Trapping possums in Dalmore

Denise and Philip live in Dalmore and have trapped 10 possums since getting a Flipping Timmy trap in June this year.

Philip rebaiting their Flipping Timmy trap.

What motivated you to start trapping?

When we first moved here in 2007, we were given an old style Timm's trap. It was awful. It would trap the possum by an arm, and we'd have to go out and put the poor thing out of its misery. We stopped trapping for a long time. Then I saw a flyer for a City Sanctuary event, and was convinced that the new traps were much more humane and thought we'd try again.

What would you say to encourage others to get involved?

When you are used to the damage that possums do, you don't really notice it. Once they are not eating all the tips off the rātā, and not killing the wineberry that I only planted last year, the garden looks a very different place. And the birds come back. :)

Possums come in all shapes, sizes and colours in Dalmore!

Do you have any trapping tips to share with others?

We're a bit lazy. All the blaze washed off the tree with all the rain, and I never got around to re-doing it. It didn't seem to matter. We still average a possum about every 2 weeks. We bait with fresh apple, but it seems to be more attractive to the possums once it starts to go off a bit, so we only rebait every couple of weeks.

What species would you like to see flourishing in your area again?

Many years ago, I found a Peripatus in my garden. I've been very careful not to mess with the undergrowth too much ever since, but I've never seen another one. I'd love to find another.