What do i feed baby opossums
Care of Orphaned Opossums | Loyola University Center for Environmental Communication
OPOSSUMS: RAISING FOR RELEASE
by Sharon Alonzo
The early spring brings the arrival of many baby opossums (Didelphis marsupialis), Louisiana’s only native marsupial. The young can be quite successfully raised and released into the wild when older. Release dates vary but it is best to release animals before the onset of colder weather since they will have to learn to find some kind of place to call home and acquaint themselves with the stock of food available. At their release the siblings will not band together but go off as single individuals.
The orphaned young are often times found in the mother’s pouch after the animal has been killed. It seems that the young can live for a short while in the pouch of the dead mother.
Some of the things to keep in mind when raising young are: 1) to keep the young animal warm by using a heating pad under their box, cardboard boxes are suggested, 2) provide some soft nesting material, cloth or straw, 3) provide darkness for these animals, since the babies will cover themselves up anyway. These animals are nocturnal, therefore, quiet and darkness are comfortable for them.
The young are noiseless except for a pronounced hiss when threatened or startled. The very young animals rarely move around unless disturbed. Older animals are active at night and even cardboard boxes can be escaped from.
Feeding: Determine whether your orphan can lap up liquids or if they need to be fed by the bottle. A pet nurser purchased from the pet store, a syringe, or an eyedropper may be used. If animals are sick use separate utensils for each animal. Young opossums may be fed Esbelac, (dilute 1 to 3 with water), whole milk, (dilute 1 to 1 with water), or infant formula, (dilute 1 to 1 with water). Esbelac is recommended and is purchased from the pet store. Babies need to be fed at least six times a day, decreasing feeding as the animal get older. Usually when the animals are unusually hungry they move around restlessly. Otherwise they remain snuggled together.
After feedings each animal needs to be stimulated to urinate.
This is accomplished by stimulating the urogenital area, which includes the urethra opening and the anus, with a damp rag, towel, or paper towel. The animal must urinate. This stimulation is the same type given by mother kittens to their newborns. Often times fecal matter is expelled at this time so be prepared. Individuals animals differ, some animals are easier to stimulate before being fed, others after. Some do not urinate more than once or twice a day, but they must urinate at some point. When the animal is urinating on its own, usually by the time it is lapping milk, the process can be discontinued. Some clues as to when to stop the external stimulation are damp bedding and dirty paper ont he bottom of the box or cage.
When the opossums have the lapping reflex use a metal or plastic lid of a jar to put liquid food in their box or cage. Feedings can be decreased to two or three times a day but be sure all has had enough. Rice cereal and formula may be mixed into a gruel like liquid to give the opossums next.
Then apples or bananas may be added to the rice cereal mixture gradually using less milk. Soon cereal may be thinned with water, fruits can be mashed separately and even mashed vegetables can be introduced. Teeth can come in very quickly at this time. This is also a time of increased night activity so beware that extra security is need for their box or cage.
After the introduction of fruits you can try moistened dry puppy food, gradually getting the older animal to a diet of puppy food and fruits and vegetables. I have found that the opossums I have raised will virtually eat anything but successful introduction into the wild can never be accomplished unless they will eat native berries and fruits. Always supply water to the animals. However, be aware that a small animal could drown in a bowl which he could not get out of. Decrease feedings to once a day in the evening. This sets them up to look for food and dusk and mimics their expected evening foraging.
I suggest a move of the animals outside where they can experience the smells and sound of the outdoors, as well as the correct temperature for an anticipated release.
A cage with a screen bottom will allow droppings to fall from the cage and is recommended. Provide an overturned flowerpot, some bedding material some branches and water for their outside cage. Also, this is a great opportunity to see the animals at their most active. Take time out at night to view their foraging and climbing, and restless nocturnal activity. These otherwise sluggish critters really expend energy at night.
Since the object of raising wild animals is toward that of a successful release once off the bottle as little handling and contact is beneficial. Larger animals have very sharp teeth, a powerful jaw and never reach a docile stage.
Pests and diseases are few. Listed here are the ones that we have encountered: ticks, fleas, mites, and mange in a few animals, are the main external problems. Internal parasites exist and the only other problem encountered was a tendency toward a prolapsed rectum (protruding rectal tissue) which was cleaned up when the animal was given Pepto Bismol.
Please remember, at all times, that you are raising this orphan to return it to the wild. It is easy to become attached to the animal and to convince yourself that it will make a good pet. It is illegal to keep an opossum; these animals are much better off in the wild; and they often start to bite once they mature.
What Do Possums Eat? Can You Feed Baby Possums?
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Possums may be creepy-looking scavengers that hang around our trash, but what do they eat and what should you do if you find a baby possum on it’s own?
