Opossum Removal Florence

AAAC Wildlife Removal of Florence has years of experience removing wildlife from homes and businesses. Our professional wildlife removal teams are well-trained and equipped with humane and up-to-date wildlife removal techniques. For your wildlife issues, contact us now!

Opossum Removal Florence, South Carolina

Opossums are marsupials, meaning they carry their young in a pouch on the belly. Naturally shy and reclusive animals, they will generally avoid people at any cost. However, there are a few circumstances where opossums can become pests in the home or yard. Despite their natural fear of people, opossums will enter homes when given the opportunity, often seeking a nesting place for infants. Once they are on your property, they will eat dog or cat food and birdseed, raid garbage cans for easy meals and scavenge tasty tidbits from your houseplants.

Opossums are considered a nuisance when they go inside the house. They will chew on things and destroy them in order to find food. Opossums go into your home by finding an opening or through pet doors that have been left open. If you see one at night it is most likely because there is light coming from somewhere such as under the door or if animals were feeding outside then moving onto your porch to get some food before going back out again. You may notice urine stains where they enter- this occurs due to their inability to urinate while climbing up walls which causes them to release fluids over themselves during the climb down.

Opossums are most often found in the following places:

In a tree or on top of your house (siding, soffit) because they like to find an elevated spot for safety from predators.
In shrubs and under decks as this is where opossums try to hide during daytime hours when they are more vulnerable.
In sheds and garages near water sources or a food source such as pet foods, birdseed, fruits, etc.
Near pipes can serve as both an elevated perch for safety from predators and also access freshwater which is their main diet in the wild.

If you have opossums inside your house it is important to keep an eye on them and check for any damage they have done. If you see that they have chewed through wires, pulled out insulation, or caused structural damage then please call a wildlife expert so the problem can be taken care of. Call AAAC Wildlife Removal of Florence now!

Opossum behavior

Opossums are a nocturnal animal that is primarily active at night and spends considerable time in trees. Opossums have super sharp claws for climbing trees and grasping branches. They are agile climbers that can scale trees or fences. They also have 50 teeth to help them eat various foods like eggplants, apples, oranges, insects, crustaceans, and even snails.

They have a good sense of hearing which helps them hear sounds like snakes slithering on leaves. Opossums also have a good sense of smell which helps them find food like bird eggs. The opossum’s natural body temperature is usually 100°F, so opossums do not have a fever. They also are unaffected by the cold weather because their fur keeps them warm and dry.

They are normally shy creatures but can be aggressive if the opossum is provoked or threatened. They will hiss, growl and bare their teeth. An opossum can also give a nasty bite if provoked or handled improperly, so opossums should be left alone unless there’s an emergency such as they’re in your house after dark.

Appearance

Opossums may be identified by their pointed face, grayish-white fur, and long naked tail with a white tip. The opossum has opposable thumbs on their hind feet to help them climb trees or produce fluids such as saliva used for grooming. Opossums vary in size ranging from about two feet to four feet, and about the size of a house cat. Their head, body, and tail are covered with long coarse hair that varies in color from gray to dark brown or black. There is also an opposable thumb on the hindfoot for grasping branches during climbing.

Opossums have 50 teeth set in 13 rows with only three upper incisors that are useful for gnawing except when they have young or feed on sweet substances such as fruit. They also have a pouch in which they carry their young.

Opossum Diet

Opossums have a keen sense for the smell and sound of food sources and will travel miles to find them, even venturing into opossum populated neighborhoods or opossums towns in search of opossum sustenance. They are scavengers; their diet consists of mostly rotten fruit and food scraps. They will also eat small animals, birds, insects, and opossum garbage (fruits that have been thrown out). Opossums will scour the sidewalks of any town for leftovers from trash cans. They can be also found scavenging in the streets for leftovers dropped by cars or pedestrians.

Opossum babies

Opossums have a gestation period of 12-13 days and opossums can give birth to from 0 to 18 opossum babies, called “joeys.” The average litter size is six joeys but opossums will sometimes produce as many as 20 offspring in one litter!

Don’t let your opossums invade your property! Call experts at AAAC Wildlife Removal to get rid of opossums from your property.

Opossum VS Possum

Despite possums and opossums both being marsupials, they are not the same. Opossum refers to any one of the 13 species in North America that is often mistaken for possums because it has a prehensile tail (meaning it can grip or hang on tightly). While possum usually refers to the Australian possum which is native to Australia.

Appearance

Opossums are usually brown to gray in color. They can sometimes have a yellowish tint and it is not uncommon for them to also have white or black hair on the tip of their tail. Possums are typically light grey (not including albino opossums which are white), silver, and black opossum.

An opossum has a long pointy nose with small ears while the possum is more pointed on its face but still relatively flat to round when it comes to its ear size. When it comes to opossums’ eyes, they have larger eyes than possums do as well as smaller ears. Opossums have a wider and rounder body structure, whereas possums are more slender in appearance.

