Tough Opossum Exploited Neighbors And Got Too Close to Us

[centrarchid]

We just took out a large male opossum just after midnight last night. Dogs played lead role as they do with raccoons for similar although not so easy to come by results. Opossum was first engaged very close to neighbors Fort Know type of coop that is fairly near our property boundary. This job was much tougher than most as opossum found cover under an exceptionally large and dense multi-floral rose. Dogs had to lay on their side and crawl for several feet to get at opossum. They did, opossum was flushed where dogs could catch and dispatch. Dogs took as lot of thorns in sides, face and ears. As we wrapped up I could hear neighbor checking on their coop but no words said. If like me they were out about in not enough cloths and at best half-witted from being asleep.

 

[minnehaha]

We just took out a large male opossum just after midnight last night. Dogs played lead role as they do with raccoons for similar although not so easy to come by results. Opossum was first engaged very close to neighbors Fort Know type of coop that is fairly near our property boundary. This job was much tougher than most as opossum found cover under an exceptionally large and dense multi-floral rose. Dogs had to lay on their side and crawl for several feet to get at opossum. They did, opossum was flushed where dogs could catch and dispatch. Dogs took as lot of thorns in sides, face and ears. As we wrapped up I could hear neighbor checking on their coop but no words said. If like me they were out about in not enough cloths and at best half-witted from being asleep.

Wow, what a night you had!!!! How are your dogs doing with their thorn injuries? You sure have some good, and well trained dogs!!

 

[centrarchid]

Wounds are proving to be minimal. Both dogs worked all day yesterday and most of last night so in good energy. Temperatures not yet hot enough to slow them down but will be soon. We have a lot of something coming in that gets dogs moving about more than typical. I think it is owls going after the voles in the middle of a population explosion.

 

[minnehaha]

That's good, great dogs!!! We are having a serious uptick in Vole activity too. My cats have been killing several a day for about 1.5 weeks. We always have had Voles, but they really get active when it warms up in the spring. I think they are preparing for litters of young. I'll know for sure when my cats start killing the babies.

 

[centrarchid]

Vole population here is going through what the wildlife biologist call an outbreak. Abundance many times higher than typical resulting in changes to the plant community and even the death of trees. Result for predators is not unlike what occurs with Periodic Cicada outbreaks where food is super abundant for a period of time. Then the prey base crashes.

 

[microchick]

I can relate.

We have a Border Collie/Jack Russel cross who has been spending her days digging voles up in our pastures. Her brother, Border Collie/hound mix, hunts voles above ground but they both have been coming up with 2-3 voles a day. The little sister digs until you can just see her hind end and tail sticking out of the ground. It really gets funny when she gets frustrated and starts barking while she digs.

Do they eat them? Yep. No accounting for tastes, LOL.

 

[minnehaha]

Really, and uptick? Just in Missouri, or all over the U.S.?

Our blueberry bushes are taking a hit right now, the Voles like to eat the roots. I need to go out there and place hardware cloth underground around the bushes. These are the only 2 berry bushes that do not have hardware cloth protection.

Microchick~less dog food to buy!!!!

 

[Akrnaf2]

In this situation of vole outbreak you should take an extra care from snakes!

 

[minnehaha]

Kitty's first kill today! She is 7 months old. She brought it through the cat door and dropped this "Vagrant Shrew" gift on my daughter's bare feet.......

. We know who kitty likes best! This girl will mature into a hunting machine!! I like her serious predator eyes! She will soon be taking down large Moles as well as the Voles!

 

[microchick]

The only problem is that it takes so many to make a meal and the end result of her hunting leaves the pasture with all these little bomb craters in it from her excavations.

All of our dogs are good hunters and keep the rabbit/vole and mouse population down nicely around our farm.

I just wish I could trust them with our chickens but they aren't discriminating.