How to Keep Possums Away From Cat Food?

The excitement that comes with spotting a possum is unparalleled by any other experience. These creatures are well-known for their inquisitive and lively natures, yet things can quickly become highly messy when they appear in locations where they are not allowed. If you’ve been having difficulties preventing possums from entering your cat’s home, you don’t need to worry because we’re here to assist!

7 Effective Ways to Keep Possums Away From Cat Food

There are 7 effective strategies you may take if you want to prevent possums from eating your cat’s food. Let’s discuss them all

• Feed them inside

Keeping the food for your cat inside your house or in your garage is most likely your best option for ensuring its safety.

This will prevent possums from attempting to take a snack from your kitty food. You also have the option of keeping a close eye on your cat while it is feeding in order to frighten away any intruders.

Lastly, you might bring the cat food inside during the day, when nocturnal creatures like possums are most active, and leave it outdoors during the day.

• Use repellents

You may also purchase a repellant, put it to use, and then place it on your garbage cans to stop possums from invading your property.

Possums are not harmful, although having them around your house may be inconvenient and unhealthy for your cats.

• Use possum traps

If you don’t want to injure the possum but yet need to keep it away from your feline companion’s home, setting a trap is a simple and effective solution to your problem. There are many various kinds of traps available on the market nowadays; thus, you should look for one that is both successful and kind to the animals it captures. Be careful to position the trap in a location that is not close to your home or any other structures.

You don’t want the possum to get wounded, but you also don’t want it to go into a hazardous part of your property either. 

Do not worry if you happen to catch a possum since you will be able to release it at a different spot. Before releasing the animal into its natural habitat, you should make it a point to research any local ordinances that could prohibit the transfer of possums.

• Hire Animal Controller

If you have an issue with possums breaking into your cat’s food bowl, one approach is to get in touch with a pest control company. Possum management may be accomplished by various methods, including the use of traps and other deterrents, which can be provided by firms that specialize in pest control. However, extreme caution is required when utilizing any of these techniques because of the potential risk they provide to both children and animals.

• Use lights or sprinklers

Installing a Motion Sensor Light or using Water Sprinklers are two other methods that may be used to prevent possums from eating your cat food.

Using motion sensor lights:

This will trigger the light to turn on anytime the possum is within range, which will frighten it and lead it to run away. In addition, the light causes the possum to briefly lose its vision, which makes it harder for the possum to see the kitty food. The mere presence of other food sources in the area may be enough to discourage the possum from trying to eat your cat’s food.

Using water sprinklers:

Installing a sprinkler system that is triggered by motion is one strategy you may use to prevent possums from stealing your cat’s food. The movement of the animal is detected by the system’s sensors, which then cause the sprinkler to begin spraying the animal with water. The possum is frightened by the water, which forces it to run away and most likely prevents it from returning to the region in the future. Because opossums are typically shy creatures who despise being cornered in the open, this approach ought to be able to successfully deter them from accessing the food you provide for your cat.

• Remove food sources from outside

You need to get rid of any other food sources in the area if you don’t want possums to snack on the cat food you leave out for them. This requires removing all other potential sources of nourishment from the possum’s environment. Taking steps such as removing bird feeders and rubbish cans from your yard may fall under this category. Because of this, the possum will have a lower chance of finding food, and as a result, it will have a lower chance of eating your cat’s food. This will put the possum in a position where it will have to decide between moving on to a new location or starving to death, and we can only hope that it will select the former option. 

• Use natural remedy: 

Garlic and other strong-smelling foods can also be used as a natural deterrent against possums. Although urea or naphthalene are also advised, it is essential to keep in mind that both of these substances may be quite harmful to anybody who comes into contact with them. On the other hand, garlic can be efficiently used to scare away possums, so chopping it up and sprinkling it in the area where they are most likely to enter is a smart method to discourage them from coming in.

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FAQs

Question: Can Possums Make Cats Sick

Answer: Yes, possums may be carriers of various infectious illnesses that are lethal to cats, and these infections can be passed on to cats. Cats can get a variety of diseases from possums, including the following:

• Spotted fever
• Rabies
• Tularemia
• Tuberculosis

Question: What Smell Keeps Possums Away

Answer: The smell of mothballs, garlic, camphor, onions, animal fertilizers, and fish can keeps possums away.

Question: What Time of Night Do Possums Come Out

Answer: Possums are nocturnal, meaning they are most active in the evening and early morning (between 10:00 PM and 6:00 AM). Because of this, they sleep throughout the day.

Question: What Repels Possums but Not Cats

Answer: Garlic often repels possums but not cats.

Verdict

Possums really have the potential to be helpful to humans since they consume pests such as ticks and snakes that may be harmful. Nevertheless, keeping your cats away from possums and avoiding any contact with their excrement or urine is advisable. This is because possums may transmit diseases that might be harmful to your cats.

In order to prevent possums from gaining access to your home, you should probably put away any tempting snacks, such as cat food, at least while they are awake at night. Find ways to make your house less appealing to possums, which is another method for keeping possums away from your kitty food and your property.