I Saved A Virginia Opossum's Life!

When I first came to the Wildlife Center, ICU was all about “squirrel mania”. Almost every shelf was filled with squirrels, squirrels, squirrels! About two weeks before the end of my externship, I came into ICU and I couldn’t believe my eyes: we only had one aquarium with one squirrel, and almost every shelf had baby opossums. Baby opossums have been such a crucial part of my experience at the Wildlife Center; they have taught me not only to be confident in my ability to care for young wildlife, but they also have taught me to put patience, compassion, and joy into my work with a variety of baby animals.

When baby opossums arrive at the Wildlife Center, it is often because their mother has been injured in such a way that she can no longer nurse or protect her babies; the babies are usually found with their mother, and they are then brought to the Center. Once the staff has made sure that the opossums are healthy enough for the rehabilitation externs to look after, we begin the process of rehabilitating baby opossums!

Our first job when baby opossums arrive is to see what they weigh; we have a weight chart for all baby animals in ICU. This weight chart helps us determine if they should be in an incubator or an aquarium, how many times a day they need to be tube fed, what needs to be placed in their aquarium as they grow. Additionally, when baby opossums are admitted, we always check their hydration levels; we do this by pinching the skin between their shoulder blades. If their skin snaps back quickly, they are reasonably hydrated; if not, we need to give them subcutaneous fluids.

When baby opossums weigh less than 50 grams, they need to go into an incubator. We make the appropriate feeding chart and place them in a small box with plenty of blankets to keep them warm. Baby opossums that stay in incubators can be tube fed up to six times a day at the Wildlife Center! When baby opossums are this small, their thermoregulation is quite poor, and they need to be kept in a humid, warm environment at all times -- like mom's pouch.

Additionally, when baby opossums first come in, their sex is determined. Fun facts that I learned: an adult female opossum is referred to as a jill, and an adult male opossum is referred to as a jack. A baby opossum in a pouch is called a joey.

When baby opossums weigh 51-100 grams, they need to go into an aquarium. As with other baby opossums, we make the appropriate feeding chart. Then we place them in an aquarium with a box that acts as a nest, leaf litter and sticks to climb on, a blanket, and a bowl of opossum mush (made out of soaked dog chow and baby rice cereal combined with opossum formula). We also put half of their aquarium enclosure on a heating pad so that they have the choice to either stay on the warm end of the aquarium or stay on the end that is room temperature.

As the opossums grow, we add more food types to their meals. Juvenile opossum meals include finely chopped fruits and veggies, soaked dry dog chow, wet dog food, and cat food that is all blended together into a soft mush. Once they are eating that food well, we introduce mouse pieces to their meal.

Once an opossum reaches 100 grams, they can begin acclimation to the outdoors, which means they go outside during the day, but come inside at night. After acclimating for one week, the opossums are re-weighed to make sure they are more than 200 grams. If they are, they’re moved outside to a mammal complex. In this complex, they have large sticks to climb on, a cage, and a nest box for sleeping in. Once an opossum reaches more than 500 grams, it is ready to be released.

When opossums are very young, we tube-feed them a special formula. Why do we tube-feed baby opossums as opposed to syringe feed them, like we do with baby squirrels? We do this because opossums do not suckle and swallow like the baby squirrels do. They remain attached to their mother’s teats for two months, and the teats reach deep into the back of their throats, all while providing a constant source of nutrition. Tube feeding is the only way to simulate this natural history and give them the formula they need to gain weight. The tube feeding process can be very intimidating at first; I can remember my first time perfectly, and I was definitely terrified! However, the saying “practice makes perfect” is so true with the tube-feeding process. The more you practice, the more confident you will get!

Tube-feeding the baby opossums was definitely one of my favorite experiences at the WCV – I even enjoyed tube-feeding bunnies too (but that’s a whole other story!). At first, it was really scary, but once I got the hang of it, I found it both enjoyable and fun. I especially loved watching the opossums grow and learn to use their feet to climb and maneuver around the aquarium. I saved a Virginia Opossum’s life, and I’m proud of it!

--Jessica
WCV Class of 2015
 

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