Posted: 5/1/2005 10:27:03 PM EDT
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A while ago I noticed crawling activity under my house. I deducted that a possum was the cause of the noise every morning at 0300-0400. I didn't want to close up the access hole it was using and have it die and smell up the place and I didn't want to close it out and have the babies smell up the place so I let it ride. Well, the babies are the size of a rat now and have found the duct penetration in the stem wall into the garage. One had the misfortune of being slower than I was and was worse off for his slowness. Tonight I went into the garage and one scurried under the furnace to his escape hole so I ran to Wally's and Safeway for a rat trap, to no avail. I retrieved my sledge hammer handle cut off/fish bonker and brought it in the house for my next excursion into the garage. Sure enough, about a half hour later I turned the light on and quickly opened the door to find the damn possum right by the door. The little bastage started scurrying about and avoided two smashing blows from the bonker. I'll give him another opportunity for a hickory shampoo before I go to bed. It's off to the feed store for a rat trap in the morning for any leftovers. Here is the slower one I was able to catch up to. He now resides in the middle of the road: |
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I ve seen two so far. I shot one w/ a bb gun 10+ times once and another the dog(cocker spaniel) had cornered(more like surrounded) under a boat-of the first I didnt have a .22 yet.. wait and on the second I had a .22, but .......... why didn't i use it?? --oh, the dog got to it before i could load up the mag in the gun 
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Looks like the one I got last night. Stupid sonofabitch was actually in the oncoming lane crossing the road away from me when it turned around and ran right in front of me. Possums have to be dumbest animals in existence. Well, at least just up the list from liberals. |
Thats after a couple days of getting ground in. Funny how his tail dissapeared. I have a gnarly rat trap set. perhaps I'll get another tonight. Whats the deal with possums anyway? 15 years ago, there wasn't a possum anywhere near here. Now there are tread heads on almost every road. Did someone from Kaintuck import a few to have something to hunt for dinner? |
I've had the good fortune to be forced to drive over a bloated, dead possum with a BUS...  Not being able to swerve to miss the dead animal, I simply stayed in my lane and rolled over it with the front wheel and two sets of duals. If the front wheel doesn't pop it, the back sets will. Watching in the driver's outside rearview mirror as dead possum guts spew out the mouth into the cars in the lane next to me is mildly entertaining.  Yuk. |
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I secured a rat trap and set it up this afternoon. I went out to check on the trap and the damn possum was right by the door again. I quickly grabbed the hickory and set about trying to clear him into an area suitable for a full swing. My daughter is screaming not to kill it and generally carrying on as she knows the outlook for the "poor little thing" is bleak. finally I was able to corral it into the clear and ol' hicory found its mark. After it was all said and done, I checked on the trap and it was sprung and baitless. How do they do that? |
Post those pics over in the some of the Southern States' forums, and I bet you will get some RECIPES posted in return! |
 I was relieving myself when Mrs. HABU announced another possum sighting in the garage and didn't take the time to buckle up. I knew one of you meat gazers would notice that. I set the rat trap again and it was gone this morning. The possum had gotten snapped across the neck and drug the trap around and was still alive when I found it. I'm scared to set the dang thing, rat traps are finger breakers. He is alive in this pic: |
This is some funny shit. So is that all the little buggers? Geez, I thought having raccoons raid my pond was bad.  My brother-in-law let one die under his house. I wouldn't go over there. At least not after the first time. You do not want to let something die under your house!! It finally got bad enough his wife made him get it out. Guess he puked his guts out. What can I say, he's an asshat.  |
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Another one succumed to the rat trap. They are some durable little suckers. This one has lived for almost a day wiht his head in the trap. Ol Hickory will fix that shortly. The current count is: 1 1/4" wrench 1 possum Ol Hickory 2 possums rat trap 2 possums ------------------ 5 possums and counting. How many are in a litter? |
I've seen 8 in a litter. |
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Sweet Taters and Possum First catch a young fat possum. Remove the fur either by skinning or by soaking the possum in hot lye water, being careful not to get any on the hands. Clean, take off the head and feet, and wash well. Salt the possum well inside and out and freeze overnight either outdoors or in the refrigerator compartment. When ready to cook, peel 8 sweet potatoes and boil them tender in slightly salted water to which 2 tablespoons of butter and 1 tablespoon of sugar have been added. At the same time, stew the possum tender in a tightly covered pan with a little water. Arrange the potatoes around the possum, strip with bacon, sprinkle with thyme or marjoram, or with pepper, and brown in the oven. Baste often with the drippings. Serve hot. |
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Possum Roast 1 possum, dressed 2 red pepper pods 1 tsp salt 1/4 tsp black pepper 1/8 tsp sage 2 tbsp lemon juice 4 large yams, peeled and quartered 1/4 cup brown sugar 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/8 tsp ginger Place dressed possum in a kettle with the pepper pod. Cover with cold water and bring to a boil; simmer for 1 hr. Remove and place on a rack in a dutch oven or roasting pan. Add 1 cup of water. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, sage and lemon juice. Place yams around the roast. Combine sugar, cinnamon, and ginger; sprinkle on top of yams. Cover and cook over very low temp on top of stove or bake at 325 for 2 hrs or until the meat is crisp and brown. Transfer possum and yams to a hot platter to serve.
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Wholy crap! I'll be at this for a while.  I have good news and bad news for the PETA lurkers that have not posted yet. The bad news is the count is now up to 6 small possums. #6 took the rat trap bar to the center of the brain housing group. No live possum to drag the trap under a bunch of crap, to be fished out. The good news is I was unintentionally on the receiving end of the trap. A conversation with my daughter went thusly: HABUette: Thats sad. HABU: Bah, its a damn possum. Do you know how this trap works? (Hold my beer and watch this.) HABUette: No. HABU: Watch. You cock it like this and when they hit the trigger it snaps on them. *demonstarates with stick* HABUette: Can you do it slower? HABU: LOL, no, thats how fast it goes. *holding trap in hand* Look, set the trap like this and when they hit the trigger like this SNAP!  The bar snapped right across the base of my thumb. SOB that smarts! My initial thought was "great, I'm going to have to build my house with a broken thumb." But alas, no breakage. I hope this is a small litter, damn things. |
I had a litter of 14 of the little cocksuckers living underneath my chickenhouse last year. The bastards ended up devouring ALL of my bloodline of Black Cochins, which have won a few awards at local and regional poultry shows.  I fucking HATE opossums.Bummer on the thumb. 
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I don't know why the little bastards are so enamored with hanging out by the garage door, but they are. I opened the door to the garage and one started scurrying about, scaring the crap out of me. I didn't scream like a girl, but I probaby jumped. Unfortunatlely for him, Ol Hickory was within two feet and my aim was true. Three nights in a row they sprung the trap. Two of the times I know it got a piece of them because the trap was drug off, but no posssum was attached. 1 1/4" wrench 1 possum Ol Hickory 3 possums rat trap 3 possums ------------------ 7 possums and counting. |