Rescue Possum's Birthday Celebration Called the 'Party of the Season'
Did you know that some people keep opossums as pets? Proving that there is a lid for every pot, this rescue opossum and his family are celebrating his third birthday—quite a feat for the short-lived species, and they are doing it in the best possum style. At this celebration, there are plenty of tame opossums, as well as other creatures we’re not always used to seeing as people’s pets.
The official name for this animal is “opossum” but they are generally called possums, colloquially, throughout America, where they serve as the country’s only native marsupial. Marsupials are a primitive form of mammal, typified by Australia’s kangaroo, who give birth to extremely immature young who then develop further inside their mother’s pouch. Possums give birth after only twelve days of gestation, further allowing their babies to develop in their pouch for another two months. Baby possums later travel on their mother’s back for another four months, before reaching maturity.
Possum Life Cycles
Their unique genetic biology make them an unusual animal in the United States, and certainly an unlikely choice for a pet. Opossums are extremely short-lived. In the wild, they rarely live longer than a year and a half. Even in captivity, they only live for three or four years. So the fact that this possum is three years old is a real achievement.
Possums as Pets
Despite how adorable they appear to be in this video, possums do not make the world’s best pets. First of all, they do not live very long. They also have very low immunity to a host of diseases (though not rabies—their low body temperature actually makes them resistant to this particular deadly disease). They are rapacious scavengers who will eat anything, and tear into anything in your house in search of food, especially since it may be hard to replicate their diet in captivity.
Speaking of captivity, possums are not well suited to living alongside humans. They are nocturnal for one, and they can be aggressive toward other pets in the house—though not cats, who they often seem to get along well with. Perhaps it is their common interest in cleanliness. Like cats, possums are incredibly neat about themselves and their personal space, bathing themselves regularly and using a litter box.
They have short, nocturnal lives and slow reflexes, and are certainly more difficult to train than similarly intelligent animals such as dogs, cats, or even pigs. They also love to climb with their long sharp claws. Speaking of sharpness, did you know opossums have fifty teeth?
On top of all the drawbacks, it may not even be legal to have a pet possum where you live, as it’s only allowed (sometimes with many restrictions and required licenses) in fourteen states.
Possum Party
Now that I’ve talked you out of your own pet possum, though, please enjoy this adorable video of someone else’s rascally rescue. For a three-year-old ancient animal, he sure seems to be having the time of his life, eating cupcakes and other snacks, and crawling into hiding places away from the bright sunlight. And he was joined by plenty of opossum friends—all of whom shared his own voracious appetite, as well as a pet chinchilla.
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