Conference misery::feline_v1

        Where are you?? In the past 15 years or so,'Possum's have sort of
    "infiltrated" much further north than their usual range. 'Possums are
    very common in the south, and now they are fairly common as far north
    as Minnesota to New Hampshire.
    
        First of all, they are not considered "nasty", but they WILL defend
    themselves if messed with by something that doesn't present an
    immediate death-threat, and they do have very sharp little teeth. I
    believe they also carry the typical diseases that most wild animals do,
    but no more so than Raccoons or Squirrels. If threatened by something
    that can kill them easily, 'Possums can go into a catatonic state and
    emit an odor that makes a predator believe that they are dead---hence
    the term "playing Possum". 
    
      People on farms who have chickens have no use for this animal, since
    it preys on young chickens and absolutely LOVES fresh eggs. A Possum
    will eat a ton of eggs if it can get into a chicken coop. 
      The animal also is not very fast, which results in numerous
    road-kills. The poor little boogers simply do not have speed enough to
    get out of the way of vehicles..
    
    JM

    Thanks for the quick lesson on Possums.  I live in Fitchburg Mass.
    The area I live in is on a dead-end road with quite a bit of
    woods....but not too far from the center of town.   We see many 
    squirrels and racoons...but this is our first possum.  Oh he is just
    so Darn cute...and I find it funny he just sat and ate when
    we had the porch light on and was peering at him from the window.
    
    Do they come out in the day...or only at night?  Eggs...Huh..
    well have to leave him a couple tonight and see what happens.
    I'm sure I don't have to worry about the strays eating the eggs.
    
    I always heard of playing Possum...but never knew where it came
    from.  That's real interesting!  Okay...I plan on planting 
    a garden...do I have to worry about him eating tomatoes, peppers,
    cukes, etc!
    Thanks again..
                                                                    
    Sandy
    

        Some other interesting things about 'Possums...
    
       THe "Opossum"(The correct name, by the way.) is America's ONLY
    Marsupial...(A marsupial is an animal that gives birth to it's young in
    an embryonic form, and the babies live in the mother's pouch, attached
    to her nipples, where they grow and mature into normal-sized babies
    with hair. She carrys her entire brood around with her until they are
    quite large.. Opossums have 'prehensile' tails, which means that they
    can use their tails like a fifth hand. They can hang from a tree by
    their tail alone, which makes things easier when they find a fruit tree
    that they like, as it makes it easier to get to. They can climb very
    well...and the babies, after they leave the pouch, typically grab onto
    the fur on her back and/or her tail and travel along in style. The
    Opossum LOOKS like it has no hair on it's head and tail, but in fact it
    does have very fine blondish hair on it's head....the tail is almost
    entirely hairless though.
    
      Poor folks in the South eat Opossums. If you remember "The Beverly
    Hillbillys", you must remember how Granny was always making "'Possum"
    stew, "'Possum-belly etc...."
    
      JM

>      Poor folks in the South eat Opossums. If you remember "The Beverly
>    Hillbillys", you must remember how Granny was always making "'Possum"
>    stew, "'Possum-belly etc...."

     Guess that explains why the 'possums are moving north!

     Linda

    Re .0 - Be careful around them....they can be nasty! (A noter
    had a female stray w/kittens on her porch, and the 'possum
    tried to steal one of her kittens...unfortunately, the kitten
    was injured and if I remember, didn't make it)  They will eat
    just about anything, (including strawberries & tomatoes from
    your garden!) and can and will defend themselves with sharp
    fangs & claws.  My sister works for a museum that also takes
    care of orphaned baby animals, and they got in a litter of
    'possums.  They were cute until they started to mature, then
    it was "gloves only" until released!!!
                                       
    Lynne 

There's no love lost between me and opossums.  Lynne, it was me who had a
opposum steal a newborn kitten from my feral mom.  The opossum dropped the
kitten as I chased after him with a broom, but the baby died.  Biff is the
littermate who survived the attack.  The opossum kept coming back and I kept
chasing him all night long.  The momcat moved the surviving kitten to some
place safe and when she moved him back into her house on my deck at about
6 weeks, the damn opposums still tried to steal him, but she was able to
defend her baby.

I've stopped leaving food out at night because no matter how cute they are,
I don't want them anywhere near my house.  If I see a kitty who needs to be
fed, like the momcat, I'll feed her, then take in whatever food she leaves
behind.

