By Mike Isbell
University of Georgia
"Beavers?" he said. "I meant to say 'bats.' If you see beavers flying from your roof, you'd better be running!"
Doug got his animals mixed up while teaching a class on wildlife damage management to a group of University of Georgia Extension Service agents. While his bats-and-beavers mixup was funny, homeowner encounters with wildlife can be downright hilarious.
Yeah, I know. Bats in your attic are not something you want, unless you happen to be the Herman Munster family. If you have bats or 'possums or any of a number of other critters living in your house, you probably want to get rid of them. That's when you call your county Extension Service agent to find out what you can do.
Cornered 'possum
Some time ago, my friend Donnie, or rather her husband Paul, had a really close encounter with an opossum. Opossums like to take shelter in burrows of other animals, tree cavities and brush piles. But sometimes they den in attics and garages.That's where Donnie and Paul found it -- in the attic above the kitchen.
Now, getting it out was a problem, because the 'possum wouldn't leave on its own. So they began to tear the ceiling down in the kitchen. But every time Donnie and Paul would tear a piece of ceiling down, the 'possum would move.
Finally, they had it in the corner of the kitchen on the last piece of ceiling. Donnie was bound and determined to get that 'possum, so she pulled the last piece down.
And that old 'possum fell right on Paul's head. Donnie said she laughed so hard that she nearly wet her -- well, never mind.
Snake in a drawer
Snakes often find their way into homes. They can make for funny situations, too.A few years ago, when I was a boy -- OK, so it was many years ago -- I went into the house to get a needle out of my mother's sewing machine drawer so I could remove a splinter from my finger. My mother, who is terribly afraid of snakes, was reclined in her La-Z-Boy chair, next to the sewing machine.
When I opened the drawer, I was shocked to find, coiled on top of the spools of thread, a huge, black snake. I yelled "Mama! There's a snake in the drawer!" Well, she didn't believe me. So I opened the drawer again so she could see for herself.
Oh, you should have seen it -- Mom trying to get out of the La-Z-Boy recliner without putting the foot rest down. She just couldn't get the chair to cooperate with her. And I'm not sure if Mom and the chair turned over backward or forward.
Wildlife conflicts
Skunks, squirrels, rats, birds and bats -- they all can get into our homes on occasion. And one thing is certain -- as the human population increases and we move out into habitat suitable for wildlife, we will have humans-and-wildlife conflicts.Yes, wildlife can be a nuisance, and they can cause damage. But they may just be in the wrong place at the right time.
And wouldn't we miss them if they weren't here?
But if you ever see beavers flying....
(Mike Isbell is the Heard County Extension Coordinator with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.)
