Brooklyn Government Uses Opossums to Control Rats

The following article, titled Mouse-eating opossums run amok in Brooklyn, was written by Heather Haddon and published in the September 19, 2010, issue of The New York Post (on-line link; the photograph was taken from the article)

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The city played possum -- and Brooklyn residents lost.

In a bizarre attempt to outwit Mother Nature, city officials introduced beady-eyed opossums in Brooklyn years ago to scarf down rats running amok in the borough, according to local officials.

Surprise: Operation opossum didn't work.

Not only do wily rats continue to thrive, but the opossums have become their own epidemic, with bands of the conniving creatures sauntering through yards, plundering garbage cans and noshing on fruit trees.

They've even taken up golf, with two sightings of the whiskered marsupials at the Dyker Heights municipal course in the past week, local officials said.

"They are everywhere," said Theresa Scavo, chairwoman for Community Board 15, which represents Sheepshead Bay and surrounding south Brooklyn neighborhoods.

"Didn't any of those brain surgeons realize that the opossums were going to multiply?"

A city Sanitation spokeswoman said they were not involved with the Brooklyn opossum drop, and the Health Department didn't have any record of it. But Scavo and two city councilmen said city officials spoke about the effort at a 2007 Brooklyn forum.

"City brought possums in to take care of rats," read Community Board 15 notes from the meeting.

The opossums were set free in local parks and underneath the Coney Island boardwalk, with the theory being they would die off once the rats were gobbled up, said Councilman Domenic Recchia (D-Brooklyn).

Instead, the critters have been populating, spreading to Park Slope and Manhattan.

"The population has boomed in recent years," said Josephine Beckmann, district manager for Community Board 10, which represents Bay Ridge. "They climb up in the tree and have a good meal."

The critters have a mouth full of 50 sharp teeth, tend to exude a foul odor, and can occasionally contract rabies, said Stuart Mitchell, an entomologist.

They are nocturnal, and some Brooklynites have become terrified to go into their yards at night.

An Opossum is not a Cat !!!

A Happy Family

On the website Awkward Family Photos, on this webpage, in the comments, Courtnie wrote:

The possum was our uncle's pet. His [the opossum's] name was Buddy. We caught the possum in a barrel in the back yard… long story. We played with him like a puppy. Sad, but we had more than one as pets. Even raised a mom with babies.

Cournie's brother Ernie wrote:

The kid on the left is me. I have had years of therapy, and have finally recovered from this photo.

The kid on the right was my younger cousin, who was killed a few years back in a motorcycle accident. The two gentlemen were my uncle and grandfather.

Today is my 39th birthday, so this must have been about 30 years ago. I am embarrassed to say that this photo was sort of planned. We were out working in the pasture splitting firewood, and when we came in from lunch, my grandmother apparently thought we looked photogenic, and made us get in the car over to Olan Mills in Douglasville, Georgia.

Glad I could share the joy on this one. Whenever I see it, the Dukes of Hazard theme starts playing in my head…”Just some good ole boys, never meanin’ no harm…”

Michael and I were the only two boys of all the cousins on my mother’s side, so he was really like a brother to me growing up. He died doing what he loved, and we all miss him terribly.

Mike was a a tow-truck driver, and at his funeral there were literally hundreds of people, and dozens of wreckers. Mike’s wife got a special permit so that they could transport his casket on the back of his wrecker (and it was bungie corded down!) and at every stoplight on the back roads between Douglasville and Marietta where he is buried, there was a tow-truck with it’s lights on blocking traffic for us.

At one point, a car tried to pass on the right to pass the funeral procession, and some of Mike’s friends headed it off, and almost got into a fistfight with the driver (which was right in front of us). I turned to my wife and said, “that is how Mike would have wanted it: A fight at his funeral!”

In any case, the hat my uncle is wearing is from Southern Tech (Which is Southern Poly now) and my grandfather’s hat was advertising some feed store. My grandfather has a masters degree, and my grandmother (his wife) had a PhD. I just got my MBA, so it just goes to show you that you can’t educate the redneck out of a redneck.

Spiritual Master Adopts Perfect Opossum Pet

Louix Dor Dempriey is a spiritual Master who has come into this world to help people restore their inherent divinity and live as unconditional love. With grace and humor, He imparts timeless wisdom in contemporary, practical teachings, making self-mastery and true, inner peace attainable for all—for His life models both the journey and the victory of God-realization.

Louix is the subject of a new DVD, A Voice from Eternity (An Evening with Louix Dor Dempriey), and a feature-length documentary, A Great Awakening, which is currently filming and scheduled for completion in 2009. The Louix Dor Dempriey Foundation, a non-profit educational organization, was established in 2007 to share Louixs teachings and humanitarian programs with the world. Louix lives at Prema Drala Ashram in Laguna Hills, California, and has ashrams and study groups around the world.

Opossums Are Nature's Best Mothers

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The next one is the best one.

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I cannot embed this one, but it's delightful.

Pogo Pictures

The cartoon character Pogo is an opossum.

Below are some covers of Pogo comic books.

There are a few more Pogo comic-book covers at this webage.