'Otis The Possum' Stars In His Own Video'
We now have an opossum that has moved in under our deck.
He probably found it to be convenient digs since it's a walled in deck...not open.
I've done a lot of reading up on these quiet creatures and they can be a welcome addition in your yard as they eat a lot of nasty bugs including ticks which I'm very allergic to and can devour up to 5,000 ticks in a season.
They will also go after snakes and seem to be immune to most of the venomous ones.
A major notation for anyone who suffers from wild critter fear (which is healthy!)
Opossums don't carry rabies.
Their body temperature is too low for the rabies virus to survive in their system.
Opossums have a very high intelligence level that rates up there with dogs and cats.
And speaking of cats. We have a cat that hates the indoors and spends most of her time outside and whenever Otis come up on the deck looking for a hand-out....Kit Kat, our Tort-Tab just sits up on her perch and quietly stares at him. He looks back at her...twitches his pink nose and goes about his business.
Some people are turned off by opossums, thinking they look like a giant rat, but they are actually marsupials that carry their young in a pouch like kangaroos.
And they are non- aggressive as a rule. They prefer to avoid confrontation if they can, but if cornered they'll hiss at you. Just treat them with the healthy respect you'd show an unfamiliar cat and you'll do fine in the relationship.
Sometimes round dusk when I go out to bring Kit Kat's bowl in, Otis will come ambling across the deck towards us and I just say...'not tonight Otis' and he seems to sigh with resignation and goes back down the steps.
He now has his own bowl by the back steps and everyone's happy here in Paradise.
For more fascination facts about opossums can be found here:
The benefits of having a possum in your yard.
Possums ~ To know them is to love them!
