Tuesday, June 15, 2010

3 Weeks!

First of all - just to be clear about the post from yesterday - the opossums are NOT going to be pets! Wildlife babies should be rehabilitated and then released back into the wild.

Many people are very misinformed about opossums and just don't like them because they think they are scary looking and mean. In reality, opossums are a very important part of the local eco-system. Opossums are scavengers and eat many things that other animals don't want to eat so they help to keep the eco-system clean. They are the nighttime cleaning crew while vultures are the daytime cleaning crew! Both of these animals are important for a balanced eco-system. ANY mammal can get rabies. However, the chances of an opossum having rabies is extremely rare due to their low body temperature. Skunks, bats and raccoons are much more likely vectors for rabies. So, there really is no reason to fear an opossum having rabies. They are very defensive but they aren't necessarily mean. They aren't going to attack you unless you try to harm them or get too close to their nest. They have sharp teeth so that they can eat the foods that they need to eat. They also eat poisonous snakes!!

Anyway - I just wanted to clear up some misunderstandings about that. Now back to your regularly scheduled blog......................

Well, Little Miss Nameless is 3 weeks old today! She is doing so great!! We have thought about lots of names but just nothing has stuck yet. I guess she will tell us her name when she is ready.

Little Miss Messy had her first bath the other day.


7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Awwww! She is just the cutest little bit.

ACraftyKnitter said...

She's adorable. All these baby animal pictures are making my maternal instincts get all riled up, though- a problem when I live in an apartment where I can't have a pet. But....awwwwww!!!!

Jain said...

Opossums rock. I've rehabbed and hacked out quite a few myself. Generally gentle creatures, I've often seen them "play 'possum" rather than fight back. Thank you for helping this litter.

The kitten looks so tiny (and big-headed!) after a bath!

Lista said...

I have read and understand all the important possum facts. I'm sorry to stay they still freak me the heck out. But the kitten is ADORABLE! :o) (Don't worry, I don't kill possums, I just run screaming when I encounter them in my yard, and leave 'Lista-shaped dents in the front door.)

knittingdragonflies said...

How sweet!!!
Vicki

Unknown said...

If that little orange fuzzball is indeed a girl she is very rare. Most orange cats are male. It is quite rare to get a female. You might want to think about that when you name her. The possums are cute too.

Knit Witch said...

She IS indeed a female. It's the female orange tabbies that are genetically rare - not so much the orange/white combinations like she is. She isn't a tabby. When I worked in vet med we did have one female orange tabby that came in. She belonged to a geneticist that worked at Emory!!!