Life on the Farm

Remember that wonderful elephant ear plant?  Well, it snowed and got cold.


It lasted a day like this and then it got very cold.  Isn’t this sad?  I need to cut this down and dig up the bulb.


And life on the farm always includes varmints.  Last Friday night I went to the barn about 8 pm.  Can you see what I found in the cat room?


Yup – not one but two possums!  Yikes!  Out came the live traps and it took until last night to catch one of them.


I just can’t shoot them so I loaded the dogs into the pickup and put the trap with possum in the back and drove to a wildlife refuge a number of miles from here.


I carefully opened the trap and propped it open with a branch and shooed the possum out the door.  And away he went into the woods!


There is never a dull moment around here.

Are you watching the World Series?  If you are, you were up late last night like I was watching what CBS News called the “home run derby”.  Go Astros!

27 thoughts on “Life on the Farm

  1. Carol

    Glad you let the possum loose in a safe habitat, they eat ticks, so really are good animals as long as they stay away from the barn!

  2. Joanne

    What a world series! GREAT Baseball. GO RED SOX😄⚾️ truly some of the best baseball to be watching.

  3. Judi L.

    I’m so glad you are pulling for the ‘Stros. I’m not allowed to watch the game cuz when I do they lose and I live in Houston, for goodness sake! Possums can be mean little boogers. We still get them around our neighborhood. I used to think they were cute until they showed their teeth and hissed at me. BTW, I love all your posts…so much fun, since I’m a city gal.

  4. Maryjane in CA

    Thanks for not shooting the possum. Hope you can catch his friend and take to the same place. They are ugly little critters and eat the fruit on my trees I suspect. Must be here for a reason. I’ve heard they kill rats. Looks like winter has come to the midwest. Happy Halloween!

  5. terry moore

    true dont shoot them they a pest and ugly but really good for keeping ticks down.
    they eat up to 4,000 ticks in a night.

  6. Susan Sundermeyer

    All of GOD’s creatures can’t be cute, but they serve a purpose. I keep telling myself that as I smack those spiders 🕷 that are ONLY in my house!

  7. Colleen

    We are in a suburb along with deer sunk raccoon opossums rats squirrels and mice. We had an opossum curl up and die in a small wooden dog house, it was just laying in there dead. Then getting it out was a challenge and then we just didn’t want that dog house any longer so I was about to put it on the curb with a free sign and a lady .stopped and asked if she could have it for her rabbits so done gone no sign making needed. All our wild life except the deer live in our sewer system and come out to find food we (suburbanites) leave out dog and cat food bird seed and fruit from our trees as well as trash that’s left out.
    My relatives that lived in the country never had as much wildlife problems as we do because they were much better about not leaving stuff these animals eat out for them to rummage through.

  8. Pat Smith

    A woman after my own heart. There’s no way I could have hurt a little possum either. Living on a farm must have a lot of life and death challenges. I would be a failure…

  9. Mary R.

    I live in the suburbs and we also have possums. My two labs caught one and killed it. The other night we had all kind of commotion and it turned out to be another possum. We trapped this one and brought it to the animal shelter so they can let it out in the woods. Didn’t want the dogs to get hurt and didn’t want the possum killed.

  10. Beth Laverty

    glad you set the possum free. Some of their favorite treats, or so I understand, are TICKS. Since we have lots of deer we have lots of ticks. If I see a possum I am delighted. Ugly though they may be when they are adults. The little fellas are cute though.

  11. Judy

    You make “life-on-the-farm” look like fun! 🤔Me thinks finding the traps, setting the traps, loading said traps in pick up,, oh and loading up said dogs for a RIDE WITH Possssssoms…… I Can’t see my pups riding WITH said varmints!!!! This made me laugh 😂for sure! And me thinks my back would be aching with all that loading! YOU GO, Girl!!!!!

    Judy in Texas

  12. MartyCae

    We have daily visits from opposums. Our big kitty just sits and looks at them. I wonder what she thinks. I like to watch them walk with their strange tails. Thanks for sharing the pictures.

  13. Diane

    That Elephant Ear is huge–a nice shelter in the rain for chipmunks:) Sorry to see it go. I took a picture once of a possum with 12 babies on her back!! They were just riding along. She did hiss at me as I snapped the picture. Also, save spiders–they eat thousands of mosquitos that could carry disease. Iowa State is having a good season. Ohio State plays Iowa U. this week, I think. It should be a good game:)

  14. Kristine

    Possums oh my; funny he didn’t drop over and play possum on you when you approached the live trap. They’re just sort of a funky animal; we have them in town.

    Onto the World Series – isn’t this such an exciting series; my husband and I watched a lot of baseball this past summer; cheered on our Twins – they are a young and upcoming team – and we are excited to cheer on the Astros – let’s go Houston!!! Yes, we stay up late and watch all the way to the end of the game and comment on the buzz excitement there must be at the actual game. Getting up for work a little before 6:00 is rough but worth it. We will miss the baseball season when the Series is over however college football and basketball will take it’s place.

  15. Launa

    Was 21 degrees out this morning up here in Idaho. Think we could get rain/snow in a day or so. Can’t tell at this altitude. I’m just keeping the fireplace going since everyone else went to “town”! Eighty miles round trip!!! Living off the grid has a few disadvantages this time of year. I have learned a lot about different areas by watching a great program, Outdoor Idaho, on their pbs here.

    Your green thumb will have your plant back in good shape in no time, Mary. Know you can save it.
    Seems odd you had both possums sneak in at the same time. Hadn’t realized they eat ticks.

    Hope your new book quilting is progressing right along; can’t wait to buy a copy!

  16. Tanya T.

    Thanks for the good wishes for the Astros! Game 6 just started and we are glued to the tv amidst the trick or treaters at the door. Tanya in Houston (pouring rain here right now yet Bootiful children are coming)

  17. Felicia Hamlin

    You have a heart of gold Mary to save the poor possums. Maybe they aren’t as cute as raccoons but they are God’s creatures. I watched the game on Sunday, what a game! Today I am watching it and hope one of my sisters doesn’t get too excited, she tells me that she feels that she might have a heart attack when the Astros are losing.

  18. Sharon B.

    Go Astros!!! I thought for sure they would win it last night… but we woke up to a different story… at least we know there will be something worth watching on tv tonight! lol!
    Those possums are cute! I’m sure they’ll find new friends in the refuge…

  19. Susie Q

    Don’t kid yourself… I live in the middle of suburbia and caught six possum the week I was trying to catch wild cats….. I suppose if I got rid of the shed I would have less “wild life” unwanted “life”. Just like if you got rid of cat food less wild life and the cats try harder to catch those rodents…. it is indeed fall and the “gardens” do need cleaning up…..

Comments are closed.