Possum Traps Are Simple Traps
The very nature of the possum makes the design of a possum trap rather simple and straightforward. With some types of wildlife, traps have to be carefully disguised and can sometimes only be used once. The bait used must be special or it will be ignored. And, there must be no sign of human activity or scent in the vicinity of the trap, or it will not be effective.
No so with possum traps. The most widely used non-lethal possum traps are wire cages, cages with a slanting trap door that is easy to enter through, and impossible to exit from. Many types of animals won’t go into a cage if they have to make contact with any part of it, like an easy to open door. The possum doesn’t much care, as long as there’s food inside.
Bait Not A Problem – As far as possum bait is concerned, you could probably put apiece of chocolate cake, or a few licorice sticks in the cage. Possum are omnivores and opportunistic omnivores at that. They survive not by relying on a specialized diet, but by eating almost anything they come across that has a promise of tasting good.
The best lethal possum trap isn’t really a trap, it’s the automobile. Whereas in some parts of the country the majority of road kill consists of skunk, deer, or raccoon, in the southern states the possum seems to rule supreme as the king of road kill.
When most people see a possum in daylight, it is either a dead possum or one that is playing dead, something the possum is very convincing at doing, right down to having its tongue hanging out and its eyes glazed over.
Possum, though generally harmless and not hostile towards humans, still can be pests, and will happily take up living under your house or your porch if you allow them to. Although they are not usually carriers of disease, though sometimes they are, the possum is mainly just a messy, and sometimes noisy, neighbor.
Now What? – Although possum cages are usually quite effective, once you have a possum inside, the problem arises as to what to do with it. In some parts of the country it’s legal to catch a possum in a live trap, but there are many places where it’s illegal to release one.
Releasing one in your neighbor’s yard won’t make your neighbor very happy, plus the possum would probably just return to living under your porch. The dilemma in trapping a possum is it’s a demonstration that wherever you trapped it is a location a possum is apt to feel at home in.
If you trap one, you can probably trap more, and in the same place. Possum are prolific breeders and are not considered to be all that bright, so are not apt to avoid possum traps, even if they’ve seen other possum inside of them, once they’ve set up housekeeping.
Drooling Not A Cause For Alarm – Typical live possum traps are wire cages roughly a foot high, a foot wide, and about 2 1/2 feet long, and have a trap door. Dog food or cat food almost always works well as possum bait. Should a possum end up in a cage you set out, take a few minute to take a close look at it before you decide where you’re going to take it.
If it hisses at you and drools, it’s just trying to intimidate you, and is certainly more afraid than you need be. A drooling possum is not an indication of rabies. Most any possum will drool, and very few are known to carry rabies.
It has lots of small teeth and might bite of out self defense, but the animal isn’t going to chase you around the yard if you let it out of its trap. It will most likely decide to play dead, leaving you to try and figure out what to do next.