Advice on solving a possum issue..

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Rwe2156

DrBob
Senior User
I'm posting this here cause I think there are enough good ole country boys to help me figure this out.

Saw a possum in the back yard a few times he is obviously affected by some nervous disease, shaking, walking in circles, and looks pretty decripit.

Before I could get my 410 and get out there my wife saw him crawl under the deck. No way to get under the deck too close to the ground.

Well the weathers been nice, time to sit on the deck, but there is an awful odor there (he's not dead its the possum).

I've tried setting a trap but no luck.

I've thought about trying to drive him out from under there with something noxious like ammonia I could pour through the cracks.

So any ideas I just want to get him out of there so I can do away with him I'm scared hes going to die under the deck.
 

nn4jw

New User
Jim
That possum may well be rabid acting like that. You don't want to mess around with it yourself. Call animal control. They will be equiped to deal with it properly.
 

Raymond

Raymond
Staff member
Corporate Member
Trust all the above statements! Have you ever seen the size of the needle they use to inject the rabies vaccine? That monster is enough to make most people scream with fear just upon seeing it.
 

Fishbucket

Joe
Senior User
As said, call county animal control to come help. Be prepared
to to pull up some deck boards, or make an opening so they can get at it.
 

JimD

Jim
Senior User
I agree that it is far safer to let animal control deal with it. If you really want to do it yourself, my uncles used to carry little packages of firecrackers to use when a coon or possum crawled into a hollow tree and they wanted to get it out. They would light the firecrackers and then throw them into the tree. It didn't always work which they attributed to the coon or possum having had that treatment before. It seems fairly safe to try but not as safe as just letting somebody better equipped and trained deal with it. (My uncle "heavy" hunted coons from Thanksgiving to New Years most of my childhood. Occasionally I got to go along. My uncle shot more possum than coons)
 

nn4jw

New User
Jim
Trust all the above statements! Have you ever seen the size of the needle they use to inject the rabies vaccine? That monster is enough to make most people scream with fear just upon seeing it.

I was nailed by a rat when I was in the navy back in the 60's. Couldn't catch it so had to go through the rabies series of shots. One a day for 15 days as I recall. All in the belly. It's fewer shots these days but still not worth risking exposure to begin with. Another fun fact - even with the shots today it's possible to get the disease as much as 6 months later as the vaccine isn't 100% effective. Imagine for six solid months what goes through your mind every time you get a little sore throat.

I repeat, let the pros handle that possum.
 
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Graywolf

Board of Directors, President
Richard
Staff member
Corporate Member
Let animal control handle the poor little critter. That being said, opossum are beneficial because they eat ticks, snakes, and it's extremely rare that they would have rabies. As far as the smell is concerned it emits it when playing dead, and oh yes they do play dead and the smell help sales it.
 

Jerry C

Jerry
Senior User
Pretty sure possums cannot get rabies.....they also eat ticks.....you may want to look at them more favorably. Looks are not to good but they do serve a purpose in nature.
 

NOTW

Notw
Senior User
I agree with Jerry, it is very rare for opossums to have rabies due to their lower body temperature; however, they still have a nasty set of teeth so why risk it, call animal control
 

Gotcha6

Dennis
Staff member
Corporate Member
If the rabies doesn't worry you, then think about distemper, tetanus, salmonella, or hepatitis.
 

tarheelz

Dave
Corporate Member
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JimD

Jim
Senior User
A long time ago in the summer I mowed overgrown lots with a tractor and brush hog in Kansas City Mo. I was in college and it was the best summer job I could find. We went out in two person teams with a tractor driver and a helper to weed whip the edges the tractor couldn't get to. We got bonus if we mowed enough square feet so I would put my weed whipper on the tractor and spell him so we could get more done.

One day he comes screaming across a large lot in top gear because he wanted to show me a giant rat running across the field. We were mowing around the lot creating a smaller and smaller square of weeds in the middle and finally the possum couldn't take it.
 

Rwe2156

DrBob
Senior User
You guys.........I can see I was wrong thinking a NC good ole boy would be a little less scared of a staggering old possum who can barely walk.

I'm gonna call Eustice he'll know what to do..........LOL
 
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