Diet

Opossums diet includes fruits, insects, carrion (dead animals), vegetables, and grains. While possum dines on plants like leaves from deciduous trees or ferns in the forest floor grasses as their primary food source but they are also opportunistic omnivores and insects are possum’s favorite food.

Behavior

Most opossums and possums are nocturnal. They both spend the day sleeping in a tree or bush to avoid predators. They come out at night to hunt for food, which is usually insects and small rodents like mice. Possums feed mainly on plants and small insects. Possums have opposable digits on their front paws which are great for grasping tree branches, but not as good at digging into trees or bushes to find food as opossums do.

Signs of Opossums in Your Florence House

Opossums live in the wild but they also have no problem living near people, which is why opossums can often be found wandering around residential neighborhoods and commercial districts too. Here are some of the signs of opossums in your house:

Droppings – One of the signs opossums are around your home or yard is opossum droppings. The shape and size will vary depending on what they have been eating, but you can identify them by their dark color. Opossum droppings have a musky odor that some describe as being similar to wet dogs and others say is like rotten fruit. Their waste can also produce an ammonia-like smell if left indoors for any length of time. It’s also a sign that there might be more than one animal if different types of droppings are present or in large quantities.
Scratching/Noises – Another sign of opossums is scratching or noises. Opossums will often make a high-pitched hissing noise when threatened or disturbed, but they can also be heard banging around in the attic or crawl spaces during the night and scratching at screens on windows. This generally means that there are babies up there looking to come out!
Tracks – Opossums will often leave signs they have been around by the tracks they leave behind. This can include prints of a paw and tail dragging on hard surfaces, impressions in soft ground or mud, or scat (droppings). Opossum tracks that are about an inch long and look like a big cat’s paw prints with four toes on the front paws
Live Sightings – Signs of opossums can include live sightings. If you see one, there are probably more!
Nesting sites – Opossums also have signs of territorial markings to show they live in your area and signs of nesting sites where you may find their droppings, bones from consumed prey, or hair stuck to trees nearby. If they have taken up residence in your attic or some other space like a crawlspace where it’s warm and cozy, droppings will be signs to look for and nests may also show that an opossum is living there.

If you suspect that opossums are living in your Florence area, it’s important to take signs of their presence seriously. You don’t want to be surprised when one shows up on your property and starts raiding through trash cans or chewing into an electrical cable because they’re hungry. For your Florence opossum removal, contact us now!

Nuisance Opossum Problems

Opossum Droppings

Opossums are known to leave a trail of feces that can be found in and around their living spaces. Opossum droppings tend to have the appearance of coffee grounds or cat litter. Their feces will often contain bits of undigested food from what they had been eating recently. They’ll also sometimes eat small live animals such as frogs, lizards, and earthworms.

Opossums will often leave their droppings in piles of up to six inches deep on the ground or walls around a tree trunk – they like to live high off the ground so make sure you are checking ceilings too. The opossum’s droppings can also be found as a large chunk in your home or in the middle of your yard, or it can be as small as an individual pellet. The droppings will also give off a foul odor due to the high levels of ammonia in their urine. They also tend to be very good climbers so if you find a pile of opossum droppings in the attic or on top of your walls then it’s likely that there is an opening for them somewhere!

Opossum Property Damage

Opossums are one of the most common animals to enter a home. They can climb and will find an entry by chewing or squeezing through screens, digging under sheds and decks, jumping fences, or coming in as stowaways on trucks or other vehicles that have entered from outside their territory.

They are notorious for chewing holes into screens, ripping up insulation under sheds and decks, shredding newspapers left outdoors as litter box training aids (they may also use the litter box itself for this purpose), and biting or scratching people who may be a threat to them. The opossum also gnaws on wood and other construction materials, causing major structural issues to come up over time that can cause an abundance of problems for homeowners.

Opossum Health Risk

South Carolina opossums can transfer diseases to humans. There are a variety of opossum diseases that could potentially infect people. Some of the diseases include leptospirosis, Chagas disease, relapsing fever, and tularemia. They may have other parasites as well like fleas, ticks, or lice which also pose a health risk to humans. They also carry parasites and bacteria on their fur, skin, or in their droppings. This can be transferred onto humans if they do not wear protective clothing or gloves when cleaning up the mess left behind by an opossum.

Opossum Control Methods

Try to prevent opossum infestations by sealing any cracks or holes around the outside of your Florence residence.
Store all trash in tightly-sealed containers away from potential dens, and clean up food spills as soon as possible.
Do not leave pet food outdoors overnight or store it where an opossum can access it.
If you have a compost pile, make sure that it is not near your home and ensure there are no holes or tunnels leading to the food. Opossums will typically only feed on organics if they can’t find other sources of food.
Remove any potential nesting spots in the yard by trimming tree branches, removing brush piles, or clearing clutter underneath decks and sheds.

If you need wildlife control service, AAAC Wildlife Removal of Florence is always here for you!

Opossum Trapping

Trapping opossums is a great way to get rid of opossums from your Florence home, business, or yard. The first step is to set up bait stations around your property and wait for an opossum to be caught. Once you have captured one (or more) opossums, you can take them to a remote area away from your home. They are primarily nocturnal animals, and will only come out in search of food during their waking hours. As such trapping them is best done at night when they’re active.

