So, yes, they do play dead if they feel threatened. But this behavior depends on the immediacy of the threat. It’s not normal behavior like it’s the case with an opossum, but they will do it from time to time. Playing dead, also called Apparent Death, is one of their tools of escape.

‘All Intensive Purposes’ or ‘All Intents and Purposes’? The groundhog (Marmota monax), also known as a woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. Opossums pose little, if any, significant threat to humans.

Probably not. These creatures are mostly arboreal and prefer to live in trees; hanging out on the limbs of the trees in the summer and inside holes and cavities in the winter. But they will use burrows that other creatures have dug in the ground.

The O in “opossum” is spelled but not pronounced. It is a silent letter, just like the H in the word “honest.” The articles “a” and “an” are correctly based on the first pronounced letter, not simply the first letter.

Opossums carry diseases such as leptospirosis, tuberculosis, relapsing fever, tularemia, spotted fever, toxoplasmosis, coccidiosis, trichomoniasis, and Chagas disease. They may also be infested with fleas, ticks, mites, and lice.

Opossums become dangerous with their ability to transmit diseases to pets and people. Known to carry leptospirosis, tuberculosis, coccidiosis, spotted fever, tularemia, and other diseases, the pesky creatures pose serious health threats when they invade urban environments.

If there is an opossum in the backyard, don’t worry. But far from being a nuisance, opossums can be beneficial for your garden, eating snails, slugs, insects and sometimes even small rodents. They’ll even clean up spilled garbage and fruit that has fallen off trees.

In theory, a possum can kill a house cat. But it is extremely rare. However, if you’re dealing with an adult opossum, if it is threatened and needs to defend itself, it may injure a cat. But to be honest, it’s more likely to just stand still while displaying its teeth, or even play dead!

Opossums are not generally aggressive or vicious but have been known to attack humans. Opossums will fight back if they have to defend themselves and will attack to protect their young.

As a homeowner, you may see opossums as unwanted pests, but they can also be helpful critters. On one hand, having opossums around can be beneficial because they are known to eat harmful insects and annoying pests such as cockroaches, rats and snakes.

Leave the opossum alone and enjoy watching wildlife in your own backyard. However, if the opossum is injured or an orphan (less than 7 inches from nose to rump) then contact the Opossum Society of the United States, a local wildlife rehabilitator, a veterinarian, or your local animal shelter for help.

Simple Scare Tactics

1. Tie helium balloons around your yard to sway in the wind and startle the possums away.
2. Place pinwheels, found in party supply stores, in the soil around your plants.
3. Set up an oscillating fan in your garden with an extension cord.
4. Play a portable radio in your yard.

Ammonia and garlic are scents that possums tend to flee from. If using ammonia, pour a small amount of ammonia into a coffee can with a lid.

Possums sometimes use crawlspaces for their dens. Most homeowners, on the other hand, prefer not to have a possum living under their house. Driving a possum from a crawlspace is relatively easy, but may take some time to ensure that no animals, especially babies, will be left under the house to die.

Opossums do not prey on cats or other larger mammals but will attack them if cornered, or if competing for food. Opossums cause loss to home gardens by eating nuts, berries, fruits, and grapes. They eat pet food left outside and may raid compost bins.

As animals that originated in the Tropics, opossums can’t bulk up with subcutaneous fat as well as raccoons and other North American mammals, so they are in danger of freezing when temperatures dip below 19 degrees Fahrenheit. So it has to just sit in its den and burn energy.” Too many such nights and the animal dies.

In Georgia and many other states opossums are considered a game animal and thus have regulations pertaining to their harvest through hunting and trapping.