Oh, opossum, oh, opossums

With the weather warming up here and there as winter continues to crawl by animals are on the move, looking for one more meal to get through until tomorrow. In particular we can’t believe the number of calls regarding Virginia Opossums that we have received in the past several weeks.

Opossum's, our only North American Marsupial, are nomadic by nature and do not nest, even in the summer when they have young. They do however, take advantage of opportunities like open garage doors, open decking or even unused dog kennels, when morning comes and they need someplace safe to spend the day. This of course doesn’t take into account that in the winter, opossums which are scavengers, are not nearly as adept at finding food as the raccoons, skunks and feral cats that they are competing with. This means that it is very common to see these creatures out during the day, especially in the winter months when they simply can't find enough food during the nighttime hours alone.

An opossum who shows up in your yard will likely move on once he senses the danger (you, your children and your dog or cat who probably startled him to begin with) is gone. He or she is only there because there is a food source nearby. If the opossum’s presence is unwelcome and continues take the following steps.

• Take up any and all food sources - opossums are scavengers and they actually provide a valuable (if grotesque) service. Any bird feeders, fruit trees, garbage, un-cleaned grills, outdoor pet food or pretty much anything else that is edible should be cleaned up, brought inside or placed into an airtight container to prevent from attracting them.
• Try putting a radio near the area/s you are seeing him or her most often. It needn’t be loud and it should be on a talk radio station to ensure that they are tricked into thinking people are nearby.
• Be sure to take note of any areas of damage that may be allowing him to get under your deck or shed, into your garage or other hiding areas. If these locations can be sealed off or repaired before baby season starts in the spring you will prevent a lot of headaches for yourself.

To trap or not to trap, that is the question

A phone call I received today was a rather unique one. The woman had gone to her basement door last night to see what her dog was getting excited about and when she opened it a small creature streaked past her and into the basement. At some point this morning he had found his way upstairs and into a bathroom which is where she trapped it as she made her phone call for advice.

Normally we don’t recommend using the “answer to every problem” live-trap to solve conflicts between people and their wild neighbors. This situation proved difficult however, as the animal was clearly hiding in a room far from the nearest outdoor exit in a house with 2 large dogs.

We determined that the wayward creature was likely a weasel. The plan was to locate a very small live-trap baited with canned cat food and place it in the closed room. In these situations we always advise homeowners to do their best to locate the point of entry and close it if they can (in this case it was a coincidence involving a door so it was an easy solution) and then release the animal to a safe corner of their property. We’ll come back to this story in a moment.

The next call I received was from a woman who had a Virginia Opossum in a live-trap. She had successfully trapped and “relocated” 3 in the past week and wondered if there was something less time-consuming that could relieve her of the midnight garbage raiders. Our conversation was a helpful one; I explained to her that not only was relocating these animals a lot of work for her, but it was also not the best solution – nor legal! After our discussion, she had a number of recommendations that she was going to set out to implement. Because the animals were getting into the trash, other than putting straps, locks or bungee cords on the container, one option was for her to contact her waste disposal company to find out if she could exchange her current receptacle for a clean, new one that didn’t have such a strong odor, or barring that, taking the time to thoroughly clean the one she was using. She was also going to try leaving the lights on in the area the receptacles were kept to force any potential raiders to commit their crimes in the light. Because she was not providing any other food sources (neither her nor her immediate neighbors were feeding birds or other pets outdoors) these few tactics should do the trick.

Opossums are by nature nomadic and they generally only stay in one area if they consistently find food there. They are not picky when it comes to food, but if they can’t find enough they will move on to other areas where they can. Keeping up food and implementing small things that change the landscape that animals are used to or startle them when they least expect it are often all it takes to solve conflicts in a humane manner. Even if being humane isn’t your top priority (why are you reading this blog then?), the safety, hassle and legality of trapping and relocating animals should be.

The second woman thanked me for all of the information and I think that she will have a much better week now. Back to the first caller. Shortly after we talked she had gone to the bathroom to check on the status of her uninvited guest and brought with her a heavy bag and a piece of bologna. When she opened the door he was peering around a corner at her so she instinctively tossed the bologna into the bag and held it in the doorway in front of her. Surprisingly, he was hungry enough to be fooled with her behind the door and voluntarily walked right into the bag to enjoy his feast. She was able to safely bring him to the long grassy area in the back of her property and release him back to his home and duty of controlling the rodent population there.

Two different traps, two different reasons, and at least two happy endings. If you have a friend or a neighbor experiencing conflicts with their wild neighbors and considering using a trap to solve them, suggest that they give their nearest wildlife rehabilitator a call for advise that may be better for both them and the animals.

