do possums eat chickens?

[Krisfluff bottomcrew]

Here is a link and what they say about possums.

http://icwdm.org/inspection/livestock.asp

•Omnivorous eating fish, crustaceans, insects, mushrooms, fruits, vegetables, eggs, and carrion. They will raid poultry houses, usually killing one chicken at a time, often mauling the victim.
•Eggs will be mashed and messy, the shells often chewed into small pieces and left in the nest. Opossums usually begin feeding on poultry at the cloacal opening. Young poultry or game birds are consumed entirely and only a few wet feathers left.

Possums are slow-moving and don’t really pose much of a threat to chickens during the day. The chickens will most likely just run away. They really like the eggs though at any time. At night, when the chickens are on the roost, they can’t run away in the dark. The chickens are easy prey. Obviously the rooster can’t see to do anything.

I once found a possum in the coop just before dark. The rooster was as scared of it as the hens. He wasn’t getting near that thing!

People have a romanticized opinion of the value of a rooster for predator protection. Occasionally you will find one that will attack a predator but much more often they function more as a warming system. Often a rooster will position himself between the flock and a potential danger to check things out but if a real threat is found, mine are more likely to try to lead the flock to safety rather than send them to safety while he sacrifices himself to give them more time.

This is exactly how I found one of my gorgeous silkies that I absolutely adored eaten from the back end inward. I was mortified. We couldn’t figure out how it got in and one night very very lucky of me I found the possum but had already killed a young duck and chewed its head off and the head was no where to be found. They need to be removed immediately or they will absolutely go after your flock. I’m proof of this article!!!!