Opossums, or are they are more commonly called: Possums like to inhabit brush piles, tree cavities, other animals' abandoned dens, attacks, garages, and under houses.

These nocturnal wildlife pests can cause the following damage:

They are omnivores, and eat birdseed out of bird feeders, pet food (dog, cat, or rabbit) left out for your pets, fruits (favoring apples and persimmons), and grains.

They kill and eat poultry, such as chickens and ducks, and also game birds such as dove, quail, pheasant. They also destroy birds' nests.

Significant damage to homes can be caused by their sharp claws as they try to access dark, safe areas such as crawl spaces, vents, and structures.

Possums are not adverse to going through your garbage and compost piles to find their meals, and they are messy and unsanitary.

They can kill and eat other small mammals, even pets such as kittens, small puppies, and rabbits.

If they do not kill your pet, they can severely injure him/her by getting into a fight with them and cause severe scratches by their incredibly sharp and long claws.

Significantly, Opossums can carry rabies.

The opossum goes by several names such as "Opossum" and "Possum," depending on were you live in the country. Most people just call them possums.

The opossum is whitish in color with gray or black dense guard hair and a fur undercoat. They are arboreal marsupials about the size of a house cat, and have rounded ears and a long pointed nose. Possums have a rat like trail that is about the same length as their body. Weight is an average of 4 to 5 pounds, they have approximately 50 teeth and the hind foot has a thumb-like appendage.