Is an opossum dangerous?
More scared than mean. The hiss is a request to back up. They can bite if grabbed, so do not grab one. Rabies is uncommon in this species, and uncommon is not the same as impossible.
Opossums around the home What is an opossum doing under the deck?
Usually, using a hole that was already there. They do not have the tools to build their own door, and they are less of a villain than the hiss suggests.
Key facts
- Opossums do not create structural holes. They use openings that already exist.
- A raccoon or another stronger animal often made the gap first.
- They eat insects, ticks, fruit, rodents, and carrion.
- Rabies is uncommon in opossums, partly because of a lower body temperature.
- They will use trash, pet food, and the space under a deck or shed.
- Trapping without closing the entry is a short-term fix. Relocation rules vary by state.
Do opossums break into houses?
No. They lack the chewing and digging habits that open a new hole. They take damaged vents, loose soffits, and crawl-space gaps as they find them. If an opossum is under the porch, something else may have opened that spot, or it was never closed. Fixing only the guest and not the gap means another tenant.
They are solitary and mostly out at night. Many are passing through. Blocking the only exit while one is asleep turns a visitor into a roommate.
What good do they do?
They eat a lot of insects and ticks, which matters for tick-borne illness, and they clean up carrion. They are generally not aggressive. The hiss and the teeth are a request for distance. Playing dead is real: a limp opossum may be overwhelmed, not gone. Do not poke it or bag it.
When are they a problem?
Tipped trash, pet food left out, and a den under a deck or shed. Droppings and nesting material in a crawl space or attic can contaminate that area. None of that requires treating them as a threat in the yard. It does justify closing the skirt once you know the space is empty, including any young in a pouch or a den.
What does removal look like?
Live trapping, with a trap sized for the animal and bait such as fruit or pet food, is the common humane method. Traps need to be checked often. Many states limit relocation because of disease risk. A trapped animal and an open hole is only half the work. The vent, soffit, or crawl-space gap has to be repaired, especially if a raccoon opened it.
What changes by region?
Northeast Indiana
Around Fort Wayne they show up under porches, in sheds, and in a garage that was left open. Indiana limits how nuisance wildlife can be moved. We confirm the space is empty, including babies, before any boards go up.
Central Ohio (coming soon)
The same pattern holds in Central Ohio: opossums use existing gaps, and relocation is regulated.
Common questions
It looks dead. Is it?
Maybe not. Opossums play dead when they are overwhelmed and can stay that way longer than you would expect. Leave it alone and check later from a distance.
Did it chew the hole?
Almost never. If the soffit is torn or the vent is bent, a raccoon or another animal likely did that. The opossum moved in afterward. Close the original opening or you will meet someone else.
Will trapping solve it?
Only together with the repair. An empty hole under a deck is an advertisement. State rules may also limit where a live-trapped opossum can be taken.