Possum Sighting

by Lynda
(Pickering, Ontario, Canada)

Our dog has had two run-ins with a Possum in our backyard.

The first time, the dog had it cornered in the garden and the Possum was growling, hissing and baring its teeth.

On the second occasion we heard the dog giving short yips like he wanted in, but when we went down he had the Possum on the ground in front of him.

We thought the Possum was dead because it wasn't moving, we got the dog in the house and went back out to check, there was a slight movement in the tail and we realized it was "playing possum" and within 15 minutes he was gone.

I don't want the dogs (Bouvier and Terrier) to get hurt or to hurt the Possum.

Our yard is fully fenced and I think the Possum is living under our neighbor's deck. What can we do?

Thank you for writing to tell us about your dog's encounter with a Possum - I don't think the Possum will hurt your dogs, they seem to just want a quiet life. Perhaps your dogs will get used to them in time, or maybe the Possums will move into someone's yard where there are no dogs.