Will a pest control company remove an opossum

Pest control companies are equipped to remove insects such as bees, cockroaches and mosquitos, maybe, but very rarely, small rodents such as rats. They are very unlikely to remove an opossum because for one, they may not be trained in removing this animal and two, they may not have the tools necessary, to do so. Pest control companies use poison to get rid of creatures, but they would not be able to do this with opossums. You may have to remove the opossum yourself but bear in mind, opossums are actually good for the environment.



West Virginia opossums are not aggressive creatures and they have a very short life span, from 1 to 2 years. They tend to live in forested areas but would venture into urban areas in search of food. Opossums are carnivores and are known for eating roadkill, frogs, birds, insects, as well as plants and grains. If you have a garden, an opossum on your territories would mean that it would be free from snails, beetles and slugs which are known to destroy plants.

There are also some negative effects of having an Charleston opossum on your property. They may be less likely to be a carrier or rabies, but they do carry a large number of parasites such as fleas, tics and lice which can transfer unto your pet. They ca also get into your pet food, rummage through your garbage and even eat your fruits. They are nocturnal, so you would not see them in your yard during the day time and they are very slow which makes them more prone to die at the hands of predators.

Removing an opossum would require you hiring a professional company that would know how to do this or taking matters into your own hands and setting traps yourself. These creatures have an involuntary adaptive behavior when faced with stressed situations, known as thanatosis or tonic immobility. A chemical in their brain triggers them to a comatose state where they appear dead and can last from anywhere between 40 minutes to 4 hours. As a result, many opossums have been literally buried alive or dumped in the trash with no way of getting out.

To remove an Charleston opossum, the safest method would be to set up cages around the area with bait inside and wait. As soon as the creature is caught, release it into the wild, more than 10 miles away from your home, preferably in an area where there is a water source. They are partially or fully immune from snake venom and other similar poisons so don’t feel bad about leaving them in forested areas. In fact, their native habitat is in forested areas. Even if you catch an opossum and it is in a comatose state, I would suggest you release it into the wild, it may still be alive but if not, it would enter the ecosystem as food for some other creature.

If you are sure that the animal is dead, you can also double bag it and throw it into the trash or dig a hole, 4 feet deep, and bury it.

Visit our Charleston animal removal home page to learn more about us.