The first thing to do is to identify how these nuisance animals get access to your Florence home
Then set a live trap
To bait a trap, use food scraps or other meats that will attract an opossum. The best baits are fish and chicken eggs
Place the trap near a tree, because these animals like to climb trees for their nesting sites. Opossums can also be lured in with the smell of fruit. Or place a trap in an area where you have seen opossums before. The more traps, the better your chances are to catch one!
Once we catch them, we will relocate them away from your home.

Opossum repellents

Opossum repellents can be used to deter them from entering your yard, however, it doesn’t get rid of your opossum problem permanently. They are not guaranteed to work, but they can be effective for the time it takes them to wear off or in combination with other methods of removal. An opossum repellent can only repel them and cannot do anything else. Opossum removal service is the best way to deal with the problem of an opossum infestation because it will remove all animals from your home or yard and prevent new ones from coming. Opossum removal service is a humane way to remove the opossums from your property.

So, if you notice an infestation on your South Carolina property, then hire opossum removal service experts at AAAC Wildlife Removal of Florence.

Damage Repair Service in Florence, SC

The most common damages they cause are damages to roofs and gutters. Sometimes Florence opossums will build a nest on an overhanging roof or in a gutter, which can lead to water damages. This is often due to the animal’s instinctive behavior for self-preservation during cold weather season when they seek shelter from natural predators.

When Florence opossums invade and damage property or other items, it is important to consult with a professional wildlife service immediately. If you are experiencing damages caused by opossums, then a damage repair service is the solution to your problem! Damage repairs can be performed on all types of damages that were done by an opossum. At our wildlife control company in Florence, South Carolina we have the experience needed to solve your opossum problem quickly.

You can rest assured that when you call us for help you will be treated like family and we will not be satisfied until your opossum problem is solved. Call AAAC Wildlife Removal of Florence today!

Florence Wildlife Control services

When an opossum has managed to enter your home, it’s not hard to know since they leave excrement and urine all over which means you are going to have to clean up after them if you don’t want any diseases in your home! Needless to say, these pests can be quite destructive so make sure you get help from our company as soon as possible because we specialize in removing opossums.

Aside from opossum control, we also provide wildlife control services in South Carolina like:

Bat Removal
Raccoon Removal
Squirrel Removal
Rodent Control
Skunk Removal
Coyote Removal
Beaver Removal
Snake Removal
Mole Removal
Canada Goose Removal

AAAC Wildlife of Removal provides complete wildlife services from wildlife removal to attic clean-up and damage repair services!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the fastest way to get rid of an opossum?

The fastest way to get rid of opossums is to trap them with a live animal trap. By setting the traps in baited areas near their activity, such as under porches or sheds where they feed and nest. In residential neighborhoods, set traps along fences that border woodlands and other natural habitats. Traps should be set near where the opossum activity is seen such as tracks, droppings, and feeding areas.

The traps should be baited with fresh fruit or vegetables wrapped in a paper towel soaked in water to give it that wet look. Opossums are attracted to anything that looks like food so this will attract them into the trap. When an opossum is caught in the trap, it should be released far away from where you live or work. This will prevent them from coming back and hunting for house pets that may not have been able to get into a safe place when they were chased out of your South Carolina property.

It’s best to hire qualified experts for wildlife pest control services in Florence, South Carolina. We are the wildlife removal company in the area for wildlife removal and we have extensive experience with getting rid of all sorts of nuisance animals, including opossums.

For your wildlife pest control needs, AAAC Wildlife Removal of Florence is just a phone call away!

What scares opossums off?

Opossums are frequently found in yards, gardens, and garbage cans. If you would like to scare them away try making a loud noise such as banging pots together or clapping your hands.

Hang bright lights from the trees around your property at night that will make it seem too dark for opossums to venture into the yard or garden.
Set up a motion sensor sprinkler in your yard, garden, or trashcan. The sudden noise and water spray will scare away opossums.
Spray cans of air freshener around the perimeter of your property to make it smell too strong for them to come near you.
You can also use peppermint oil or ammonia to make the area smell unappealing.
If you have a house pet, simply let them roam around your property at night and they will scare away opossums as well.
Place wildlife repellent in areas where opossums frequently go such as garden beds and trashcans.
You can also use a noisemaker or scarecrow to scare them away.
You can also fill up aluminum foil balls with dried beans and tie them to trees around your property where opossums frequently go – the noise is startling enough for them to leave!

What will keep possums away?

Possums are attracted to anything that is sweet, so a good idea would be to place any fruit or sweets inside of the refrigerator. If you have an outdoor feeder for your pets, make sure it’s not emptying out at night and if possums frequently visit this area then consider removing that from where they live. Also, keep food waste out of the compost pile and store it in a container that keeps pests from getting into it. Make sure trash cans have tight-fitting lids on them to keep these creatures away.

Opossum Removal Florence, SC