Do possums pose a threat to dogs?

While domestic dogs represent a much greater threat to opossums than the reverse, opossums may be able to transmit diseases to your beloved pooch. While opossums can transmit a variety of bacterial and protozoal diseases to your dog, they do not typically carry or transmit the dreaded rabies virus.

How do I keep possums away from my dog?

Try a few methods and see if a specific smell works against opossums in your neighborhood:

1. Mothballs: Place a couple mothballs in a sealed container.
2. Blood meal: Sprinkle a stripe of blood meal around garden beds or other problem areas.
3. Dog urine: Similar to blood, the smell of a dog’s urine frightens opossums.

Do possums attack humans or dogs?

Possums don’t deliberately attack. They are very docile. In some rare cases, possums might attack humans or pets. But they don’t really get rabies, (read about opossum rabies) and they aren’t really predators, more of scavengers, unless the situation is dire.

Do dogs keep possums away?

Pet Fur: The smell of cats and dogs could keep opossums away because of their natural instincts to avoid competition and predators.

How do you tell if you have a possum in your yard?

5 Signs of an Opossum Infestation in Your Home or Business

1. Loud scratching noises – Opossums make ripping, scratching, and scuttling noises as they build their nest.
2. Constant animal vocalizations – If you hear noises such as hissing, shrieking, clicking, or lip smacking, you could have multiple opossums living inside.

Will a possum attack a dog?

Solution: In general, opossums are docile, non-aggressive animals and will not attack your pets. They prefer to avoid confrontations. If escape is not possible then the threatened opossum may “play ‘possum”, show its teeth, or bite in self-defense, as any animal would.

What can I do to keep opossums out of my yard?

The best thing you can do for the opossums AND your neighbors is to train the dog or keep the dog indoors at night. This will also prevent the dog from injuring or killing an opossum. Problem: Will an opossum attack my pets?

Do opossums make dogs bark?

Opossums are beneficial eating unwanted pests around your home and garden such as snails, slugs, spiders, cockroaches, rats, mice and snakes. Opossums are free gardeners! Problem: They make my dog bark! Solution: A dog will bark at anything it sees or hears.

Are opossums dangerous to children?

Opossums are nocturnal, that is they sleep during the day and come out at night, so the chance that a small child will come into contact with an opossum is slim. Opossums prefer to sleep in dark, secluded places. If your children are playing in this type of area then there is a greater danger of being bitten by a poisonous spider or snake.