Dead Possum

[skfullgun]

I was out in the woods yesterday, well before the storm, and encountered a dead Oppossum right in the middle of the trail. It was only about 200 yards from the house. It was an adult and didn't have a mark on it. It wasn't PLAYING dead. It WAS dead. Still is.
I poked it with a stick and it had not been dead long. No sign of struggle or injury.
What do you think? Old age? Natural causes?
I've never encountered a freshly dead animal without signs of the cause of death.
It's private property and I did not hear any shots to indicate a trespasser hunting. Nor did I see blood.

 

[Hoji]

Well, hate to break it to you, but you have the zombie virus now.

Seriously though, an opossum has a fairly short lifespan. Might have just died.

 

[skfullgun]

Well, hate to break it to you, but you have the zombie virus now.
/QUOTE]

That's exactly why I did not touch it!

 

[candcallen]

I was out in the woods yesterday, well before the storm, and encountered a dead Oppossum right in the middle of the trail. It was only about 200 yards from the house. It was an adult and didn't have a mark on it. It wasn't PLAYING dead. It WAS dead. Still is.
I poked it with a stick and it had not been dead long. No sign of struggle or injury.
What do you think? Old age? Natural causes?
I've never encountered a freshly dead animal without signs of the cause of death.
It's private property and I did not hear any shots to indicate a trespasser hunting. Nor did I see blood.

Bigfoot gift giving.

 

[oldag]

It had dirt on the Clintons.

 

[jordanmills]

Possums never die, they just smell that way.

 

[perfor8]

I carried a "dead" one home by the tail when I was about 12. Suckers were always gettin in my coon traps but I'd skin em out and sell their hides too. I had shot it in the head and was carrying it by the tail. 30 minutes later I happened to glance down and it was curled up, teeth bared, about to take a bite of my hand. I let go purty quick.

 

[skfullgun]

I carried a "dead" one home by the tail when I was about 12. Suckers were always gettin in my coon traps but I'd skin em out and sell their hides too. I had shot it in the head and was carrying it by the tail. 30 minutes later I happened to glance down and it was curled up, teeth bared, about to take a bite of my hand. I let go purty quick.

I had that happen with a squirrel when I was young. Shot it with a .22 and it hit the ground. I bent down to pick him up while trying to keep my eye on his buddy, still jumping from limb to limb. He clamped down on my finger and bit right through the tip!
I got the last word and had him for dinner...with a band-aid on my finger.

 

[Southpaw]

I had that happen with a squirrel when I was young. Shot it with a .22 and it hit the ground. I bent down to pick him up while trying to keep my eye on his buddy, still jumping from limb to limb. He clamped down on my finger and bit right through the tip!
I got the last word and had him for dinner...with a band-aid on my finger.

Damn, I used to take them out with a pellet gun, I'm going to call myself lucky that never happened to me.

 

[baboon]

As kids the neighbors dog killed one. This one had babies & being a marsupial we learned about the pouch & baby marsupials.

 

[robertc1024]

I composted hundreds of them after pellet gun treatment in our pecan trees. Dogs got so riled up if I came out the back door with a rifle though, it made the game harder. Had a few that tried to gnaw on the dogs, but the latter have bigger teeth.

 

[V-Tach]

Dead skunk here...freaking buzzards won't even touch it.......luckily those not paying attention are running over it and hastening decomposition.....

 

[BRD@66]

Little bro shot a turkey out of a 60 ft tree & it landed very close to me with a WHOMP! He was DEAD - no need for no stinkin' Coup de Graz. We chased the escaping herd & when we returned, the dead turkey was GONE! Never found the body.

 

[Wildcat Diva]

My dog used to kill them and never left marks on them. Never saw him in action but I imagine that he shook it or jumped on it until it gave up the ghost.

Their game never seemed to work where he was concerned.

 

[skfullgun]

Keep those stories coming. I love it. I'll tell you my skunk story after I fix me a gin martini...

 

[Coiled]

Damn, I used to take them out with a pellet gun, I'm going to call myself lucky that never happened to me.

The dog was going nuts one night under a persimmon tree due to a possum. Put 10 pumps on a .177 rifle and hit him from 6', he just at me. 7 or 8 more rounds caused some leakage but he's still crawlin around the tree, F'it, I'm goin inside. Checked an hour later and he was still up there but in the morning he was grounded.

 

[rotor]

I don't kill possums as they eat ticks, roaches and other nasty critters. Squirrels are a different story. Destructive little rats.

 

[Coiled]

I don't kill possums as they eat ticks, roaches and other nasty critters.

Agreed. My previous story happened some 20+ years ago in Spring. I've since learned 'possum are quite advantageous to humans and give them a pass.

 

[jordanmills]

As kids the neighbors dog killed one. This one had babies & being a marsupial we learned about the pouch & baby marsupials.

A few years ago I got one while she was eating eggs in the hen house one night. It was weird when I noticed them the next morning still squirming while she was very dead. I felt a little bad, but by that point the only question was how long they'd take to die.

 

[jordanmills]

Agreed. My previous story happened some 20+ years ago in Spring. I've since learned 'possum are quite advantageous to humans and give them a pass.

Yep, I prefer to let them do their thing. Only time I take one out is if it figures out that chickens are tasty. And I go through some effort to keep them from figuring that out.