Opossums, with their curious faces and seemingly docile nature, might appear to some as intriguing potential pets. However, before you consider bringing one of these unique creatures into your home, it’s crucial to understand the significant challenges and ethical considerations involved. The reality of keeping an opossum as a pet is far from simple, and often, it’s detrimental to the animal’s well-being.
The Reality of Opossum Care: High Maintenance Needs
The term “high maintenance” barely scratches the surface when describing the care requirements of captive opossums. These are not domesticated animals, and their needs are complex and often misunderstood.
Specialized Diet
Opossums have very particular dietary needs. They require a carefully balanced diet with fresh foods and precise calcium-to-phosphorus ratios. This isn’t just about providing any food; it’s about meticulous meal planning. An incorrect diet can quickly lead to severe health problems, most notably metabolic bone disease. This debilitating condition can weaken their bones and teeth, and inflict irreversible damage on their internal organs. Furthermore, opossums are prone to obesity. Even with a carefully planned diet, maintaining a healthy weight can be a constant struggle, and obesity can trigger a cascade of other health issues.
Exercise Requirements
Providing adequate exercise for an opossum in captivity is practically impossible. In their natural habitat, opossums can roam up to half a mile each night foraging for food and exploring their territory. Confining them to a cage, no matter how large, or even letting them roam within a house, cannot replicate this natural level of activity. This lack of exercise contributes to both physical and psychological stress for the animal.
Veterinary Challenges
Finding a veterinarian experienced in treating opossums is a significant hurdle. While you might find vets who treat common pets like dogs and cats, opossum physiology is quite different, and specialized knowledge is required for proper diagnosis and treatment. Even if you locate a vet willing to see your opossum, finding one with genuine expertise in opossum-specific health issues can be highly improbable. Furthermore, access to prescribed medications and specialized laboratory tests can be limited, making it even more challenging to care for a sick opossum. And make no mistake, opossums in captivity will get sick.
Health Issues, Especially in Females
Female opossums are particularly susceptible to urinary tract and genital tract bacterial infections. These infections can be serious and require prompt veterinary attention. It’s crucial to be vigilant for signs of illness, such as unusual discharge, increased urination (more than once a day), or any offensive odors, as these are not normal for a healthy opossum.
Ethical Considerations: Wild Animals Belong in the Wild
Beyond the practical challenges of care, there are significant ethical considerations when thinking about opossums as pets. Opossums are wild animals. Their seemingly pleasant demeanor in captivity can be misleading. The constant stress of confinement takes a hidden toll on their health, even if it’s not immediately obvious. This chronic stress can suppress their immune system, making them more vulnerable to bacterial diseases and other health problems. Things can deteriorate rapidly in an opossum, and what appears to be a healthy animal can suddenly become critically ill.
Relying on online resources for opossum care can be risky. While some online groups and pages may offer helpful information, others are unreliable or even harmful. Distinguishing between credible and worthless advice can be difficult for someone without extensive opossum knowledge.
The most ethical approach is to allow opossums to live their lives in the wild, as nature intended. Keeping them as pets, even with the best intentions, essentially imprisons them and deprives them of their natural behaviors and freedoms.
A Personal Story: Learning from Heartbreak
The National Opossum Society (NOS) shares a poignant story from one of its members, illustrating the heartbreak of trying to keep an opossum as a pet:
“I hear that you are thinking about trying to keep a wild opossum baby as a pet and want to share with you my recent heartbreaking experiences. I, too, wanted to keep captive a healthy baby opossum – and since I volunteer at wildlife clinics – last year I took in an orphaned baby whose mother had been hit by a car and killed.
It has been one of the most heart breaking, stressful, confusing and selfish mistakes I have made in my whole life. I didn’t listen to any of the people who told me to let them be free–as they were born to be. I thought that if I followed the expert advice of possum specialists, I could keep my baby alive and happy. Instead, I had to bury him after a long, hard death.
I loved him dearly and it broke my heart. Opossums are not meant to be kept as pets, and I swear to you it is the most expensive, gut wrenching heart-breaking experience I have suffered thus far. I have rehabbed and kept many other domestic animals and some other species of injured wildlife, but opossums are only sure to suffer in human hands. Please spare yourself and these babies. I have spent over a thousand dollars just on vet bills so far, and now my Mickey is dead. Every day I wonder if he would still be alive chasing bugs and eating slugs and having a family if only I weren’t so selfish and could have let him be free like he was meant to be.
I know they are cute and cuddly and adorable little critters to see and touch, but please don’t keep them — it will break your heart for sure-but most importantly, it is a very selfish thing to do. They only suffer in the hands of humans, and if they can be free, please don’t be selfish-let them have the life they were meant to live. If you someday want to have an opossum as a pet – you might be able to get one from a wildlife rehabilitator that has a non-releasable— one that isn’t well enough to be free on its own. If you volunteer for awhile, and prove you are responsible, this could very well happen. Please do the unselfish thing and set these kids free. Please. It will only break your heart and theirs if you don’t. “
This heartbreaking account underscores the immense challenges and emotional toll of attempting to keep a wild opossum as a pet, even for someone with experience in animal care.
Alternatives to Pet Ownership: Helping Opossums Ethically
If you are genuinely interested in helping opossums, there are ethical and responsible ways to do so that don’t involve keeping them as pets.
Wildlife Rehabilitation
Consider getting involved in wildlife rehabilitation. Opossum caregivers are often needed to care for orphaned or injured animals with the goal of releasing them back into the wild. This is a demanding but rewarding way to contribute to opossum conservation.
Supporting Wildlife Organizations
Support organizations like the National Opossum Society. These groups work to educate the public about opossums, promote their conservation, and provide resources for their care in appropriate contexts, such as rehabilitation.
Conclusion
While the idea of an opossum as a pet might seem appealing, the reality is that their complex needs and the ethical considerations involved make them unsuitable for most households. They are wild animals that thrive in their natural environment. Instead of trying to make an opossum a pet, the most responsible and compassionate approach is to appreciate them from a distance and support their well-being in the wild through ethical means like wildlife rehabilitation and conservation efforts. If you find an orphaned or injured opossum, contact your local wildlife rehabilitation center for guidance, rather than attempting to raise it as a pet.
