According to the news reports, the guy really didn’t like those opossums that were always in his backyard, their hissing and barring of teeth gave him the creeps. He decided to try to drive them away for good by smoking them out. He fixed up a pile of leaves, lit it with his butane lighter, and got a nice blaze going. Too nice.

DON’T BE THIS GUY

In no time, the blaze spread to his nice little wooden row house in Lancaster, PA. The fire caused $50,000 damage, a firefighter needed hospital treatment for a shoulder injury, the building was condemned, and his family was homeless. No word on the opossums.

This guy was a good argument for professional pest management. It’s hard to convince some people that pros just might know more than they do about the topic. A trained nuisance wildlife professional knows a lot about the habits of opossums and other animals that become pests in our urban and suburban areas.

HE WAS PROBABLY PART OF THE PROBLEM

Chances are the guy was providing food for the opossums in his yard. They feed on a variety of things including garbage, compost, pet food, and birdseed. Or, the opossums might have found a good denning site under his backyard shed, in a brush pile, or in an old squirrel nest. Since he apparently saw more than one, it was no doubt a female with her young in tow.

Opossums move around a lot and have more than one denning site. A wildlife professional would probably have advised the guy to not leave garbage or pet food out over night, to possum-proof his garbage can, to clean up spilled seed under feeders, and to get rid of debris piles in his yard, among other things. A wildlife professional would know what to look for, where to look, and how to resolve the problem, humanely. A small investment, compared to a $50 K fire.

At Colonial Pest, we have a team of certified and licensed nuisance wildlife specialists. We’ve been doing this kind of work for almost 25 years. When you’re faced with a wildlife pest problem, from birds to bats to raccoons, give us a call. Don’t be that guy!

See How Not to Attract Raccoons and Opossums! – Advice From the Pros

Photo Credit : Pixabay