'Possum update...
May. 3rd, 2004 01:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
senoritafishThere were indeed two opossums. Shortly after the kids went to bed Friday night, Gareth got up and told me, "Mom, I'm scared of the 'possums." Figuring my dad must have told them about the possums this morning, I tried to reassure him that, no, Grandpa had already put the 'possums outside, and besides, they were very small 'possums - more afraid of him than he was of them.
"No, no!" he wailed. "I saw it go behind the door!" pointing at the hall door. We have this door latched open to keep them from playing with it and also to keep them out of the cupboards behind it - they don't shut securely. I opened the door and took a cursory look in the cupboards - nothing, or so I thought.
A few minutes later, Angus yelled, "Mom, a 'possum!" I thought, "What? I know looked and nothing was there." But nevertheless, I opened up the cupboard again and searched the shelves.
Whaddya know. There were two little possums, huddled into the corner of the bottom shelf, where we keep the buckets of cat litter.
I closed the cupboard back up, found a cloth I didn't care much about and went back to try and grab them. The first one I managed to grab and put outside fairly quickly. The second was much faster. He avoided my grab, scooted around the door, around the corner and in behind the hutch in the living room. Damn. I went to get John out of the garage.
He came in, we got the broom, and while he gently maneuvered it behind and under the furniture, I crouched ready to grab at whatever popped out. Which he did, a couple of times, but I just wasn't fast enough. Finally, after a few minutes of poking, and no 'possum appearing, we stopped and looked under the hutch again.
No possum.
I took out all the drawers in case he climbed up into them from bottom (we've had hamsters and rats do that in the past). Still no 'possum. We looked under all the other furniture and behind the piano. Still no 'possum.
We finally gave up and decided he must have gone out the open patio door while we were looking the other way.
Meanwhile, Stimpy had been sitting on the table next to the door, just watching. He showed a little interest when I released the first 'possum, which immediately scampered away, but otherwise gazed at us with eyes half-closed, as if wondering what the stupid humans are doing rifling around under the furniture. Yes, the is the same cat who saunters in to us, demanding more food because he can see a tiny patch of the bottom of the bowl and therefore the whole thing must be empty.
John glared at him. "Some guard cat you are!"
I felt a little bad, not believing Gareth the first time. Who would've thought two nights in a row, though. They were very small, possibly litter-mates since they were huddling so closely together, and must have only recently left their mother. I don't know all that much about 'possum biology, so I don't know how big they normally are when they leave. They did seem quite able to fend for themselves.
We're gonna hafta put a spring on that door.
"No, no!" he wailed. "I saw it go behind the door!" pointing at the hall door. We have this door latched open to keep them from playing with it and also to keep them out of the cupboards behind it - they don't shut securely. I opened the door and took a cursory look in the cupboards - nothing, or so I thought.
A few minutes later, Angus yelled, "Mom, a 'possum!" I thought, "What? I know looked and nothing was there." But nevertheless, I opened up the cupboard again and searched the shelves.
Whaddya know. There were two little possums, huddled into the corner of the bottom shelf, where we keep the buckets of cat litter.
I closed the cupboard back up, found a cloth I didn't care much about and went back to try and grab them. The first one I managed to grab and put outside fairly quickly. The second was much faster. He avoided my grab, scooted around the door, around the corner and in behind the hutch in the living room. Damn. I went to get John out of the garage.
He came in, we got the broom, and while he gently maneuvered it behind and under the furniture, I crouched ready to grab at whatever popped out. Which he did, a couple of times, but I just wasn't fast enough. Finally, after a few minutes of poking, and no 'possum appearing, we stopped and looked under the hutch again.
No possum.
I took out all the drawers in case he climbed up into them from bottom (we've had hamsters and rats do that in the past). Still no 'possum. We looked under all the other furniture and behind the piano. Still no 'possum.
We finally gave up and decided he must have gone out the open patio door while we were looking the other way.
Meanwhile, Stimpy had been sitting on the table next to the door, just watching. He showed a little interest when I released the first 'possum, which immediately scampered away, but otherwise gazed at us with eyes half-closed, as if wondering what the stupid humans are doing rifling around under the furniture. Yes, the is the same cat who saunters in to us, demanding more food because he can see a tiny patch of the bottom of the bowl and therefore the whole thing must be empty.
John glared at him. "Some guard cat you are!"
I felt a little bad, not believing Gareth the first time. Who would've thought two nights in a row, though. They were very small, possibly litter-mates since they were huddling so closely together, and must have only recently left their mother. I don't know all that much about 'possum biology, so I don't know how big they normally are when they leave. They did seem quite able to fend for themselves.
We're gonna hafta put a spring on that door.
