Help! I’ve Found an Injured Animal!
Virginia Opossum
The opossum is North America’s only marsupial, meaning the females have a pouch in which they carry their babies. Opossums often get hit by cars or attacked by dogs. In many cases, the babies are either ejected from their mom’s pouch, or if the mom dies, the babies climb out of the pouch. In either case, the babies are unable to fend for themselves and need assistance from an experienced opossum rehabilitator, as they need to be fed by a stomach tube. Call our hotline for assistance in this instance.
Once the baby opossums get a little bigger, they climb out of the pouch and ride on the mother’s back. Sometimes, they fall off, and the mother does not always know the baby is gone. As opossums are nomadic (they have no home base), it is questionable if the mom will return. If the baby is smaller than 8 inches from the nose to the base of the tail (about the size of a kitten), it probably still needs some assistance. If possible, using gloves, place the young opossum in a cardboard box with airholes and contact our hotline for further information and assistance.
Click here to find out more about Virginia Opossums' natural history, and learn how to identify and help orphaned babies.
A Note on Keeping Opossums as Pets
Volunteers for Wildlife occasionally receives inquiries from people who have found a young opossum and would like to raise it at home, and/or keep it as a pet. Please understand that it is not in the best interests of the opossum to do this, nor is it in your own best interests. Very young opossums require highly specialized care such as tube-feeding, which cannot be safely performed without appropriate training. Adult opossums have many sharp teeth that can do significant damage if you are bitten! Furthermore, opossums are prey animals, and are easily stressed by being handled, being around domestic cats & dogs, hearing loud household noises, etc. For more information, please read our complete set of articles on keeping wild animals as pets.
If you are interested in raising and caring for orphaned opossums and other small mammals, you may be interested in pursuing a wildlife rehabilitator's license.
Here are links to information on becoming licensed in New York State and beyond.
NYS DEC Wildlife Rehabilitation Licensing
Becoming a Wildlife Rehabilitator