Mary

    Oh No...Mary so sorry to hear about the little kitten.   Well I
    leave food on the porch because the two strays I'm feeding aren't
    the real friendly kind.  As soon as they see humans they are
    off and running.  They even sleep on my porch at times especially
    when it is real cold out....so I hate to lock it up on them.  One 
    of them only has one ear (Van Gogh) and I think it is due to frost 
    bite...that's just a guess! 
    
    Gee..I'm going to have to think this over.   I love feeding the
    wildlife...but if he starts eating my garden and starts hurting
    my cats....I'd go nuts!  We have lived here two years...so I 
    wonder if they were always around...and we never saw them.   
    
    If I decided to find the Possum a new home..who would I call
    to come help????  There must be some wildlife organization...right?   
    Or is this a job we will have to do ourselves.   
    
    Sandy
    
                                                             
    .4 Loved the comment of why they are comming North
    
    

      WHOA!! Before over-reacting, read .1 again please!!
    
      As I said veryclearly, these ARE WILD ANIMALS!! Wild animals are used
    to fending for themselves. Taking a baby animal may seem cruel and
    horrible to us, but in the wild, the babies are the typical prey
    animals...because they are more easy to overcome. A wild animal of any
    kind should be treated with EXTREME CAUTION. Even a Raccoon or a
    Squirrel can be a formidible foe to a cat or dog if it believes that it
    is being threatened or that the cat or dog is competing with it for
    food. Sure, Possums will take food where they find it. They don't have
    a food bowl that miraculously fills itself every day. They have to find
    food where they can. This is the reason they will COME this close to
    people to eat pet food when they get the chance. Owls will also kill
    cats---full grown ones, I might add! It is believed that one of the
    possibilities regarding all of the missing cats in Maine recently is
    the fact that a larger than normal population of Great Horned Owls has
    been discovered...
    
      I think feeding of ANY wild animal is good....but is requires that
    you be CAREFUL with your domestic animals. We feed about 20 squirrels,
    but we do so where they are not in contact with our other animals. 
    Wild animals act out of instinct...and it's incumbent on humans who
    desire contact with them to understand these instincts and cope with
    them. By the way...Possums also take chickens as wiell as the
    eggs...but if there are sufficient eggs, the chickens are in no big
    danger...same with baby kittens...Raccoons and Skunks are ALSO meat 
    eaters, so I would be extremely careful and wary with small kittens
    when THEY are around as well..
    
      (I don't even let my little dog "Buddy" out by himself....there are
    too many Coyotes around this part of the country, and they simply look
    at a little dog as an easy meal...but I don't HATE them for that....I'm
    just wary...)
    
    JM  

    We have em' all...skunks, opossums, raccoons, squirrels, hawks,
    owls, deer and (my favorite) a pair of red foxes.  However, I do
    not encourage them, as I have cats & rabbits. 
    The foxes, skunks, raccoons, squirrels & opossums have been on the 
    porch eating the catfood at one time or another.  That's why I sit
    with her to make sure she gets the food.  I don't encourage them
    *because* they are wild animals, however, it's hard not to feed
    them when they are so beautiful.  I do toss out old bread & such
    for the squirrels & birds once in a while.  Last summer I almost
    ran full tilt into a skunk when going out to the barn one evening.
    Luckily, I was paying attention, or Peeeyeeew!!!!!!!!!!!  
                                               
    Trapping & moving them just sends the problem to somewhere(one)
    else.  If they are moved to an area already occupied by the same
    species, then there are now too many for that area to support.
    Calling *someone* mainly will cause the destruction of the animal.
     
    Your best bet is to leave them alone unless they become *dangerous*
    to you.  Don't tempt them with any food that will attract them.
    No food, and they will move on.
    
    Lynne
    
    
         

    Okay...I do not want to see this little guy destroyed.  I couldn't
    live with myself if I did that....but on the other hand I do not
    want to see one of my cats jeopardized.   As of right now all my
    cats are bigger then the baby opposum.  (But where's the MOM??)
    And my cats are only out for a few hours during the day...never
    at night. (and we're normally with them...)
    
    I also cannot stop feeding and providing shelter for my two
    strays......even though I can't get close to them...I feel
    so so bad for the big guys!  My goal is to catch them, fix them
    and continue to provide food and shelter on my porch.
    