If you find a baby possum abandoned on the side of the road somewhere, you probably shouldn’t pick them up before calling animal control. But what happens if you have no choice but to take them home to nurse them back to health? You might find yourself with an adorable conundrum on your hands. You might even find yourself wondering a few things about possum biology and behavior.
For instance: can you feed baby possums? Should you feed them? And either way, what do possums eat?
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What kind of possum are we talking about?
If you’re from Australia, a possum is a very different animal from the one Americans keep referring to as possums. What we are talking about is the opossum, America's only marsupial, and one that possesses very few similarities to its Aussie cousin. There are 65 different species of opossum in North America, according to the Opossum Society. The most common of these many marsupials is the Virginia opossum, which is the one we shall focus on today.
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What do possums eat?
Frankly, when it comes to the opossum, the question “what do they eat?” doesn’t really seem appropriate. It might be more appropriate to ask “what don’t they eat?” Opossums have always had a bit of a bad reputation among suburban residents for being scavengers — which, of course, they are.
But that doesn’t mean we should hold it against them. Especially because their versatile diets actually help us get rid of carrion (decaying dead animal bodies).
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According to pest control company Terminix, opossums eat everything from dead animals to insects, rodents, birds, frogs, plants, fruit, and grain. They don’t just feed on the flesh of carrion or roadkill either. Possum diets require a high degree of calcium, which they can get from eating the skeletal remains of rodents and other dead creatures. Opossums will also eat cat food, dog food, and table scraps from our garbage cans. Unfortunately, it is this “taste for trash” that makes them more of a pest than a helper in the eyes of many.
How do possums eat so many different things?
Opossums are scavengers by evolution and opportunity. They are nocturnal but possess poor eyesight, which doesn’t really help when it comes to trying to find food.
Luckily, they make up for this with great hearing and a very keen sense of smell. This has made them fairly successful opportunists, especially when they find themselves living in and around suburban and rural communities.
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These remarkable marsupials possess other positive traits as well — though we will admit that most of these also have to do with them finding food. Opossums don’t just find food well, they can also remember where it is located for the next time. According to Landscape Architecture Magazine, possums scored higher than rats, rabbits, cats, and dogs in laboratory tests meant to recall where food was placed. That’s why it’s so hard to get rid of possums on your own — they remember where you keep the goods!
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What do baby possums eat?
Adults may be great at scavenging, but baby opossums are not nearly as well-equipped.
Like all marsupials, opossum mommies lack a placenta, so their young must grow and be kept in a pouch. Newborn opossums are about the size of a honey bee and will stay in their mother’s pouch for around 80 days before they are mature enough to begin scavenging on their own.
What to feed baby possums?
Once they are big enough to leave the pouch, baby possums can eat just about everything. You can feed them dog and cat food in moderation. You could also feed them insects like cockroaches, worms, slugs, and snails (one of their favorite foods). This is only pertinent if the baby is old enough, of course, and with an orphaned opossum, that isn’t always known.
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According to the blog WildHeart, baby possums do not thrive on milk. For one, marsupial milk is very different from cow’s milk or formula. On top of that, baby possums don’t suckle like other animals, so attempting to bottle feed could cause them to aspirate and die.
The point we’re trying to make here is that you, reader, are likely ill-equipped to feed or care for a baby possum on your own.
Should I feed a baby possum?
No, you really, really shouldn’t — not without some guidance, anyway, If you find a baby possum, either alone or attached to their deceased mother, you should contact your local animal control, veterinarian, or animal rescue right away. If the baby possum is alone and walking in the wilderness and you can’t help yourself, get a box with towels or old shirts, along with a wrapped heating pad or water bottle, and get them to an animal expert as quickly as possible. That is the best way to help them.
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House Possum | zoo-ekzo.com- EXTICALS
Monodelphis Domestica
is not available
House Opossum ( Monodelphis Domestica
grade
000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 0002 000 0002 000 0002 000 0002 000 0002 – bare-tailed possums
Appearance
Height 6-8 cm, body length – 28-25 cm, tail 7-8 cm.
Weight of males 90-150 g, females 80-100 g. larger, more muscular than females, males' fur is thicker, longer, more wavy.
Hairline short, dense. The coloration is dark gray, lighter on the abdomen. The muzzle is elongated and pointed. The eyes are small, protruding. The tail is not very long, prehensile, almost completely devoid of hair, except at the base where it is thickened with deposits of fat. The limbs are shortened, five-fingered; the rear ones are slightly longer than the front ones. The bag in which the cub develops in other marsupials is absent. The twelve nipples are arranged in a ring.
Habitat
The species is distributed in eastern and central Brazil, Bolivia, and Paraguay. Opossums inhabit forests of various types. They lead a terrestrial lifestyle. They can climb trees quite well. Nests are built in shelters, inside empty hollows, in the trunks of fallen trees or among stones, and, as a rule, near water.
In nature
Activity mainly in the evening and at night.
