Dealing with Opossums and chickens

[U_Stormcrow]

Shovel.

As ground predators go, 'possum are almost as dangerous to chicken keeping as trash pandas are.

I'm not offering legal advice, I'm not a Lawyer in MA or anywhere else, But you might want to read MA General Law, Part 1, Title XIX, Chapter 131, Section 37. I'm just a reasonably well read guy with oddly specific choices of reading materials.

 

[theoldchick]

I scoop 'em up with a fishnet. Uninvited varmints do not walk away from my farm. I have horses so I can't afford to allow an opossum to defecate on my hay. Though I do keep all feed up at night, predators do smell the chickens and will investigate. I keep them out of the pen with electric wire.

 

[Carolminifarm]

Yesterday night I saw a possum making his way toward the coop. Luckily I stopped him by flashing my flashlight at him and he retreated.
Today, I saw him in the run, next to the coop opening, and he began to play dead. All the chickens are safe and sound.

He is playing dead, not moving, and not reacting to loud noises or anything like that.

How did I get him out of the run so that both he and I are safe?
He won’t budge.

How do I prevent opossums from coming back? I know they generally do not harm chickens, but I do not want to risk it.


When I first saw him, he had a bone in his mouth, probably from the chickens’ leftovers. He was going for the meat and bone left in the run, so luckily that distracted him a little bit so he didn’t get into the coop at all.

And advice and suggestions are greatly appreciated.
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@aart @azygous @U_Stormcrow

Put a live trap in with a snack. If really brave, put on leather glove and pick up by tail and toss over fence. Or a gun or dog. They do kill chickens btw.

 

[NaperLix]

Oppussum kill chickens all the time,in day as well.Often time if wire is too big open squares,need smaller wire on top of welded wire.They can reach chickens heads.
They dig under as well,easily.
cage traps easy Catch small animals.

 

[Carolminifarm]

U.s. hawks are protected. Possums are not. Try a live cage if u can. I take the lazy way sometimes and send in the ridgeback

 

[U_Stormcrow]

U.s. hawks are protected. Possums are not. Try a live cage if u can. I take the lazy way sometimes and send in the ridgeback

Even hawks can be taken in MA. Subject to restrictions.

MA General Law, Part 1, Title XIX, Chapter 131, Section 38.

 

[schmedlap]

That was according to research. The bulk of people, even on BYC (from what I understand) that have experienced possums breaking in to the coop, have realized they do not usually go for the adult chickens, but rather the chicks, eggs, and leftover feed.


Is it legal to kill wildlife like that? I’ve attempted to kill a hawk that hurt its wings while going for our chooks, and someone on BYC notified me saying it’s illegal to do so.

If it’s legal, I’d gladly do so. Rather be safe than sorry.

Thanks for your response!

re member the 3 s's. shoot, shovel, shut up

 

[ThatUserNameAlreadyTaken]

That was according to research. The bulk of people, even on BYC (from what I understand) that have experienced possums breaking in to the coop, have realized they do not usually go for the adult chickens, but rather the chicks, eggs, and leftover feed.


Is it legal to kill wildlife like that? I’ve attempted to kill a hawk that hurt its wings while going for our chooks, and someone on BYC notified me saying it’s illegal to do so.

If it’s legal, I’d gladly do so. Rather be safe than sorry.

Thanks for your response!

An opossum is a totally different case from a hawk. They are considered vermin, the same as a rat, in most locales. However, killing a hawk ... even being in possession of a hawk's feather has some very steep penalties. Under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918,
You will go to jail and receive a $10,000 fine (maximum penalty) if you kill a hawk or owl. It is actually a Class B Misdemeanor.

 

[ThatUserNameAlreadyTaken]

Trap it amd get rid of it like 20 miles from your home

In many areas, it is illegal to move vermin to another area. In Nohio, you either release them on your own property or dispatch them. To do otherwise is simply making your problem someone else's problem.

 

[ThatUserNameAlreadyTaken]

I have had to deal with opossums several times over the years, and I never once killed one. It's probably not a popular opinion, but I moved into the country with a goal of living with nature -- as much as possible -- not eradicating it. In fact, when I HAD to trap rats that were getting inside my coops a few years ago, I will admit to being sorry about killing them after none of the non-lethal methods were working.

I have used a different approach with the "possums." I have live trapped and relocated them. The last one, I released in a rural cemetery so it wouldn't be near other people's homes/critters and would have plenty of shelter from trees and shrubs.. Wild things should be in wild places, and there isn't a lot of wooded area among north central Iowa's flat farmland. I had tried three times, including with a barking dog, to run off the little intruder and reached my limit when I caught it inside the duck shelter.

When I couldn't live trap possums, I have just put on heavy gloves, grabbed the critters by their tails (Yeah, it's a redneck method I learned back home; I've never come across one nimble enough to contort itself into a position to bite) and put them into dog crates for their ride to a new location.

I am sure folks will take issue with this, and that's okay. Truth be told, I kind of like the smiling little critters. Their body temperature is so low that they rarely carry rabies, and they have an incredible appetite for tick larvae. Still, I like them best at a distance from my birds.

Hope that Massachusetts possum stays away.

Moving vermin is simply making your problem someone else's problem. Are you proud of that?