How to keep possum away

[DLA]

True, seldom rabies, but not impossible.
Mary

I've shot several possum over the years that were clearly rabid so they can get rabies. If you see them out during broad daylight and not running for cover that's a red flag. We have quite a few raccoon, skunks and possum around and those first two are known carriers and at night they all compete for the same food sources so transmission is fairy easy between them. I don't shoot them unless they're acting sick or messing around my coop. Covering or removing any food in your coop/run and ensuring it's protected with hardware cloth goes a long way to keeping them from bothering your chickens. Also they will go after wild bird feeders so removing those will also help make your area less of a meeting spot for furry chicken eaters. I have lots of wildlife around but have had no issues, thankfully, with attempted coop/run break ins since I started covering the chickens food at night and removed the wild bird feeders.

 

[Folly's place]

Any of those sick opossums actually tested?
Mary

 

[DLA]

Any of those sick opossums actually tested?
Mary

No but anyone who's seen an animal with rabies can usually tell when they see it again. They both had the rigid leg walk, one had pronounced drooling/foaming of the mouth, the other was not as pronounced, they were both growling and snapping at things that weren't there and were out stumbling around the yard during the day. One of the neighbors had shot a rabid raccoon in the first case and a sick (suspected rabies) stray/wild dog in the second within 2 or 3 weeks of this so there was no reason to get it tested. Shot, buried deep with lime all around so nothing would be tempted to dig it up, disinfected the shovel. Then passed the word do all of the neighbors. Even in the rare chance it wasn't rabies, they were clearly diseased and needed put down. I'm a good shot so they didn't suffer.
This is still a pretty rural area with farms and stuff. The state game people aren't always interested in coming out to investigate stuff. I would have had to collect the carcass and drive quite a distance to deliver it to be tested so that wasn't happening. I did call and left a message with the game commission about it though.

 

[Folly's place]

Our DNR had been good about having diseased critters necropsied, not a problem here. And 'neurological' covers a number of things, none good, but not all rabies.
Mary

 

[McChooky]

Possums have such a low body temperature they rarely get the rabies virus so that doesn't concern me.What concerns me is one sneaking in the coop

 

[Klutch]

https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/rabies/pdf/vs-0612-wildlife-rabies-h.pdf

 

[McChooky]

https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/rabies/pdf/vs-0612-wildlife-rabies-h.pdf

We had zero cases of dogs or possums with rabies

 

[TOR]

Racoon and possum will travel in daylight if hungry enough and or know of a reliable food source to go to. Thou they are primarily a nightime , noctunal animal

I have seen them move in daylight, it is the ones which dont run away. I have come across bout half dozen of them over the years. get a gun and dispatch them, they are sick.

 

[LuciferRoo]

Possums have such a low body temperature they rarely get the rabies virus so that doesn't concern me.What concerns me is one sneaking in the coop

I had one sneaking into my coop in the evening and stealing eggs.
No chickens,were harmed but I certainly did not want him there.

 

[TOR]

I had one sneaking into my coop in the evening and stealing eggs.
No chickens,were harmed but I certainly did not want him there.

They will eat the chicken food and steal eggs before they kill a chicken. the adult possum in my experince is the one which will kill a chicken and they start at the rearend and eat in.
I have had a chicken killed by adult possum, never had a chicken killed from a young one.
I free range and winter seems to be the problem with them as they do not hibernate. I have seen them in middle day eat chicken food.

Anyway I dispatch them. Once they know food is there cant get rid of them. Otherwise once things warm back up it is not the possums it is the coons, fox, birds of prey, etc etc.