Thank goodness for a flower pot and a 4 runner. Yesterday evening I am standing in the kitchen and noticed that Chicken Nugget was standing on top of the spa. This was a little weird, but sometimes she wonders up there to snack on fallen persimmons. Then Barbecue frantically scurried up there and was huddling together with Nugget. So I looked closer and saw a huge opossum lurking around at the base of the spa. He basically looked like a giant rat with a huge tail, eeehk! At this point it is still totally light outside, and opossums are nocturnal. So I yell at Justin to go get him, that the opossum is going to get the chicks!
This opossum has been giving us trouble for weeks! I think he basically made a nice home for himself snacking on chicken feed and gorging himself on anything I am growing in the garden. I find poop in the garden every time I go out there and it takes away that warm, fuzzy, I grew clean vegetables myself feeling. We have a hot tub in the back and every time we have gotten in for the past two weeks it has ended with my husband running around the backyard in the dark in his swimsuit chasing this opossum with a 2x4. Nothing we can do seems to scare him, even when we give him a few nudges with the board.
This opossum has been giving us trouble for weeks! I think he basically made a nice home for himself snacking on chicken feed and gorging himself on anything I am growing in the garden. I find poop in the garden every time I go out there and it takes away that warm, fuzzy, I grew clean vegetables myself feeling. We have a hot tub in the back and every time we have gotten in for the past two weeks it has ended with my husband running around the backyard in the dark in his swimsuit chasing this opossum with a 2x4. Nothing we can do seems to scare him, even when we give him a few nudges with the board.
Back to the story. Just as I send Justin on mission: saving the chickens, our friends Candace and Eddie drop by to give us a Christmas gift. One thing leads to another and we are all out in the backyard. Justin is yelling at me to help, while holding the nearest flower pot and trying to corner the opossum behind the compost bin. Eddie is in nice clothes tromping around the garden (which is full of opossum poop) with a board trying to help Justin. The opossum is hissing at us and showing his nasty teeth, and Candace and I are basically watching and screaming at every move the fat thing made.
The guys get him under the pot, although he is unhappy about it, and pile the top with rocks and stepping stones. I called about 5 animal control numbers but couldn't get any help. The said that because of cut funding nobody would come get the opossum and the private company charged $250 dollars! Instead of doing anything we go inside for a peaceful snack on persimmons and open presents.
The sun sets and when it gets dark we figure we should probably address the little issue we have in the back. So Justin's saws off a piece of particle board so it will fit in the back of the 4 runner (our new, very clean car). We slid it under the pot with opossum very carefully carried it to the front of the house and loaded it in the car. I drove and Justin sat in the back with to make sure he didn't get out and come get us while we were driving!
The guys get him under the pot, although he is unhappy about it, and pile the top with rocks and stepping stones. I called about 5 animal control numbers but couldn't get any help. The said that because of cut funding nobody would come get the opossum and the private company charged $250 dollars! Instead of doing anything we go inside for a peaceful snack on persimmons and open presents.
The sun sets and when it gets dark we figure we should probably address the little issue we have in the back. So Justin's saws off a piece of particle board so it will fit in the back of the 4 runner (our new, very clean car). We slid it under the pot with opossum very carefully carried it to the front of the house and loaded it in the car. I drove and Justin sat in the back with to make sure he didn't get out and come get us while we were driving!
We took him to the river because we thought he could make a nice little home out there that didn't involve our garden or chickens. We pull up, get our gloves on and give each other a little pep talk. It involved things like, don't put you face too close because if he gets out it could be bad. My brilliant idea was for Justin to sit in the back of the car and hold the pot, then I would drive away, so that we weren't close when the opossum got out. It all got a little dramatic. As we are standing there, looking very creepy, a lady comes by walking her dog, then another man. We just hang out like we are tailgating, with work gloves on and some sort of strange something scratching in this pot.
So, in a less dramatic way, I stood by with a 2X4, Justin crawled in the back of the car, lifted up the top of the pot and out ran the opossum.
The moral of the story is, it made me glad that we live in the city and that the only animals we have to deal with are not that major! Crises everted and we found a nice home for that pesky rodent!
So, in a less dramatic way, I stood by with a 2X4, Justin crawled in the back of the car, lifted up the top of the pot and out ran the opossum.
The moral of the story is, it made me glad that we live in the city and that the only animals we have to deal with are not that major! Crises everted and we found a nice home for that pesky rodent!
RSS Feed