Opossums are solitary animals. Animals do not tolerate the presence of individuals of the same species nearby and enter into a fight. Conflicts rarely end in serious injury.
The diet of house opossums includes insects, small rodents, succulent fruits, seeds and carrion. In a human dwelling, animals hunt rodents and insects - therefore they are welcome guests in houses. This is a fairly active predator and a very skilled scorpion hunter.
Warning and threatening sound signals are typical: “Cican”, hiss; chattering teeth.
Breeding
There is no breeding season. Females bring no more than four litters per year. Pregnancy lasts 14-15 days, there are usually 5-12 cubs in a litter. Only the female takes care of the brood. Since the possum is not developed in house opossums, unhooking from the nipple, the cubs end up in the nest, where the female leaves them. She returns only to warm and feed the cubs. At the age of 4 weeks, the cubs can already move independently.
Sexual maturity is reached at 4-5 months. The ability to reproduce remains in males up to 39-months of age and up to 28 months - in females.
Captivity
Opossums are easily tamed in captivity and become completely undemanding. They like to sit on their hands and on their heads - an instinct from childhood when they traveled on their mother's back.
The cage in the house must be mandatory, first of all, to protect the animal itself. A personal house and a cage is their territory, which they will protect and feel at ease on it.
Opossums are solitary animals that in nature meet with a partner only during the breeding season. Long-term joint keeping of males and females excludes the birth of cubs, and keeping with a pregnant female can cause the death of a male. Therefore, in captivity, heterosexual animals live not only in separate cages, but even in different rooms, so that they cannot smell each other.
Potty training for possums is no more difficult than for a cat or a ferret.
Place the tray next to their sleeping place, as well as in those rooms where you release the animal.
Opossums do not require frequent bathing. A healthy opossum has no odor. Opossums are quite clean animals and they themselves monitor the cleanliness of their skins.
The animal should be kept away from warming means (battery, microwave oven, refrigerator), protected from drafts, as well as from direct sunlight.
The life expectancy of opossums directly depends on their diet. Possums will not live long if they are fed only factory-made food. The diet of the opossum should consist of natural fresh or frozen foods, but in no case from prepared foods. Also, the opossum should not be fed beef and pork.
In captivity, the animal is given chicken meat, insects, eggs, yogurt, cottage cheese, bone meal, a small amount of fruit and newborn mice.
The cage should be cleaned as often as possible (at least once a week). Opossums need constant access to water.
Possum is a nocturnal animal, they sleep during the day. True, domestic opossums often adapt to the rhythm of the owner's life.
Also, opossums have a low body temperature - and because of this, they do not get fleas.
Life expectancy in captivity is 5-8 years.
Possum - photo, species, description, habitat, food, reproduction
Currently, the modern fauna includes several species of opossums, but most of them died out during evolution. However, even after most of these marsupials disappeared, some opossums still adapted to new conditions and are currently a thriving species. Currently, their population is mainly concentrated on the American continent, in its northern and southern parts. Interestingly, in some species, the leather bag has lost its functionality in the course of evolution.
Description
The opossum is a small marsupial mammal similar in appearance to the rodent . The first representatives of this species appeared in the Cretaceous period, that is, about 100 million years ago, and have not changed significantly since then.
This is interesting! The size of an adult male reaches 60 cm, females are slightly smaller, about 50-55 cm. This applies to the largest species, smaller varieties can be 15-20 centimeters and weighing from 50 grams to 2 kilograms.
The muzzle of these animals is elongated, the tail is usually not covered with hair, with a fatty thickening at the base, and it has a purely practical purpose: with the help of it, the animal grabs branches when moving through trees, and holds on to them during daytime sleep . The body of the opossum is covered with short, thick, dense fur. Its color is very diverse and can be from light to black, it all depends on the habitat and species. The front paws are much more developed than the hind ones; at the ends of the paws there are 5 sharp claws each.
All opossums are active at night, sleeping in trees or in burrows during the day. The structure of the jaws speaks of the primitiveness of the possum, they have 50 teeth, of which 4 canines.
The life expectancy of an opossum in the wild reaches up to 5 years, in captivity with proper care and diet up to 7 years or more. The defense mechanism of these animals is very interesting and deserves special attention. By nature, the opossum is very shy and, in case of danger, it pretends to be dead, lying motionless, and with the help of special glands it emits an unpleasant odor resembling the smell of a decaying body. The predator, having sniffed it, most often leaves. After that, the animal instantly "comes to life" and runs away. It must be said that such tactics bring great success for the survival of the species. More these animals - noble dormouse , they can sleep up to 19 hours a day.
Habitat
According to scientists, in prehistoric times, these animals were very widespread throughout modern Europe, this is evidenced by the excavations of paleontologists. Possums are currently thriving in the New World . Glaciers and the associated cooling of the climate affected these territories less than Europe.
