Uploaded July 2015 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Baby opossums in the same litter can have very different personalities - some may be calm and curious when handled while others may freeze or play dead. This litter was old enough when they were orphaned that some of them were suspicious of humans - and these two have always been particularly growly and aggressive. Handling is kept to a minimum so they do not become tame and can be successfully released back into the wild - in this case I was transferring them to another container so I could clean their larger cage. Fast movements would probably have resulted in a bite - painful even at this age - but by going very slowly and approaching from behind/above they reverted to freezing rather than attacking.
Baby opossums in the same litter can have very different personalities - some may be calm and curious when handled while others may freeze or play dead. This litter was old enough when they were orphaned that some of them were suspicious of humans - and these two have always been particularly growly and aggressive. Handling is kept to a minimum so they do not become tame and can be successfully released back into the wild - in this case I was transferring them to another container so I could clean their larger cage. Fast movements would probably have resulted in a bite - painful even at this age - but by going very slowly and approaching from behind/above they reverted to freezing rather than attacking.
