Thread: I need some advice about an injured Possum

... she still has sharp claws...

I would say contact the RSPCA.... as im not sure of what native rescues you have up that way...

I did check WIRES website but they are NSW based but they do have this number listed for an organisation called Wildcare (07) 5527 2444

its possible its been attacked by a dog or judging byt the head hit by a car....considering it looks like it has bit of blood on its back I would contact someone at least to come and assess it.

Contact wildlife rescue first if possible. How approachable is it? If you can get it some betadine may help stopping any infection. If you do keep it and its young in a dark warm bag or pillow case until you can get help. They love a warm combination of bread, milk and honey and or weetbix. They also generally like fruits, the sweeter the better. You will need to be very gentle, quiet with no sudden moves.
If need be your local council should have possum cages to catch for treatment.
The most difficult thing is to gain their trust, we have one that sometimes sleeps in our roof and has dug a hole from the chicken yard into my 3 x 3 shed and steals food from the chooks and takes in and sit on the seat in our buggy and eats.
I love possums they are beautiful animals.
Watch out their claws and teeth are sharp and until being used to being handled should wear gloves.
The alternative is to start leaving some food out for it to regain its strength. You may also be able to get some antibiotics from a vet or wildlife rescue to put in the food.
Possibly attacked by dogs??

You could also try your local shire/council ranger.
They usually have an after hours number for lost dogs etc..
They will have connections with any wildlife rescue services in the area.

Do not contact Wires, their first option is to put down, contact your local Vet there will probably be someone who cares for Possums.
But, they are tough buggers and he looks like a male with a missus to protect, the males rip into one another quite regularly, one of ours lost his tail in a blue with another male. Keep an eye on him and if he gets infected or sluggish call the vet, don't try and grab him they fight like hell, good luck, Regards Frank.

Thanks folks and I have been doing a bit of online research and bread is an absolute No-No for possums.

I have just given it some and when it moves away, I intend to remove the bread.

I have cut up some pear for it and it seems happy with that.

I will keep an eye on it over the next couple of days and see what happens.

Thanks for all the help and I will contact my local vet on Monday.

Originally Posted by drivesafe

Thanks folks and I have been doing a bit of online research and bread is an absolute No-No for possums.

I have just given it some and when it moves away, I intend to remove the bread.

I have cut up some pear for it and it seems happy with that.

I will keep an eye on it over the next couple of days and see what happens.

Thanks for all the help and I will contact my local vet on Monday.

The bread depends on who you talk too and what you have on hand. White bread is generally not good for animals and humans alike.
In small quantities does no harm. You can always substitute or use weetbix. I should have mentioned we did not generally use cows milk but baby formula or powdered milk, we only used normal milk when completely out.
Possums will steal bread. No different to ducks, birds etc you are not supposed to give them bread but everyone does as it is cheap and effective. Most animals dont like a lot of gluten or lactose as a rule.
We reared two possums using the milk/honey/bread method with a lot of fruit. Generally the bread mix is a short term use as juveniles to build their immune systems up and used to be recommended by Parks & Wildlife.
You can get a special mix from wildlife supplies but it is expensive.
There is a disease possums get that can cause similar effects, but that does look more like impact. This disease usually causes ulcers / lesions quite similar and start on the face or backside.
The below link gives some good info.
http://www.faunarescue.org.au/possums.htm

Also just remembered we used to use baby cereal such as Farex as well, but was a long time ago.

Originally Posted by Tank

Do not contact Wires, their first option is to put down, contact your local Vet there will probably be someone who cares for Possums.
But, they are tough buggers and he looks like a male with a missus to protect, the males rip into one another quite regularly, one of ours lost his tail in a blue with another male. Keep an eye on him and if he gets infected or sluggish call the vet, don't try and grab him they fight like hell, good luck, Regards Frank.

Tank as stated above WIRES is in NSW.

I also think that it is unfair to state don't contact wires their first option is to put things down because that is not my experience with them, therefor that is not the case across the board.

You may have called them and that may have been what they said to you, it does not mean it happens to ever injured animal they come across.