Possums are most common in North and South America, Argentina, but recently they have been actively developing more northern territories. They also live in southeastern Canada and the Lesser Antilles.
Opossums live in forests of all types, steppes and even semi-deserts. They can be found both in flat areas and in mountainous areas at altitudes up to 4000 meters. There are species that lead a semi-aquatic lifestyle, settling near water bodies, building holes in tree hollows. But most of them still lead an arboreal or terrestrial lifestyle.
This is interesting! There are opossums that settle near human habitation, but most often avoid communication with people.
Diet
Opossums are omnivores in their diet . They feed on insects, various roots, fruits and berries, less often they can go on a real hunt, but this is more typical for large species. Lizards, rodents such as mice, rats and even rabbits can act as hunting objects.
In general, nutrition depends on the type of opossum and their living conditions. There are even water possums, they feed mainly on fish, sometimes they can hunt frogs and small water snakes. In times of famine, cases of cannibalism are not uncommon. These animals have a good appetite, but it's not their gluttony, it's just that opossums in this way create reserves of fat for "difficult" times.
If you keep an animal as a pet, you can feed it fruits, vegetables, chicken and eggs. In rare cases, you can give food intended for cats, but this should not be abused.
Reproduction
Opossum leads a solitary lifestyle . However, during the mating period, they form a pair, but this does not last long. After the end of the mating season, which lasts from December to January, the animals disperse again. Opossums are very prolific animals. Pregnancy in females is very short and lasts only 20-25 days, in small species pregnancy can last only 15 days, from 8 to 15 cubs are born in the litter, in rare cases their number can reach up to 25.
The cubs are born completely unadapted to life, more like embryos, their size is about the size of a bee and weighs from 2 to 5 grams.
This is interesting! The period of feeding offspring with milk is quite long and lasts up to 100 days. During this time, small opossums are actively developing and gaining weight. After about 2 months, they gradually become covered with hair and their eyes open.
After that, they can switch to adult food. Sexual maturity occurs at 6-8 months in both females and males. Some types of opossums carry their offspring in a pouch, but most do not have one, and therefore the females carry the cubs on their backs.
Types of opossums
Here are some of the most common types of opossums. All of them are different in lifestyle, size, diet and habitats.
Common opossum
The most famous of all. This is a rather large species of this animal, it can reach the size of a domestic cat and weigh up to 6 kilograms.
But as a rule, the usual weight is 4.5-5 kilograms. It inhabits forests, mainly near water bodies. It feeds on cereals, small lizards, insects, mushrooms. They rarely eat carrion.
Verginsky opossum
Also a fairly large animal weighing up to 6 kilograms. Most often inhabits moist forests, but can also be found in the prairies. It feeds on small rodents, birds, destroys nests. Can successfully attack young rabbits.
Water opossum
Leads an aquatic lifestyle. It feeds on fish, crayfish and freshwater shrimp, sometimes eating fruits. It catches food with its front paws afloat. Unlike other species, these possums give birth to quite a few cubs, from 1 to 6, while others have from 8 to 20 babies.
Mouse opossum
This is a small animal up to 15 centimeters in size. It lives in mountain forests at altitudes up to 2500 meters. It feeds on insects, fruits and bird eggs. There are up to 12 cubs in a litter.
Gray possum
This is a very small species.
The body length reaches 12-16 centimeters, and the weight is up to 120 grams. They live on plains, mostly in low and dense grass. Often settles near human habitation.
Patagonian opossum. Also a small species of opossum, its body reaches a length of 13-15 centimeters, and its weight is only 50 grams. It feeds mainly on insects, less often on small birds or lizards.
Interesting facts
Opossums are very shy animals . In any danger, they run away or pretend to be dead, so it is not easy to catch them. But scientists have found a way out: it turned out that these animals have a craving for alcohol. To catch a possum, you just need to place saucers with an alcoholic drink on the paths of the animals. They will drink it with great pleasure and, having lost the ability to move, they can be safely collected.
Of all the senses, according to scientists, these animals have the most developed sense of smell. Another interesting fact is that they almost do not make sounds, except when they are in pain.
This is interesting! Almost all types of opossums are vagrant animals and do not have their own fixed territory in which they hunt, as is the case with other animals.
These animals are often used as pets, although in our country it is exotic, as they are rather capricious in keeping. In addition, possum fur is used as a material for making clothes and fashion accessories. True, it does not differ in quality and durability and, in this regard, is not popular.
Possum as a pet
Possum can be kept at home as a pet. But fans of the exotic should be disappointed. These are nocturnal animals and it will be very difficult to accustom them to the daily routine of a person. It should be fed with fresh food: fruits, chicken, insects, worms. It is strictly forbidden to give fatty meat, from this they can get sick. If you have a couple of possums, then they need to be kept in separate cages, otherwise fights and conflicts are inevitable.
