Serving the Dallas, Fort Worth, and Houston metro areas.
Opossum Removal Services For Dallas, Texas Homeowners
As the only native North American marsupial, opossums are identified by the abdominal pouch used to carry young offspring. The wild animal typically grows to about the size of an average house cat, with defining characteristics including a pointed face, hairless rounded ears, and rough to the touch gray fur. With a strong tail, opossums can transport nest materials, as well as hang upside down from a sturdy branch. Opossum possess feet that appear like small hands, with each toe including a claw that helps the wild animal climb structures such as the side of homes.
Central Texas is considered an ideal home for opossums to thrive. With plenty of water and an abundant source of food, opossums rarely need to seek shelter inside Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex homes. However, harsher than normal winters or the need for safety to deliver a litter of babies can force opossums to use sheds or attics as temporary shelter. Opossums also take refuge under decks, steps, and porches where the wild animals build nests close to their natural habitats.
For more than 35 years, the licensed and bonded team of home services contractors at Brinker Animal Removal has helped homeowners living in suburbs like Arlington, Carrollton, Garland, and Richardson trap and humanely remove opossums.
Detecting Opossums
Opossums are nocturnal animals, which makes detecting the critters difficult for homeowners. The wild animals roam neighborhoods at night and many times, the only indication of their presence is barking dogs or pet food that inexplicably disappears. You might find strange-looking fecal matter around the garden or on walkways leading to the front or back entrance of your Dallas, TX home. Opossums are considered messy eaters, which means you might discover the remnants of a meal or the foraging the omnivorous critter perform along the sides of your house.
The most likely locations for opossums to visit around your home include compost piles, garbage bins, and vegetable gardens. After one or more of the critters enter a home, it is hard to detect their presence, as opossums make little, if any noise. The most obvious sign of opossums is fecal matter and the discovery of fecal matter usually leads to the conclusion that a wild animal is in the home, not that the wild animal is a opossum. Opossums have shed most of the fear the critters used to have for interacting with humans. This means encounters with wild animals are much more common, making detection easier for Dallas, Texas homeowners.
Power In Numbers For Opossums
Opossums typically mate twice a year, with the beginning of January representing the prime mating season for the critters in central Texas. Each litter brings an average of seven newborns into the world. Although opossums prefer to deliver offspring in the wild, a combination of factors can motivate mothers to seek shelter inside Dallas area homes. First, cold weather makes it imperative for pregnant opossums to find a warm spot to raise baby opossums that live inside the mother’s pouch. Second, with vegetation lacking, pregnant opossums have little or no cover to conceal their young from predators. After moving into an attic or a garage, a female opossum and her kids will remain as long as there is ample food, water, and shelter.
The Damage Done By Opossums
Opossums possess a mouthful of razor-sharp teeth. The wild animal prefers to avoid confrontations with humans and even pets, but when threatened, it is not out of the question for opossums to bite through skin and cause severe bleeding. With the potential to cause serious injuries, opossums should be considered a pest that demands immediate removal from your home. Prompt critter control for opossums is also important because the wild animals carry debilitating diseases such as tularemia, coccidiosis, and leptospirosis. The potential life-threatening diseases can induce vomiting and diarrhea, as well as cause acute stomach pain. Opossums are also prime hosts for fleas that cling to cats and dogs.
Getting Rid Of Opossums
Most other wild animal species allow our team of experienced critter control experts to implement a wide variety of measures for controlling the pests. However, trapping and removing opossums is the only viable method for getting rid of the critters from your home. Opossums are easy to catch, as the critters are tempted by the scent of food attached to bait located at the entrance of large cages. The wild animals prefer sweet foods, although attaching raw meat to a baited trap also works in luring opossums into cages that should measure at least 30 by 32 by 30 inches.
Brinker Animal Removal traps and relocates opossums in accordance with Texas law. The legal implications of wild animal trapping should motivate you to hire a certified team of professional contractors to get the job done right. Many Texas counties prohibit homeowners from trapping and removing opossums, which means hiring an animal removal contractor is legally mandatory. After we catch opossums, we transport the wild animals back to their natural habitats located near food and water sources. We take injured and pregnant opossums to animal shelters or hospitals to ensure the critters receive proper care.
Opossum Proofing Your Dallas, TX Home
Although 911 Wildlife specializes in removing pests from Dallas, TX homes, we also make sure the critters never return to destroy attics and gardens. The first order of business involves taking away opossums food sources. We recommend storing garbage bins inside the garage or in the basement. When the time comes for the weekly trash pickup, make sure to weigh down garbage bins lids with heavy objects. Inside your home, store dry food in airtight stainless steel containers and place the containers in cabinets and pantries. The goal is to remove any scent given off by food that attracts hungry opossums. Our team of opossum removal specialists also inspects your property to eliminate water sources. We fix leaky pipes and clear clogged drains to discourage opossums from staying on your property. Without easy access to food and water sources, you can expect opossums to search for nourishment elsewhere in the neighborhood.
We use a topical application on the lawn and in the garden to prevent opossums from feasting on your property. The topical application does not harm grass or produce, as well as ensures opossums do not become sick because of the ingestion of harmful chemicals. Homeowners who live in Dallas metro communities such as Plano and Flower Mound should clear the property of woodpiles and large areas of vegetal overgrowth. Like most wild animal species, opossums like to hide in bushes and woodpiles before making the push indoors.
If you detect the presence of opossums on your property or inside your Dallas, Texas home, you should contact 911 Wildlife to get rid of the nuisances. With a GAF certification, we have the professional credentials to trap opossums and prevent the critters from returning to your property. Our highly rated home services company offers 24-hour emergency animal removal services for homeowners that discover the presence of opossums weeks after the pests have invaded their homes.
Call our office or complete the convenient online form today to schedule a free home inspection in Dallas, TX.
What Our Customers Are Saying
"Very kind, helpful, communication was fantastic! Appreciate the fast response and help. Ryan worked with my husband to go over findings, his arrival. Thank you to Ryan and team!"
