.

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Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN

I don't know where you live that you would categorize it as a "once in a lifetime experience" to see one, but in some parts of the country they are very common and seen often.  I grew up in Michigan and saw them all the time. Like daily.  They can be dangerous IF you get too close to their babies (I think most mothers can be dangerous if someone or something gets too close to their babies, though).  They have long teeth and claws and could do some damage, if circumstances are right.  I've always thought they are cute, too (other than their tail - I think their tails are ugly).

Esteemed Contributor
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Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN

What is "cute" about them? They have ugly long tails, beady eyes, are plain creepy, and sharp teeth and claws, which can do a lot of damage. Pretty sure I'd be a lot more frightened of him/her than the other way around! (How do people hold them like pets??)

 

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Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN


@hayseed00 wrote:

Opossom, we have the little trouble makers around our farm.  I have to put my Oriole feeder in every night at dusk because they shimmy out to the tip of my pine tree brach and get ahold of the feeder and devour all the grape jelly.  We have draft horses and the Opossum poop can give the horses a death sentence if they accidentlly injest the Opossum poop while grazing in the pasture, it"s called EPM, and is a devistating neurological disease that can result in death to the horse.  We have had to trap them in our have a heart live trap cages and take them down the road to a wooded area and let them go.  I can't hurt any animals but won't jeopardize our horses health.


@hayseed00  That's interesting. I don't blame you for trapping them and taking them away. Our dogs have always chased them but never caught one. We used to have a raccoon visit our yard a lot also and it finally left. The dogs went crazy over that too, barking loudly and running inside and outside. It was so annoying. Plus I was afraid it might have rabies and didn't want it around here.

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Registered: ‎10-19-2011

Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN

[ Edited ]

It's just darling!!........ I love them...God doesn't think they are ugly nor do I......

I had a family living under my refrig..... the babies stayed when mom ran outside....SO CUTE...peeping little eyes... well, I thought they'd all gone outside....and was in the kitchen... and out scurried 2 tiny ones....I could not figure out where they'd gone.. so, it was after work, I sat down to watch TV....and there they came, out from under my sofa.......hee hee thinking no one saw them... sweet babies... I put my snow ski gloves on and picked them each up and carried them outside to be with their mom (thick gloves protect your hands as they r afraid of being hurt 😟).. Heart ☺️.  ....

(The only dangerous animal is the human 😉... )

 

eta// my kitties loved them 😁 (I had 5)

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Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN

[ Edited ]

I once found a young opossum in a pile of newly mown grass that I hadn't yet spread out as mulch.  I think maybe momma left him there since the grass had been piled up overnight and it was a good hiding place.

 

He hissed a lot when I disturbed him while raking the grass the next day.  I ended up picking him up with my garden gloves, putting him in a box, and driving him to the local wildlife rescue.

[was Homegirl] Love to be home . . . thus the screen name. Joined 2003.
Honored Contributor
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Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN


@Beccaboone2 wrote:

I don't know where you live that you would categorize it as a "once in a lifetime experience" to see one, but in some parts of the country they are very common and seen often.  I grew up in Michigan and saw them all the time. Like daily.  They can be dangerous IF you get too close to their babies (I think most mothers can be dangerous if someone or something gets too close to their babies, though).  They have long teeth and claws and could do some damage, if circumstances are right.  I've always thought they are cute, too (other than their tail - I think their tails are ugly).


 

 

 

@Beccaboone2@   If you want the person you are speaking to to read your post, you must @ the person, otherwise they will not know of the mssage.

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Registered: ‎07-09-2011

Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN

 

They are very common here.  I know a couple of people who have them as  pet.  They are sweet, and will use a litter box.

 

We have one we named Esmeralda who lives under our back screened in porch.  At first she would 'play dead' when the Labs came around, now she just sits there and they bath her.

 

Too cute.

"Animals are not my whole world, but they have made my world whole" ~ Roger Caras
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Registered: ‎03-12-2010

Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN


@Katcat1 wrote:

@mousiegirl@Lilysmom  It is a once in a lifetime experience to see a Possum.  I saw one and it scared me at first because it is so unusual looking and they live underground.  I saw a fully grown one and it was pretty big.   They are more afraid of you than you of them.  


Hi @Katcat1

Opossums don't live underground.  They prefer trees, although they may use burrows other animals have dug.  

 

 

[was Homegirl] Love to be home . . . thus the screen name. Joined 2003.
Honored Contributor
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Registered: ‎03-12-2010

Re: ANOTHER NEW VISITOR TO MY GARDEN

In case anyone is interested, the general range of opossums is shown in gray:

 

Opossum range in North America

[was Homegirl] Love to be home . . . thus the screen name. Joined 2003.