Choosing the Best Possum Trap

DID YOU KNOW?

If possums decide to make a home out of your attic they can cause large amounts of damage by using insulation for nesting and leaving fecal matter behind. The only way to keep possums from causing damage to your home is by taking preventative steps

Choosing the Best Possum Trap

When possums become a problem on your property, it is time to consider an opossum trap. This device can help prevent possums from causing issues in your garden or digging into your trash.

The key is to find the possum trap that will work best for your needs and property. We worked hard to make this process simple for you. Here are four of the best possum traps.

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The Professional Humane Live Animal Trap is a relatively big wire mesh trap that prevents possums from escaping once they are inside in the trap. You can put this outside in all weather conditions since the material resists rust.

The possum cannot cause damage to the trigger rod due to its location on the outside of the trap. Stay safe when you release the possums you catch elsewhere due to the positioning of the handles. The bait hook is capable of holding all bait types you use for possums. You can attach the bait within seconds, making setting up this trap easy.

WHAT IS THE BEST BAIT TO TRAP A POSSUM?

The basic condition to trapping a possum successfully is choosing the right bait. Placing a proper bait in your trap makes all the difference between successfully trapping a possum and failing in your efforts. If you choose the right type of bait, the possum will take it relatively quickly. However, if you choose the bait that is not appealing enough to the possum, chances are that it’s not going to take it, and that all your efforts went to waist. But, how will you choose the right bait for your trap? How will you know the right type of food to use to lure the possum into the trap?

Possums are natural omnivores, which mean that they eat a wide variety of foods. They will hunt different mammals and snails during the winter, spring and summer, which mean that this is the time when they will be looking for meat. During the summer and fall, possums will have an appetite for fruit. However, possums will also eat fish and shellfish. They will eat grains, like peas and beans as well. There is pretty much little food left that a possum will not eat. But, what are the best foods to use for your trap? People who are experienced with hunting and trapping possums say that they need the type of bait that has a strong smell. This means that the food your will set as bait needs to dominate all other smells in the area. These experts recommend baits like fish and apples. You can opt in to use fish during the winter and spring moths, when possums prefer to eat meat, and apples during the summer and fall, when they crave fruit.

Make sure to smear the bait across the inner end of the trap, so that the opossum needs to enter the trap all the way to reach it, before the door closes. If the door starts closing before the animal has entered the trap all the way, it will be able to get out. In the end, whichever bait your choose to set in order to trap the possum, make sure that it smells strongly. You should be able to smell the bait when your stand next to the trap.

Possums

Possums are a suborder of 70 tree-living marsupial species native to Australia and the Indonesian islands of New Guinea and Sulawesi. While their names are similar and both are marsupials, possums and opossums are different creatures. Opossum typically refers to the Virginia opossum and its cousins in the genus Didelphis, all of which live in North and South America.

Kinds of possums

Brushtail possums are the most widespread marsupial in Australia and perhaps the most well-known possums. As their name suggests, brushtails have long, thick tails with a prehensile tip and a furless patch on the underside, both of which help them hang onto tree branches.

Unlike many other possum species, these solitary, nocturnal creatures are highly adapted to living near humans, even in urban areas such as Sydney. And like koalas, they have evolved the ability to feed on plants that would be poisonous for other animals. Possums may also prey on insects, small invertebrates, and eggs.

Mating and reproduction

Mating systems among the Phalangeriformes vary widely. For instance, the rock-haunting possums from tropical Australia appear to choose just one mate, which scientists call monogamy. Some gliders take multiple mates, which is called polygamy, while others are monogamous, and still more are variants in between. One study found that mountain brushtail possums will change their mating system depending on how much food is available.

Conservation status

While some species, like the common brushtail possum, are doing well, many possum species are in danger of extinction. Thanks to fires, logging, and climate change, the fairy possum, or Leadbeater’s possum, is considered critically endangered. Likewise, the mahogany glider is listed as endangered due to the rapid rate at which its habitat is being cleared for agriculture, livestock, and timber. Many of the same threats imperil the critically endangered western ringtail possum.

The Truth About Opossums

Virginia Opossums Get a Bad Rap

People often blame them for things they didn’t do such as tipping garbage cans or killing chickens. A lot of the time the only major complaint people have about them is simply that they are there.

Opossums Are Gentle Wild Neighbors

Opossums are peaceful animals that prefer not to fight although they may hiss, growl, and even bite if cornered. It is much more likely that the opossum will faint or “play dead” at the prospect of a confrontation.

This physiological response is involuntary and automatic. The stress and shock of the encounter actually triggers a comatose state that can last anywhere from 40 minutes to four hours. The opossum’s body becomes limp, its front feet form tight balls, its lips are drawn back, and drool runs from its mouth. The animal can be poked, turned over, and even carried away without reaction.

Opossums Help Keep Our Backyards and Homes Clean and Free of Pests

People tend to think Opossums are unclean and disease ridden but it is actually just the opposite. Opossums are extremely clean. They are opportunistic scavengers who happily clean up after themselves and everyone else

Opossums Are Important Allies In the Fight Against Lyme.

Like most small and medium sized mammals, Opossums are hosts to ticks. What makes Opossums special is that they are extremely good at finding and killing most ticks that hop on looking for a blood meal. According to Rick Ostfeld, author of a book on Lyme disease and senior scientist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, opossums kill more than 95% of the ticks that try to feed on them and can kill about 5000 ticks in one season!

Trapping Opossums

Opossum Control

Denying their access to structures by exclusion techniques is the most effective method of controlling opossums.

How To Trap Opossum

The traps should be set in locations the animal frequents or where it is causing damage. Fish, canned cat or dog food are good opossum baits. To readily entice the opossum into the trap, use a small trail of bait leading to the trap. All traps should be checked in the morning and evening, so that captured animals may be dealt with in a humane manner.

Description/Biology

Opossums have a repulsive, musk-like odor and can be an occasional nuisance when they enter crawl spaces, under decks, garages, and similar areas. They nurse in the mother’s pouch for about 3 months.The average number of young is 6, but as many as 13 may be born

Opposums and Rabies

Opossums are very resistant to rabies and have far fewer cases of rabies than any other common wild animal in United States.

Important Exception with Horses: Opossums have been found to be a primary carrier of a deadly disease in horses known as : Protozoal Myeloencephalitis. Steps should be taken to keep opossums away from horses, horse feed, and stables.