[Ruffian]

Tonight my son came hurtling back from putting out the rubbish, with the news that there were possums in the garage roller-door.

We told him gently - as adults do - that he meant possums ON the roller-door, but as it turned out he was right and a couple of enterprising types have recently set up shop inside the roller of the roller-door.

This is a problem for us and a potential disaster for them, as the leaves that they have dragged in will probably block the spring, and they are subject to the whole round and round thing whenever the roller-door mechanism is operated.

It must be like trying to nap in a concrete mixer.

The kids tried quite inventively (and enthusiastically) to get the possums out, but they seemed reluctant to go. Noise, lights, more noise, a garden hose (not water, just the snake-like hose), more lights, more noise. But no luck, they seemed to think staying put was the best option even though they had a clear, safe path into the night and freedom.

I will need to shift them before I can block their re-entry points, but how? It's a double door and there is no hope of reaching the middle section where their nest seems to be located.

Yes, we will make them a box in a nearby tree as an alternative venue.

And, no, I don't want to harm them in the relocation process.

Any ideas?!

[staringclown]

Hmmm. This is a tough one. What about smoking them out? Some burning eucalypt might fool them into thinking there's a bushfire and they run for it. Might also stink out your house. They might come right at you so have a stick at the ready. Good luck.

[Ruffian]

staringclown, on 28 August 2010 - 11:06 AM, said:

Hmmm. This is a tough one. What about smoking them out? Some burning eucalypt might fool them into thinking there's a bushfire and they run for it. Might also stink out your house. They might come right at you so have a stick at the ready. Good luck.

Might also burn the house down, especially if the kids are involved!

The principle is sound, though. Good idea. I will give it some thought.

[RumpledElf]

Ruffian, on 28 August 2010 - 10:55 AM, said:

a garden hose (not water, just the snake-like hose)

Within the question lies the answer, grasshopper.

[Ruffian]

RumpledElf, on 29 August 2010 - 12:42 AM, said:

Within the question lies the answer, grasshopper.

Hmm, I am not so sure - the rust would be about as bad as the nesting material in terms of door destructivity. We have had water issues with that door before and I'm not going there again if I can help it.

We are currently working on a one-way door made out of 1 inch aviary wire.

[staringclown]

Another thought. Carrot rather than stick. Lure them out with food once you have constructed the one way door. They like fruit I think but tor might know better their idea of an irresistible treat.

[tux]

Ruffian, on 29 August 2010 - 01:44 AM, said:

Hmm, I am not so sure - the rust would be about as bad as the nesting material in terms of door destructivity. We have had water issues with that door before and I'm not going there again if I can help it.

We are currently working on a one-way door made out of 1 inch aviary wire.

Or did RE imply using an actual snake?

[tor]

staringclown, on 29 August 2010 - 02:37 AM, said:

Another thought. Carrot rather than stick. Lure them out with food once you have constructed the one way door. They like fruit I think but tor might know better their idea of an irresistible treat.

Bananas can be smelt at about 20 feet and will wake a snoozy possum

If there are babies they won't necessarily come out though and the parents might go a little freaky if they can't get back in.

When making the one way door keep in mind just how small a gap they can get through. One here almost runs under the barbecue so that is an adult possum getting into a 2 inch space at close to running speed.

[Ruffian]

tux, on 29 August 2010 - 04:00 AM, said:

Or did RE imply using an actual snake?

Erk. I hope not.

Here in Adelaide your choice is pretty much the brown ones which bite or the black ones which bite. There are some nice pythons in SA but not really in the settled areas.

Besides it is too cold for them to be properly active yet, and a sleepy snake is a dangerous snake. Definitely last-resort material!

[Ruffian]

tor, on 29 August 2010 - 07:21 AM, said:

Bananas can be smelt at about 20 feet and will wake a snoozy possum

If there are babies they won't necessarily come out though and the parents might go a little freaky if they can't get back in.

When making the one way door keep in mind just how small a gap they can get through. One here almost runs under the barbecue so that is an adult possum getting into a 2 inch space at close to running speed.

Pretty sure there are no babies as the nest is very new, no more than a couple of days. It looks like a mum and an older, almost independent baby who is almost as big as the mother.

We have settled on a possum sieve made of .5 inch wire and a one-way door, combined with banana and apple on the nearby shed roof.

[tor]

Ruffian, on 29 August 2010 - 08:37 AM, said:

Pretty sure there are no babies as the nest is very new, no more than a couple of days. It looks like a mum and an older, almost independent baby who is almost as big as the mother.