What is that?!?

Have you ever seen a blossom of slime mold? A lot of people have not and it has given cause for some of them to contact us over the years. If you recall, a few weeks ago I posted a blog about the descriptions of sound that we get on occasion. Another one of the things that we often get descriptions over the phone is feces. The best of these stories to date was a gentleman who had called to report finding large feces, “larger than a large dog,” in the flowerbed outside his home. After some discussion with the individual in the office it seemed unlikely it was any wild animal we commonly see in this part of the state. It is possible in cases like these that a large dog may be the culprit especially if a neighbor had out-of-town company or a new dog that they were letting out at night. In this instance he had a second thought revolving around a feud that had been steaming between him and his neighbor. It was recommended that if he really suspected that this was the result of a human, especially a neighbor, that he contact local law enforcement and get them involved. Yuck.

If you talk to phone counseling veterans you will hear countless stories of feces descriptions including ones filled with seeds or found in odd places. And just a side note that even though we do see and deal with a lot of the sort in a Center such as ours, we really aren’t interested in handling it to confirm that someone indeed has a raccoon passing through their yard on occasion.

Back to slime mold. Another classic call was from a woman who was convinced that something or someone was vomiting in her front flowerbed every night. The likelihood that this was the case was slim, especially after several days had resulted in the same outcome. WINC phone counselor Lisa however, knew exactly what the culprit might be; slime mold. I have been told that this type of mold looks like “colorful vomit” and commonly appears in wood mulch during and after times of heavy rainfall. According to my research this is a “fungus-like” organism but not actually of the fungi family. It gets its name from the early stages of its development when it often appears very “gelatinous.” It states that because it feeds on microorganisms that live in dead plant material, it is common to find them on the ground, especially on lawns and in forests.

Many people don’t know why they suddenly see piles of very small feces below their shutters in the summer, why they find deposits in the same area again and again, or what type of animal has been visiting the back deck at night, but if you have questions give us a call; everyone else does!

Thanks again and clean up after yourself!

Let a sleeping raccoon lie

It was 3PM when I received a call from a gentleman. “When I got into work this morning there was a raccoon in the dumpster. We've tried to get it to leave, but I think it must be stuck or injured because it hasn't left yet.”


Dumpsters may not seem like nice places for most of us, but for urban raccoons they provide a number of life's essentials. Dumpsters not only provide a cozy dark place to hide out during the day, they are often filled with a veritable buffet as well. In the spring and summer months mothers may also see them as ideal places to stash their young while out foraging or perhaps snoozing in a nearby location. (We all need a break sometimes).


The likely reason this raccoon has not left yet is due to the fact that it is terrified that the awesome hideout it found turned out not to be so private. Given the tools it would need in the off chance that it was trapped (ie. A board for it to climb out on or a box or other object that it could jump up onto to reach the lid of the dumpster) it will likely leave on its own once the sun sets and everyone goes home, leaving him to feel much safer in making a decision to leave the area.


To ensure a visitor of this variety does not return, or in the case of finding young in a dumpster, try the following:


1. Place a portable radio, on a talk radio station, on the ground near the dumpster before leaving for the evening (the radio can be wrapped in a plastic bag to protect it from the weather).


2. Soak a rag in ammonia and place it in an empty can or yogurt cup. Place this either in the dumpster or just outside of it. Hopefully the scent will fool the raccoon into thinking that a predator has been in the area marking its territory. In a pinch you can try other offensive odors such as mothballs. For maximum effect try purchasing synthetic fox or coyote urine. Make sure you look for the synthetic varieties, as the means of procuring non-synthetic versions are often in-humane. You can find these at garden centers and hunting supply stores.


3. Leave the lids open. If there is a possibility of severe weather try leaving only one side open. The open lids will make the raccoon feel vulnerable and it will be less likely to return to a location that makes it feel that way.


4. IF you feel that the animal is trapped – if the dumpster was recently emptied and they may have fallen in for example – place a stick or pallet in at an angle that they may climb up in order to free themselves. You could also place a box or larger item in the dumpster that the raccoon will be able to climb on top of to leap to freedom.


In the case of young, it may take mom a couple of days to transport them all to a new nest, give her time and respect. If the animal is obviously injured or if you have other concerns, contact our office between 9AM and 5PM seven days a week for guidance.


And while on the topic of raccoons; and paying homage to those few brave blogging rehabilitators who have been at this for a lot longer than us... This is a sad situation, and unfortunately one that is not uncommon for all rehabilitators at some point and in some fashion or another.
http://nywildliferescue.blogspot.com/2009/10/good-bad-ugly.html