Opossums In Your Home

Common in just about all parts of the U.S., opossums in your home can be more than just a nuisance. Even if you live in an urban area, you may become the target of an opossum.

These critters are very food driven. Any place they can find food, they will go. They will travel to any place where food is plentiful. What kind of food? Almost any kind. Opossums are scavengers; they’ll eat garbage or pet food. They’ll dig up roots and bulbs of many kinds. And they eat a lot.

Once opossums find a food source, they keep coming back. So when you have opossums in your home, they may be there for some time if they keep finding food.

The good thing about opossums in your home is they don’t stay long. They will stay as long they find food there. So one thing you can do is remove any and all food sources if you have this problem.

The bad thing about opossums in your home is they make a mess. A huge mess. Opossums are fairly large animals, so they produce a large amount of feces. If they get into your attic, they are sure to leave their feces there.

How do opossums get into your attic? If they find a small hole, they’ll gnaw at it until it’s large enough for them to fit into. Opossums like to live in attics. While there, they will chew up wires and insulation. There is a great possibility they will die in the attic, bringing a real hazard to your and your family’s health. Even if they don’t die in your attic, opossums carry bacteria and germs in their claws and mouths that can potentially bring harm to you and your family.

If you have opossums in your home, you may come face-to-face with them. At those times, if they feel threatened, they may play dead. When this happens, and it may last for up to four hours, the opossum will give off a foul odor from glands inside its rectum. Of course, this will not be pleasant.

Also, opossums can have up to three litters per year. Each litter could have up to 13 pups. Imagine this inside your home!

You can try trapping any opossums in your home yourself. You’ll need a large trap and check it frequently. Opossums are only active at night, so this is the best time to trap one. If you do trap an opossum successfully, take it at least 10 miles away from your home to release. Any closer, and it may find its way back to your attic.

You may want to consider hiring a professional to take care of the problem for you. Heath’s Wildlife Service provides 24 hour emergency and long-term nuisance wildlife solutions for your home or business with a focus on customer service, mutual trust, and ongoing support and information. Chris Heath will give you a no-obligation, free estimate for removing pests from your home. Call 855-422-0434 or 603-664-0513.