Guest guest Posted May 16, 2006 Report Share Posted May 16, 2006 Thanks for the wealth of opossum info, Tom. He is a cute little guy and day before yesterday he had a very close call with one of my JRTs, and since we saved him he has not come back.... maybe he got the hint that this was not the best location to set up housekeeping. i learned a lot from this encounter. 1. Possums don't get rabies in Oregon; something to do with their internal body temperature they have here. 2. You have to get a permit to trap any wild animal [including humane traps] on your own property even if it is only for the purpose of relocation. 3. Possums have very human characteristics and mannerisms; namely the tendency towards intelligence without any common sense. The last few times i went to Wildlife Images they had several non-native animals there as permanent residents, so i wonder if they have changed their policy. Anyway, if that little possum shows up again i am going to phone them up to ask if they would consider taking him in; he is so cute and shows no fear so i think he would be a perfect candidate for the traveling education bus that visits the local school children. ~ PT ~ We cannot live only for ourselves.Ê A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow-men; and along those fibers, as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and come back to us as effects. ~ Herman Melville ~~*~~~*~~~*~~~> , " Tom " <antipreophogistiii wrote: > Possums are characters. They're non-native, so there's no help from > places like Wildlife Images should a possum get into trouble. They're > very adaptive since they eat about anything, but otherwise they're not > the brightest of the mammals. They have about a dozen per litter - can > be as many as 20. They're not physically adapted to our cold, being > native to the southeast US - " Virginia opossum " is their full common > name - so they're susceptible to frost bite, especially in their ears > and toes, so an older possum that's been through a few winters will look > a bit ragged. They like garages, attics and under houses, apparently > attracted to where they will be warmer in the winter. They seem to get > set in their ways, so once they decide they have a home, it's difficult > to convince them otherwise. My grandfather up in Forest Grove had one > that spent about a decade not being convinced to move out of the wood > shed no matter what tactics my grandfather tried. There are some people > who keep them as pets. They grab food like a raccoon or human, so it's > easy to see them as a kind of funny person. You will probably have > better luck teaching your terriers to help protect the possum..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 16, 2006 Report Share Posted May 16, 2006 You have to have a permit to trap wild animals??? Is that a county rule? I hope so - we loan people traps all the time to relocate wild animals. I'm in Roseburg, just an hour north of you. When my mother first moved out here I was trying to trap some feral cats that had moved into my laundry room (it wasn't connected to the house) to get them s/n. I got a possum; she noticed him first and came in the house saying we have very ugly rats in Oregon. Sorry mom, not a rat!! I had a really hard time getting him out of the trap, had to wire it up and leave him alone. Trying to jiggle him out, he just wrapped those little claws around the metal and refused to move! But they love cat food and he lived there the whole time I did. Got along great with my cats, would just jump right in and eat along with them. Sam 2. You have to get a permit to trap any wild animal [including humane traps] on your own property even if it is only for the purpose of relocation. ~ PT ~ _____ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 16, 2006 Report Share Posted May 16, 2006 We learned this when my dh phoned animal control; they told us we would have to obtain a permit first from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife [maybe Game?]. i think they are the same folks that issue fishing and hunting licenses. i am not sure if this is a Josephine County rule or a statewide law, i call your local animal control office if you want to know for certain though. Our neighbor has been humane trapping-relocating animals for years, too. He was as shocked as we were that there was such a rule. Guess it is only bad if you get caught. ~ PT ~ If you learn from it then it was a successful experience. ~ Jack Canfield ~~~*~~~*~~~ , " Samantha Lea " <saml wrote: > > You have to have a permit to trap wild animals??? Is that a county rule? > I hope so - we loan people traps all the time to relocate wild animals. > I'm in Roseburg, just an hour north of you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 16, 2006 Report Share Posted May 16, 2006 I don't know anything really about the whole thing, but here we are allowed to trap feral cats to take them into the clinic to be cared for, fixed and then released without a permit. Actually, come to think about it I do know a woman that takes in wild animals that someone has trapped and she cares for them until she can find a place to release them and all without permits. But this is Lane County...seems to vary then according to what county one is in in Oregon. Actually I like the idea that one would have to have a permit to trap a wild animal...too many people trap them to kill them. linda " Whatever you do will be insignificant and it is very important that you do it. " Mohandas Gandhi linda's albums: womyn47 - We learned this when my dh phoned animal control; they told us we would have to obtain a permit first from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife [maybe Game?]. i think they are the same folks that issue fishing and hunting licenses. i am not sure if this is a Josephine County rule or a statewide law, i call your local animal control office if you want to know for certain though. Our neighbor has been humane trapping-relocating animals for years, too. He was as shocked as we were that there was such a rule. Guess it is only bad if you get caught. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 16, 2006 Report Share Posted May 16, 2006 i agree, i do think this rule is a good one as it does protect the wild animals; but like all good rules it is only as good as it is able to be enforced. We would not have known it existed unless we called to ask. ~ PT ~ Cats have it all -- admiration, endless sleep and company only when they want it. ~ Rod McKuen ~~~*~~~*~~~> , " linda " <lindai81 wrote: Actually I like the idea that one would have to have a permit to > trap a wild animal...too many people trap them to kill them. > linda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 2, 2006 Report Share Posted June 2, 2006 That must of been funny to watch the cats eating along with the possum. We have a possum that shows up here occasionally, but our dog barks his head off at it. Hard to sleep when a possum shows up to eat during the night and the dog barks non-stop at it. UGH.... Our dog eats along with our cats. He eats cat food. That is unless he occassionally gets into a possessive mode and then won't let the cats near it, whether he is hungry or not. He is very full of mischief at times. Judy - Samantha Lea Tuesday, May 16, 2006 11:11 AM RE: Re: [OT] the opossum You have to have a permit to trap wild animals??? Is that a county rule? I hope so - we loan people traps all the time to relocate wild animals. I'm in Roseburg, just an hour north of you. When my mother first moved out here I was trying to trap some feral cats that had moved into my laundry room (it wasn't connected to the house) to get them s/n. I got a possum; she noticed him first and came in the house saying we have very ugly rats in Oregon. Sorry mom, not a rat!! I had a really hard time getting him out of the trap, had to wire it up and leave him alone. Trying to jiggle him out, he just wrapped those little claws around the metal and refused to move! But they love cat food and he lived there the whole time I did. Got along great with my cats, would just jump right in and eat along with them. Sam _____ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 2, 2006 Report Share Posted June 2, 2006 > But they love cat food and he lived there the whole time I did. Got > along great with my cats, would just jump right in and eat along > with them. There are often possums at my mom's in upstate NY too, eating the cat food. SOme of the cats get along, some of them are quite possessive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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