Wrong place, wrong time for the fat kat.

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Dr. Kralenstein

Dr. Kralenstein

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Apr 14, 2022
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The Laboratory, United States
I set my cuff trap up the other night since my bird feeders were raided again. I figured another coon found it's way into the yard. They're getting smart. They'll eat the bait around the trap but not reach in and get cuffed.

Well, this poor bastard decided he wanted some marshmallows. I tried to free him, but he was less than pleasant to deal with, so I got the 25 jumbo out and sent him to the good lord.


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Doesn't get any deader than that shot.
 
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A.G.R said:
I hate killing them as they do more good than bad.. That being said if it became a menace and dependent On your yard then all bets are off.
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I usually give them a pass. They're good cleaners and actually pretty docile. They do like to eat tomatoes, but those are long gone this time of year. Sucks he got caught, but his paw was pretty purple when I got it out of the trap. Probably wouldn't have survived anyhow.
 
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pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Are Virginia opossums really ecological traps for ticks? Groundtruthing laboratory observations - PubMed

Virginia opossums (Didelphis virginiana) are a common synanthrope in North America, and serve as host to many species of ectoparasites. Research on captive Virginia opossums estimated that opossums eat, on average, 5500 larval ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) per week. To investigate this apparent...
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The benefits of Opossums may be over estimated. They get the same treatment the OP gave them when they show up in my DP traps, which is infrequently. They are nest raiders and we have turkeys on our property and birds eat ticks, also.
 
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interesting. I’ve got two or three that have completely taken over my feeder area. They vacuum up any and all food I leave for any other birds or small game. All I ever kept hearing was they eat ticks don’t shoot them. I’m kind of thinking they are eating little else at this point besides what I put out every day. Maybe they should have a talk with my 9mm M3 tonight ;).
 
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huntr said:
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Are Virginia opossums really ecological traps for ticks? Groundtruthing laboratory observations - PubMed

Virginia opossums (Didelphis virginiana) are a common synanthrope in North America, and serve as host to many species of ectoparasites. Research on captive Virginia opossums estimated that opossums eat, on average, 5500 larval ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) per week. To investigate this apparent...
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The benefits of Opossums may be over estimated. They get the same treatment the OP gave them when they show up in my DP traps, which is infrequently. They are nest raiders and we have turkeys on our property and birds eat ticks, also.
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I have hens, so I'm usually gunning for coons. The possums always eat my tomatoes. You can always tell when it's them, because they eat the entire thing minus the top vine cap. Squirrels and rabbits usually just chew a hole in them.
 
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dens228 said:
I give them a pass all summer. End of October they don't get that pass. Every spring a few end up dead and stinking up under my deck. I figure they die during the winter and freeze then start to smell as they thaw.
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Sorry to laugh, but that's messed up and just nasty! They smell worse than most dead animals.
 
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Jman4183 said:
interesting. I’ve got two or three that have completely taken over my feeder area. They vacuum up any and all food I leave for any other birds or small game. All I ever kept hearing was they eat ticks don’t shoot them. I’m kind of thinking they are eating little else at this point besides what I put out every day. Maybe they should have a talk with my 9mm M3 tonight ;).
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Once they find a plentiful food source, they will eat little else. There are tons of them out there, won't hurt to put a tiny dent in the population!
 
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Dr. Kralenstein said:
I usually give them a pass. They're good cleaners and actually pretty docile. They do like to eat tomatoes, but those are long gone this time of year. Sucks he got caught, but his paw was pretty purple when I got it out of the trap. Probably wouldn't have survived anyhow.
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A few weeks ago; I had gotten a squirrel at my parents. Then like 5 mins after; a possum comes out. I said to my dad "he's lucky that I already have a squirrel" then it looked back as to acknowledge that he was being let out with a pass. 😂
 
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nef003 said:
A few weeks ago; I had gotten a squirrel at my parents. Then like 5 mins after; a possum comes out. I said to my dad "he's lucky that I already have a squirrel" then it looked back as to acknowledge that he was being let out with a pass. 😂
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NEVER, think in anthropomorphic terms. Animals are not humans and do not have human logic. They work on instinct only. Very little cognitive action. No matter how smart you think they are, it’s just instinct.
 
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Hal4son said:
They stink when they're alive. Usually when I get a call that "something died in the wall", it's a possum living in there. They have a funk that's hard to describe.
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It was on full display this morning. They secret some green looking crap out their anal gland when you blow their brains out.
 
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Dr. Kralenstein said:
I set my cuff trap up the other night since my bird feeders were raided again. I figured another coon found it's way into the yard. They're getting smart. They'll eat the bait around the trap but not reach in and get cuffed.

Well, this poor bastard decided he wanted some marshmallows. I tried to free him, but he was less than pleasant to deal with, so I got the 25 jumbo out and sent him to the good lord.


View attachment 511745View attachment 511746


Doesn't get any deader than that shot.
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That’s one dead critter !
 
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huntr said:
NEVER, think in anthropomorphic terms. Animals are not humans and do not have human logic. They work on instinct only. Very little cognitive action. No matter how smart you think they are, it’s just instinct.
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I'm far beyond saving then; because I have been proven other wise many times. The again; I lean more towards spiritual things than physical. 😂
 
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