We have settled on a possum sieve made of .5 inch wire and a one-way door, combined with banana and apple on the nearby shed roof.

Let us know how the attempt to control possums goes.

Personally I am in the situation where I regard possums in the way most people seem to treat their adult teenagers.

I tolerate their late night noisiness, blatant genital displays and ingestion of food with no thanks.

Occasionally I get a moment of coolness that makes it all worthwhile.

The other night the invading possum Gerald (named after the baby with one eyebrow in the simpsons) and hated for his nasty attacks on Manny (the old man possum that enjoys a summer days snooze with his balls out in the little doghouse) showed up with his girlfriend (wife? not sure of possum domestic situations) and their little baby on her back.

I tell you the sentiment in the house changed radically at that point, up until then I was called out to action stations day or night when the sounds of Manny and Gerald conflict started. Manny and I get on so he was never afraid of a bleary eyed me charging out witha torch, Gerald finds the vision disturbing and runs away.

Now it seems we may require some kind of multiple possum feeding stations.

The baby may be named Newman so that someone can do the Seinfeld "Newman!" thing.

[sydney3000]

Something tells me a baby bonus wouldn't be wasted on Tor.

This post has been edited by sydney3000: 29 August 2010 - 09:24 AM

[tor]

sydney3000, on 29 August 2010 - 09:24 AM, said:

Something tells me a baby bonus wouldn't be wasted on Tor.

I would never qualify

[Sean]

what about those possum traps you can hire which you bait with food. they seem to work ok...

then you have to take the possums miles away to stop them coming back, which is 'illegal'. if you let them go nearby they will probably follow scent trails right back to the garage door. if you drop them miles away they may have to contend with other tribes of territorial local possums.

[tor]

Sean, on 29 August 2010 - 11:33 AM, said:

what about those possum traps you can hire which you bait with food. they seem to work ok...

then you have to take the possums miles away to stop them coming back, which is 'illegal'. if you let them go nearby they will probably follow scent trails right back to the garage door. if you drop them miles away they may have to contend with other tribes of territorial local possums.

I believe taking them miles away is illegal because they then get killed. Killing protected species is not 'illegal' it is Illegal. Deliberately killing animals because your lifestyle doesn't suit their is immoral in my books.

My opinion is that possum removal guys are a bit of a sham, they can't really do much above catch the possum, stress them out and then let them go at the top of your driveway.

Rodent killers (I got some in and explained that if certain possums were killed there was a good chance of a she animal coming to kill the rodent killer and I would be duty bound to back her up, being her mate) have specific baits which possums can't get into.

I think if you live in an area where possums (who are quite lovely little animals if you aren't a farmer or too up yourself) then you get the joy of looking after the little buggers.

Face it, you feed them and they get accustomed to you and let you give them a scratch behind the ears (they are nuts for that) and you can slowly move them to a living situation which is mutually compatible.

If you don't like them then buy a property where they aren't there.

People killing animals deliberately and using technical law definitions does not rate highly in my books of being a decent person.

Hell I had a rat move in because I was dumb enough to leave some chocolate in foil wrappers in the pantry. Once I figured out that was all he was after I put all the other food in rat proof boxes and let him leave on his own accord.

Seeing the body of a rat that had been poisoned made me feel like a right royal prick and I would prefer to never be that particular type of bastard again. I like to fight fair fights.

[urchin]

we have a possum living somewhere in the ceiling of the garage. poo all over the floor but if you hose it out every week or so its not too bad. a bit freaky when you open the (non-roller) door and hear massive scurrying for a couple of minutes.

we had mice in our old place. i did the peanut-butter-on-a-piece-of-bread-attached-to-a-bent-skewer-holding-up-a-bucket-trap. dropped him off across town in a park near where a bunch of uni students live. i reckon there would be better food there than not.

i'm all for preventing cruelty to animals, but with a kid with asthma and allergies no beasties are allowed indoors.

