Possums/opossums whatever they are called.....

p2chick

In the Brooder
11 Years
Aug 16, 2008
10
0
22
My chicks are now 3 weeks old and will soon be making the outdoor tractor their home. I live in an urban area and really wasn't incredibly concerned with predators that much except for a few cats that troll the area. BUT tonight i heard from a neighbor that they've recently spotted a family of Possums in and out of their backyard. I have yet to see these guys but now am worried if they are the type of animal that will harm my girls.

Should I now safeguard the coop from possums getting into the coop? And are they diggers? Should I protect the coop with underground wiring?
 
we have a family of oppossums that live in our yard, and because of that, you need to completely safeguard your coop and run. Dig a trench 12 inches deep around both your coop and your run, and bury your 1/4 inch hardware cloth. Refill with dirt, stamp it down, and you should be good to go. Also, we used U shaped nails to attach our hardware cloth to the coop/run. Apparently they don't pull out as easily as staples do, so that will prevent the little buggers from pulling the cloth off.

Make sure you get the cloth as secure as you can around weird corners, and angles, so nothing small and skinny can squeeze thru the gaps and get inside. Baby oppossums are very small and can squeeze thru surprisingly small spaces, so over kill on the nails is good.


Hope this helps! Good luck!
~Caran
 
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Possums are opportunists, but they aren't particularly aggressive about it - no where near what raccoons, weasels, etc. are.

They're pretty easy to tame, and they make good pets, believe it or not.
 

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