opossums

[Haviris2]

I am now foster mom to 8 orphaned opossums, anyone have any experience that can offer some advice?

 

[MiddleChild]

Is there some way I can contact you to give you an e-mail address without making it totally public? It's not mine - my sister had a similar situation and raised them successfully. Or some way you can privately give me yours so I can forward it to her?

 

[Haviris2]

Sent you a private message

 

[CrazyFowlFreak]

Where do you live, I want one! LOL I've always wanted a pet opossum and a pet crow, and a pet groudhog.

I'm just a big (38 year old) kid!

 

[Haviris2]

Arkansas

 

[equine623]

I'm sorry, I hate seeing all these threads. If you take in orphaned animals and have to ask for advice on a chicken forum, then you need to find a qualified rehabber to take them to. If there are no rehabbers close by or this is an emergency that you need advice on what to do while waiting to get them to an expert, that is one thing.

Rehab isn't rocket science, but its more than just stuffing food into a baby and hoping for the best. If people truly care about the best interest of the animals, then they should be willing to take them to someone who knows what they are doing.

I don't care if I have the popular view or not....its true.

And for the record, yes I'm a rehabber and a vet tech, so I do know what I"m talking about.

 

[Skyesrocket]

Haviris,
I fostered one last year and came here for advice. I was suprised by how many people here have them.
I fed mine goat milk from a feeding syringe to get him started. Just like pups and kittens, wipe the bottoms with moist warm cloth after feeding.
Make them a fleece pouch and supply a heating pad.
I have to get outside right now but will be back with more info.
My husband and I both agree that our guy is one of our all time favorite animals! With 8 you are going to be busy! I wish I was closer. I would love to have another one!

 

[punk-a-doodle]

I'll send your post to someone I know online who raised one. I am not sure if she will respond or not. For one, legality issues are huge in such things. I guess I'm more about allowing the public to have a deep connection to wildlife (I've definitely seen what happens when they don't) and promote education for proper care then I am someone who feels that taking that completely out of public hands is always a good thing. I've seen both the horror stories (people ruining the eyes of nocturnal animals, malnourished and malformed animals from improper husbandry, etc), and the people who have a knack for raising animals (Better than some vets, rehabbers, zoos, and professionals I've seen. Heck, I just had a friend who saved her own ill baby's mental development by choosing to go against the doctors' orders. Her baby finally started putting on weight once she made her choice. The docs said it was a gutsy move, but were relieved that she had been able to do what they had not.). That said, it is definitely true that there is more to raising wildlife than stuffing food into a baby, as Equine said, so if you do get overwhelmed, if you feel you don't have the experience or time or whathaveyou to raise a large, time consuming gaggle of possums, please find a wildlife rehab or qualified vet to take over. It is illegal for you to raise them without a federal permit. Please be advised that opossums require very specific and complex diets, and are prone to develop metabolic bone disease if not given proper diet and care. If you do raise them, have a plan. I can assure you that you do *not* want eight pet opossums, if that is your plan at all! What will you do about raising them for release? Either way, thank you for your concern and care for these creatures.

Here is some opossum info:
http://theopossumpage.com/index.html

 

[Haviris2]

Wow equine623, what kind of bug crawled up your butt? IF I was someone that had no idea what I was doing, I'd still need to know what to do w/ them until someone else could take over, or the rehabber would get them in much worse shape, especially not knowing how long before one could get back to me and/or take them. I had another choice, I could have left them to be fed to the dog (the one that killed their mom), I think that was the plan if I hadn't taken them.

I have raised many different animals wild and domestic, (I'm guessing that is why they called me), and I'm also a vet tech. They are doing great! Since possums are new to me I figured some w/ experience may have some tips or tricks that I hadn't thought about. They are actually doing quite well and figured out eating really quickly! I was lucky to get them just after their mom died, so they were in pretty good shape. They're not tooo young, so I'm hoping to have them drinking from a bowl with in a few days.

Don't worry, NO plans to keep 8 pet possums! Hopefully I'll be able to release them as soon as they are ready, just got to deside where! I've done many all night feedings, and months of caring for demanding babies, hopefully 8 won't overwhelme me, because right now I'm all they've got (unless someone w/ some experience would like to volunteer to take some on)!

So equine623 you're a rehabber, would you like them? I contacted all the rehabbers I could find in my area last year when I needed one, I got zero responses!

Just an FYI, not everyone that asks for advice does it because they are ignorant, or don't know what they are doing, but there are many people here w/ experiences w/ all kinds of different things, including raising wild life, and although I have a pretty good game plan in place, it can't hurt to talk to others that may have been in my shoes and have tips about what they did or should have done.

So thanks for all the advice! You've all been very helpful! And punk-a-doodle thanks for the link, I read that yesterday!

 

[punk-a-doodle]

Oh wow! Awesome to know they are in even better hands then I would have imagined. Willingness to learn more tips when raising animals, even when experience is already had, is a great trait. I wish I saw it more often. Keep us posted on their development if you will. I would so volunteer to help (heck, I'd pay you, haha), but I'm guessing you don't live nearby. I heard of one person who had a really, really young group (taken out of a pouch of a mother killed on the road), and she had to take them around with her everywhere in a pouch to keep them all warm and fed. Glad for your sake that these are a little bit older!