About the size of a large housecat, opossums have sharp claws that make it easy for them to navigate exterior fencing around your Polk County property. With these claws, opossums climb fences, open trashcans, and dig beneath structures including your porch, shed, and home looking for a dark and cold resting place to nest. They also like to root in flowerbeds and fruit and vegetable gardens in search of food. Not only can this cause severe damage and destruction to your property, but it can also be just the beginning of an infestation if it is not taken care of right away.
If opossums manage to infiltrate your warm and inviting attic, then they will quickly nest and begin to breed. Once that process has started, it will be increasingly difficult to remove them from your property. An ongoing opossum infestation can result in lingering damage, annoying sounds, and unpleasant smells, and risks such as:
The best defense is a good offense, which is why some home and business owners attempt preventative measures to keep opossums and other wildlife away from their property. Deterrents that elicit sounds and smells often can drive a pest away while imposing figures like a plaster owl can scare away would-be vermin intruders. For opossums, the following preventative steps have been used to keep them away from residential doorsteps:
The presence of a domesticated pet can intimidate an opossum family away from your home.
Simply scattering cat or dog hair around your property can deter an opossum visit.
The smell that mothballs emit has been known to keep opossums and other pests at bay.
Carefully spreading ammonia around your property can drive opossums, and other guests, away.
Apparently, opossums dislike the smell of garlic and are repelled by strategically placed cloves.
While the above methods may help provide temporary assistance in keeping opossums from accessing your home, they are largely inefficient at solving an existing opossum problem. If you are dealing with a nuisance opossum problem, then rely on the professional wildlife removal services of Critter Control® of Polk County. Our licensed technicians are equipped with the tools and expertise to get rid of opossums in an efficient, safe, and humane way.
At Critter Control® of Polk County, we strive to help keep your home or office clear of all unwelcomed wildlife. If you do happen to come in contact with an opossum or any type of wildlife around or near your Auburndale property, back away from the animal and contact us right away. Our trained wildlife technicians can locate, identify, and pinpoint exactly where creatures are entering or exiting your home and permanently solve the problem using our humane CritterSafe® practices.