[Solomon]

I take it that this is a brushtail possum, as they are the most often the ones who occupy urban settlement.
This is a good introductory site for information about this particular possum,
Brushtail Possum
There is now a scent that you can purchase from Bunnings or one of those similar hardware shops, to spray around, which will keep them away from certain areas. This is definitely not a nesting burrow, because the young are usually born coming into the winter months.
Most possums frequent up to four or five different burrows, which can be up to a kilometre away from you.
In other words they are nomadic whilst being territorial.
But....
whilst they look cute and cuddly, they can be a real nuisance, and they can do a lot of damage around your house, especially if you have fruit bearing plants. If they get into the ceiling you will never get rid of the urine smell, and it can stain ceilings if you have gyprock.
Whatever you do, don't try to grab them, as they have very sharp claws and can give a good bite - even the babies. Worse, don't try to corral them, as they tend to climb up to your head, if that's the highest part in close proximity.

Trust me, have seen people try.
They haven't survived Australia's harsh environment without some protective behaviours.

I wish you well with your endeavours Ruffian.
They can be persistent.

[tor]

urchin, on 29 August 2010 - 12:33 PM, said:

we have a possum living somewhere in the ceiling of the garage. poo all over the floor but if you hose it out every week or so its not too bad. a bit freaky when you open the (non-roller) door and hear massive scurrying for a couple of minutes.

we had mice in our old place. i did the peanut-butter-on-a-piece-of-bread-attached-to-a-bent-skewer-holding-up-a-bucket-trap. dropped him off across town in a park near where a bunch of uni students live. i reckon there would be better food there than not.

i'm all for preventing cruelty to animals, but with a kid with asthma and allergies no beasties are allowed indoors.

They are skinny little buggers when they want to be and will get in anywhere, I have a couple living under the fireplace at the moment I think (the fireplace is roughly above my main desk in the office downstairs and I hear them scratching around when I get up) I have no bloody clue how they get there. I would board it up and move them to a tree based dwelling if I could as no doubt there are wires and such which could result in a dead possum in the crawl space and that would be less than fun on so many levels.

I have no interest in encouraging mice and rats to live in the house, quite the opposite.

I just figure if they move in it is probably because I have done something to encourage it and killing them just means another one will. If I can figure out what they wanted and remove it then they will leave and I don't get another.

Cheaper and easier assuming you have the time to work out what they are after and can remove it.

[Ruffian]

Well it looks like the one-way door did the trick. The door has been used (pushed outward) and a squint in to the darkness with a torch showed there is no-one at home any longer.
The gap has been wired up and with any luck everyone is happy. The weather is even doing it's bit, fine and warm yesterday and today rather than pouring as it has been the past week. So they have a good chance of relocating somewhere decent.

As I have said before, I'm OK about living with possums - this is not the place to live if you are not! - but I prefer them outside of the house, ie on the roof rather than in it.

I don't find them as cute as Tor does, but then I have a productive garden which is frequently ravaged by possums, and a passel of brats to provide personalised cute moments as required. This tends to keep me on nodding terms with possums rather than best mates.


FWIW, those catch 'em alive possum traps worked really well to get the possums out of our roof about three years ago.
We had both species, brush- and ring-tailed. The ring-tailed are shy and can take a hint.
The brush-tailed are more pigheaded, but they are greedy and can be caught with fruit. Most of the possums left via one-way doors, and all the gaps were blocked off.
One old lady possum and her companion had to be trapped out and just released onto the roof about four feet from where they were caught.
She couldn't get back in, hung around sulking for a day and then disappeared into the next-door's lillypilly trees.

So they can be used humanely - it all depends on blocking off their points of return into the roof, rather than removing the possums to the next suburb.

[tom]

urchin, on 29 August 2010 - 12:33 PM, said:

we have a possum living somewhere in the ceiling of the garage. poo all over the floor but if you hose it out every week or so its not too bad. a bit freaky when you open the (non-roller) door and hear massive scurrying for a couple of minutes.

we had mice in our old place. i did the peanut-butter-on-a-piece-of-bread-attached-to-a-bent-skewer-holding-up-a-bucket-trap. dropped him off across town in a park near where a bunch of uni students live. i reckon there would be better food there than not.

i'm all for preventing cruelty to animals, but with a kid with asthma and allergies no beasties are allowed indoors.

On mice and Rats they sell traps now at hardware stores which do not kill them so you do not have to make your own unless you are feeling industrious. I think they were $6.00 and had a trap door and tilted when the mouse runs up the back to get at the food. We trapped the two mice in our house with peanut butter on the first night (in two traps) and we took both in shoe boxes to a nearby park and the kids let them free. It was a far more pleasant experience then killing them.

We have friends who use these traps as they are more efficient it seems then conventional traps as well as humane however they then flush the mice down the toilet which I think defeats the purpose...