    John...thanks so much for sharing all the Opposum info...you
    had more info then my encyclopedia.
    
    Sandy (Tamba, Poco, Barkley, Chloe, Dewey, Anges, Abby
                    and J.C. and Van Gogh and Baby Opposum?????)
    
                                               

      Re .10
      The mother may have been hit by a car, eaten by an owl, killed by a
    coyote, or the little guy may simply have fallen off the bus..(I.E.
    Mom's back...) Any and all of these could of and surely have happened.
    
      I agree that it does attract wild animals if there is a steady supply
    of food...but the alternative is that maybe some of these animals would
    starve without the handouts. 
    
      Recent studies have shown that the "hav-a-hart" traps and moving
    animals to another location may be one of the WORST fixes.. It MAY
    simply be more humane for a quick and humane death. Reason for this is
    that wild animals are territorial...they live with set populations per
    acre/mile. Example: If a 10 square mile area has a population of 20
    Possums, and another Possum is trapped outside that area and let loos
    inside it, one of the now 21 Possums will likely die of starvation. It
    will be the one--or maybe more than one---that can find the smallest
    amount of the available food. If the area could support 30 Possums,
    then there wouls most likely be 30 Possums in that area. It is usually
    the old and very young that suffer when another animal is introduced
    unnaturally into the area. So some of the game people now believe that
    the best thing to do is destroy the animal rather than transporting it
    to another location. 
    
      I don't think you are in too much jeopardy with this little guy if
    you simply use caution when he's around...
    
      JM

    Last summer my mom had a possum coming through the cat door onto
    the porch and helping himself to the cat food - for some reason
    they seem to love cat food!  Anyway, this went on for a couple
    weeks and he obviously had no plans to leave, so, they baited
    him into the cat carrier, brought him to the town forest, and
    let him go there.  He was real happy to be let out of the cage
    and ran off into the woods.  We've been told they can be quite
    viscious if cornered.  (this one was in Stow, MA).

    I inadvertantly "cornered" an adult possum in my garage a couple of weeks
    ago.  The poor animal was terrified and bolted thru a previously too
    small hole in the wall.  Now there is a sufficiently large hole in the
    wall.                                                           
    

    We talked to one of our neighbors last night and his comment
    was "there has always been opposum in this area...as a matter
    of fact last summer I saw one going under your porch."   Oh well
    obviously they have been around for awhile...and I never saw
    one. We do see racoons normally every morning right when the sun
    is coming up.   I find it funny that there is so much wild life in my 
    neighborhood but yet we are only 3/4 mile from the center of
    town and less then 1/4 mile from a hospital.
    
    Well if the opposum has been here for over a year...I'm sure they
    met my few indoor/outdoor cats.  Hopefully they will learn to
    ignore the opposum....like they ignore the racoons.  God I'm
    starting to feel like Grizzly Adams!  If I see a bear...I'm out
    of here!    Ps...I didn't see him last night...and yes I still
    left cat food on the porch for my strays!  Didn't see the strays
    either...but the food was gone this morning.
    
    Sandy  
    
    
    
    
    
    

    
    Yes opposums surely do love cat food.  I live in Berlin, MA -- feed
    about 10 strays right now, have placed one.  In the process of placing
    more with Kim.
    
    We had our share of opposums last year -- so far haven't seen one.  I
    live at a dead-end street surrounded by woods.  The cats had to share
    their food last year with Raccoons and Opposums.  I hope to catch all
    mine strays and keep the wild fellas away!  They weren't afraid of us
    and the cats just sat around while they ate.  We'd use a mop to chase
    them away, they just wounn't move.
    
    We definitely used caution and never got into a corner or back them
    into one. 
    
    If you want to feed the little fella do it away from your house, leave
    a dish if you want or throw food I do.
    
    Carol
    
    		(Scruffy and the Dudley Road Gang)
    
    

      When they are threatened, possums will exhibit behavior as if they
    have rabies or something.  They crouch, drool, hiss, but they sure are
    afraid if you get close to them.  We have one that keeps hiding under
    our bedroom window under the bush.  We hear him at night when he comes
    and russles the leaves. Theyr'e usually active at night the most, but
    if rousted out of their sleeping spot will be seen during the day.
      Once we had a skunk that got caught in a trap and dragged himself to
    our yard.  He was in a lot of pain, you could tell that for sure, but
    he dragged that *&^% trap around, trying to find grubs in the lawn to
    eat.  After 3 days of this, we called the dog officer.  And believe it
    or not, he came out and got the trap off.  The poor skunk stayed under
    our barn for 3 weeks recuperating.  Then he stayed for 3 years!  He
    would come bang on the patio door and look in at all the kitties.  He
    would sit on the picnic table with my guys.  He never sprayed us, guess
    he knew we had helped him out.  I fed him bread while he was
    recuperating.  He must have known who his friends were.  It was funny
    though to see 3 or 4 cats stretched out on the picnic table and a skunk
    laying right next to them enjoying the sun!
    
