Anything Wrong With Opossums in My Yard?

[switchback]

I told myself that if I caught a possum or coon in my trap, I'd kill it, and if I caught a fox or cat I'd let it go. First night caught a coon, second night a possum. Had no problem getting rid of the coon but I felt sorry for the possum, he wasn't aggressive in the least and just wanted to be left alone and go on his way. And they are very useful for getting rid of carrion and other nasty stuff (including rodents).

Ended up leaving him in there while trying to decide what to do... did a lot of research online and discovered they are nearly immune to rabies, the EPM thing is blown out of proportion (I have horses too), and they are nature's little sanitation engineers. So I let him go. Left the trap open and he still wasn't out an hour later so I helped him along. Had to dump the trap upside down and keep unwinding his tail from the wire. Still never tried to bite me, just watched me with those big eyes. Then he just slowly went on his way.

Now that is NOT to say that they wouldn't kill chickens given the opportunity. But if your coop IS secure from them then there is no reason to kill it just for being there.

 

[ranchhand]

Having sadly shot an opossum earlier this year I can speak from experience. They WILL kill your chickens. And even the most secure coop and run aren't enough.

 

[kitkatnoah]

Quote:
I have to agree! Last night we shot a possum that was nosing around our coop/run, looking for a way in. A couple of weeks ago a possum killed 2 of our chicks that were in their breeder pen, it just grabbed them through the bars & tried to pull them out. We never had a problem with possums until we got our chickens, now they're coming out of the woodwork!

 

[switchback]

My woodland varmints must be either well-fed or a bunch of quitters, because I only had a few half-hearted attempts at break-ins until the foxes, coons, and possums gave up and basically ignored the coop altogether. But I wouldn't consider bars to be secure against very many predators, especially if the chickens are roosting close enough to it to be pulled out through them.

 

[Laurajean]

Quote:
Trust me. There is virtually no way an Opossum, Raccoon, etc., can get into my coop. As I said before, it would literally take a bear to get in. I live in the deep woods and spent years reading, learning and designing this coop with every possible scenario in mind. It's extremely secure, truly. The locals on my road all thought I was crazy when they saw it, thinking I went totally overboard in its' design (security-wise, not aesthetics), but I am the only one in my neck of the woods who has never lost a chicken.

 

[ranchhand]

Sorry, I just answered the question to the best of my knowledge.

If your coop is ultra safe I guess there was no question anyway.

 

[Laurajean]

Quote:
Don't be sorry, I didn't mean it in a defensive way. I was just asking if there were other things I should be worried about, such as where they nest or what else they might get into. Thanks anyway!

 

[CariLynn]

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Tell that to a person who's horse HAS EPM and see what they tell you. EPM isn't something to take lightly and as long as a possum is passing through, he can keep going. If he decides to take up residence he will be trapped and disposed of. I have 4 horses and I DO take what they carry seriously, you may be able to afford the treatment for a horse who has is but I personally can't. And it IS a lot more prevalent than you wish to think.

 

[centrarchid]

I have oppossums, coyotes, barred owls and great horned owls coming to within 100 yards of my caged birds nightly. The oppossum even leaves scat on driveway. Until a dog is present to keep these predators at bay, I will do nothing to challenge these animals unless they cause me loss of stock. Oppossums in my opinion are among easiest to deal with by simply making certain night time leaving arrangements are secure. They will do their best to test your husbandry skills so if oppossum getting your birds then you are being sloppy.

Total exclusion of above predators not practical nor warranted if losses not occurring. Coyotes we have around seem wary of chicken yards in area and I have now doubt they are keeping red and grey foxes from searching my upland pastures for prey. In this case a potential chicken killer is a benefit, for now, by keeping somebody out that seems a little more inclined to eat my birds.

Raccoons a different story. They are not just visiting to clean up around feeders. Their pelts have significant monetary value.

 

[centrarchid]

Can the local oppossum(s) be captured and vaccinated for the EPM virus. We resorted to same (distemper) with semi-tame raccoon denning in hollow tree of back yard. Bugger fought like hell but vet very understanding and got job done. Maybe vaccine can b placed in food.