possum in my backyard now--Help

[Max Bantam]

this may sound kinda bad but, if you cant shoot him i would not beat him with a shovel, i would give em a swift kick, he'll play possum, then put your foot at the back of his neck give em a swift jeck on the tail and he is over. HE WILL EAT YOUR CHICKENS. AND THEY CARRY LOTS OF DISEASES. when i was a kid my 75yr old ant show me that, if it works for her it works for me.....

 

[ryanhodapp]

Thanks, for now the possum has moved on to darker places.
I better secure the coop, I dont think I can kick a possum in my flip flops.
Besides what is a swift "jeck" on the tail anyway?

For now the dog is on watch and she will be relieved by my husband in a little bit.

I appreciate the quick responses.

uh-oh, the dog is barking, got to go

 

[Max Bantam]

jerk..... sorry..... you aint got no boots?

 

[illegal avian]

if you ain't got no boots... you can't get no satisfaction!

 

[PineappleMama]

You're too far away for me to offer Lily and Janie's services... they are excellent at possum huntin' particularly if they get the booger under a shed... doxies are cool like that.

They'll eat your dog food, but for the most part they're cowards. You can try to knock it off the fence, but if it wants in your yard it'll get there. Killing it is the only sure way to keep it out, but more often than not it isn't worth the bullet.

Your call, but if you have a secure run & coop I'd just leave him alone.

 

[Dogfish]

Baseball bat or hockey sticks work wonders on predators that play possum. When you think it is dead, make sure. They don't run fast.

 

[PineappleMama]

^ amen to that. We had one fall out of the dog food bag (about killed hubby when he finally arrived, since the SCREAMING didn't alert him dork) the dogs gave it a shake and 'killed' it so he just tossed it over the fence to the side of the yard... sure enough in the morning it was gone. If you don't want it coming back make sure it is D-E-A-D, not just playing. Giant rats, oy they give me the willies.

 

[WasabiChicki]

Had to add my two cents...
I hate opossums...
Shovels work great on opossums...

I dont live in the city anymore but when I did, shovels were the easiest to shoo away the varmints... they CAN be vicious: try not to corner them,
just gently shoo 'em out of your yard.

LOCK UP THE CHICKS, leave out the dog, or what ever else you can do, but like someone else said, *the opossum will eventually leave if it can't reach the chicks,
so make sure the chicks are secured.

(And depending on the city, firing the gun could be bad or not a big deal... but don't buy one just for opossums... wait til you have a list.)

GOOD LUCK!

 

[missred871]

Well I can tell you what I did with the possum we found in our yard tonight......but since I see you are afraid to use a gun it may not help

He HOWEVER will NOT be eating my babies tonight or any other night

We leave our dog out since we know there is a fox running around right now....(until I find it that is) and I was standing on the porch at about 12am she sniffed the air and took off full run into the pitch black yard I snatched up the 9 led flashlight and shined it into the front acre had to walk about 20 feet away to see what it was she has cornered a freakin possum I was so proud! She has a sort of gimp leg, we believe someone drove a bit too fast down our drive way which we share with our neighbor and smacked her already arthritic leg so she limps around on it (back leg) but any who she had that sucker cornered in the middle of the open yard, he was ferocious, I was scared he would get her but we got the 22 and took care of that little you know what. Uh huh, dead as a door nail now, no chicken dinners for him.... MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Other than death by a gun, I can suggest you get a trap and bait it with some chicken (be sure to leave the chicken out in the heat allllll day long so it smells stinky and rotten) and I am sure you will catch any possums and coons within a mile of your property

If you cant find a place to buy a trap go to animal control and ask them to rent a trap costs about 16 dollars generally and they will pick the trap up animal and all if you call them the 16 dollars should cover the trap for a week. they will pick up the animal in the trap and leave another trap for you. Thats my best suggestion without resorting to violence...though i myself am prone to the violence

 

[ryanhodapp]

You guys from Texas are making me laugh.
Boots, you mean snow boots?
I am kidding, if my chicks were in very grave danger, I would smack the heck out of that possum.
Update is that everyone made it through the night, safe and sound.

No guns are allowed to be discharged in the city. How about bow and arrow? NO, I will stick to the shovel!
Have a good day!