                                 Denise

       Re Skunks..
    
       Skunks---if captured when very young and "de-scented", make GREAT
    pets. They are as affectionate as cats are, eat basically the same
    thing in a domesticated situation, and are great conversation pieces. 
       The "de-scenting" operation is very simple...but it MUST be redone
    about every year or the glands will re-generate. A domesticated Skunk
    will normally not spray the family it lives with even if the glands do
    regenerate---but it sure is a good insurance policy against that 3:00
    visit to the bathroom when you step on his tail.......
    
       A neighbor of mine when I was a kid had two of them...both neutered
    and de-scented. They were the biggest babies you ever saw... He had
    this absolutely diabolical mind...and if a friend came to visit that
    didn't KNOW he had these Skunks, he'd slip one of them under his jacket
    and make sure he got to their car before they could get out---and toss
    the skunk into the car....WOW!! You never would believe how fast folks
    can get out of a car!!
    
    JM

    Skunks *LOVE* dry catfood, too!  :-)
    

    I've had both possums and skunks as pets when I was a child.  My mother
    was an animal lover so we had just about every kind of animal that was
    native to South Florida.  My brothers were always finding a baby
    something or other and bringing it home for Mom to care for.  The
    possum that we had was raised from about 2 inches long til he was about
    6 months old.  He thrived on cat food and eggs and leftovers.  He was
    not agressive but as he grew older started to bare his one inch fangs
    and hiss at strangers.  He never did like our cats or dog and vice
    versa.  We thought it was best for him to turn him loose in the woods
    out in the everglades.  The skunks were caught when they were babies
    also, one in a friends garbage can out back  of their house and the
    other a friend of my mothers gave to us.  We did have them descented
    but the vet said no more after the second one!! He had too much trouble
    getting rid of the odor. They became my mothers favorite pets and she
    had intended to breed them except that the male had gotten into our
    hamster cage and ate one of the hamsters.  The skunk became ill and
    died the next day.  The female skunk was with us for about 6 or 7 years
    after that, but she was very mean.  My mother was the only one that
    could touch her without getting bit.  I think its best to leave the
    wild animals alone and not disturb them in their natural habitat (even
    if its your backyard), unless they pose a definite threat.  If that is
    the case then I would have the animal trapped and moved.  
    
    regards,
    
    Lynne C.
     
    
    odor.  

    Here's an update....up until Sunday night I had continued to
    leave food on my porch for the two strays.  Well the food was
    gone every morning....but I'm not sure if the possum ate it
    or my two strays.
    
    Well on Sunday night my husband looked on the porch and to his
    surprise found a 30lb racoon sitting in the water bowl....eating
    out of the cat dish.   My god was he big...and obviously he is
    not starving.  He was so cute!!!!!
    
    So...the decision is to shut the porch door at night and hopefully
    my two strays will learn to come eat before it gets dark.  I fear
    if we keep it open....we will look out and see a 80lb racoon with
    his fat family!!   Maybe I'll continue feeding them next winter...
    we plan on turning my shed into a semi shelter with beds of hay.
    This is for the two strays...but I'm sure all the other little
    creatures might enjoy it!!
    
    Sandy
    
    
    

    
    	That reminds me of the time when Cary and I were still living in
    	Nashua and Brandi was off on one of her 'extended jaunts'.
    	I was getting ready for bed and could hear something out by
    	the dumpster.  So I went and got a flashlight hoping that it
    	would be Brandi.  I shine the light down to the dumpster and
    	lo and behold there is a huge raccoon sitting on top of the 
    	dumpster.  The junk was piled up and ready for pick up so
    	the big guy had no problem digging.  He just looked up for a
    	minute to see where the light was coming from and then went
    	back to scrounging.  Never saw him again.
    
    	JJ