In Australia among the many pests that infest home, there is one animal that is a pest yet looks like a pet- Possums. They are bushy tailed mousy looking marsupials that sadly love eating filthy food residues and garbage. They run all over your gardens or external yards damaging young shoots, fruits, flowers and vegetable beds. Once they invade properties they cause substantial damage to insulation and chew your air ducts. They have a nasty habit of leaving their smelly droppings everywhere being an absolute nuisance. So homeowners like you and me have no option but to call in pest control service specialists to solve the problem from them.
Taking Care While Removing Possum
Possums come under the protected list in Australia and they have to be removed practicing care and caution. They also get vulnerable in new surroundings, so they have to be relocated not too far from their last home or nest. That is why homeowners who discover possum activity in their properties often hire possum removal service Sydney experts to do a proper removal as they have the necessary training.
There are several ways you can deter the presence of possums in the first place with no harm caused to them. Pests arrive if they find food and entry points. So knowing that is half the problem solved. Simply remove the things that lure them, block entry points and use items or smells that they avoid.
Let us see a few suggestions that can be of huge help in keeping these pests away without killing them. We want to be as humane as possible.
Block Off All Place or Opportunity That Might Prove As Shelter
We all know pests including possums walk into human habitation seeking a place to settle in. So if you become conscious that possums live in tree branches and hollows, attics and gaps in roof, in your garden shed and under wood piles. Regularly checking for any gaps or crevices in attics, roofs and vents are a good practice and having them blocked or sealed deters their entry. Repair any rips or tears in door or window screens of your home. Keeping wood piles neatly stacked and clean garden sheds also keeps them away. For one they do not like to be confronted by humans and seek quiet places and secondly if you cut off over hanging branches of trees that are too near your roof will prevent them from coming in. Often Pest control Service professionals’ advice trimming of trees and bushes in yards as a good practice of warding possums off.
Remove Food Sources
Possums are voracious eaters and are attracted to your property if there is easy access. They look through trash very often. Keep all your garbage in tightly lidded and closed garbage cans. Do not keep the area around the garbage cans with any food spills. Those of you, who keep a pet food dish outside, remove it by day end or early morning hours as possums are active at night and dawn. Also keep other feed like poultry feed inside cages before night as possums eat that too. Practice storing compost in closed containers and clean all your barbeque grills once you have finished using them in the outdoors. Keep all dropped fruits from trees inside your homes or remove them from your gardens. Possum removal service Sydney experts often place fruits inside traps as baits to lure possums in your property as they love fruits.
Drive Them Away By Odorous Repellents
Like humans avoid places or things that smell offensive to them, possums too are sensitive to a few odors that keep them away. Naphthalene, crushed garlic, ammonia, cayenne pepper, peppermint oil are various options that may be used to act as natural repellents. Possums can also be kept at bay by using chemical sprays or powders weekly around areas they frequent like garden fringes, entrances to doors, garden sheds, and roofs. The toxic smell scares them away.
Use Movement Activated Sprinklers and Lights
Install movement activated sprinklers or lights in your gardens or yards as possums usually come at night. They are afraid of lights and getting wet. The devices detect possum presence and set off and scare them away.
Possums are destructive and can cause a lot of mess with their frequent bouts of defecation spreading germs and infections. It is risky trying to remove them on your own. At first sight it is best to call in possum removal services Sydney experts who use traps and catch them live and safely relocate them at a a certain distance keeping you free from any legal tussle by a wrong move.