Possum trapped in Chimney!!!

In a fireplace eh, well light a fire, that'll get it moving,
OK what about a pair of gloves, you know the sort welders wear that go half way up the arm , try to lasso it with a small dia' rope and pull it up like that , even if you got 1 leg ,good luck .....to the Possum,

Oh it's not feral Rabbits, This is Australia ....it's Bilby's
It's not Fries.....it's Chips,

Leave the fire door open and a clear path to the side door (nobody just standing there to scare it to death) and climb onto the roof and push your chimney (round brush) cleaner down the chimney, forcing the possum down the chimney, out through the front of the fire place and hopefully out of the house.....goodluck cheers Phil

the last time i had this problem i lowered down my flue cleaner and the offender came up clutching the plastic pipe (25mm).i think the bright light was a bit of a shock to him but i stood well away so he could make his escape. lower the pipe or broom handle on a rope gently until you feel something soft,slowly raise and lower until you feel the weight then raise very slowly.remember the claws when said possum comes to the top.happy possum hunting...

Patrick: what's happened?

Most interesting post on here for ages! :)

We had the same problem - left some banana & water in the firebox, & left the fire door & the side door open. In the morning there was a trail of ashy pawprints out of the fire & out the door (banana gone).
The only problem was he reappeared at the door the next night looking for more banana!

Jenny.

8pm update:

Thanks to all for the ideas and concerns about our poor old possum.

I used the apple in the heath trick and down he came to have a munch. Thank God that he did as I was not looking forward to doing battle with a sabre tooth possum. Dropped a towel over it and let it loose in the backyard.

Hesan't to say that it had a rye smile on its face when it scrambled off as if it was saying see you next time. It will be disappointed as I have already placed chicken wire over the chimney entrance.

A great result for one of natures nice animals.

Thanks all for your thoughts.

Cheers, Patrick

Well done Pat

You could use an apple,, but you may have a friend for life !

When the kids were little, and we lived on King Island, I did the apple trick.

Guess what ?
If we hadn't feed them by a certain time every night ,, they would tap in the window

Little fury devils

Cheers Bucky

Possums, protected wildlife, and they make our life hell, in NSW there not to be moved more then 50 metres down the road and held long enough for you to make your house possum proof. You dont want cooked possum or a dead on either have you smelt a dead possum, my trade is pest control and as a trainee, i had to retrieve a dead possum from the roof and i had a carbon filter and i could smell it thru the filter and tring to retrieve a dead possum gagging from the stench, i still get shudders from that memory??

A good solution and happy for you that it worked out!!!

Cheers

Oh Patrick I can empathise with you. Years ago when I was living in Sydney a mate of mine who was a toolmaker & and lived in the very leafy and expensive north shore of Sydney invited me to his house to see the new tiled floor he had put down in the bathroom, we are sitting in this guys lounge, resplendent in white shag pile carpet enjoying a schnapps or two and we hear this drip drip drip from the fire place. Gunter ( he is German as were all toolmakers back then) sticks his head into the fireplace to see what is dripping down the chimney and discovers a possum. Of course me never having seen a possum in the wild soon also had his head in the chimney....
Ok so Gunter decides that the simplest way to get the possum out is to go outside and hose the top of the chimney but the possum rather than endure a blast from the hose chooses the least path of resistance an goes the other way, down into the house, soot every where, shreds curtains, makes an ungodly mess of the place, attacks Gunter's Doberman sent in to "rouse rouse" the possum.... he claimed it all on insurance but I don't think he was totally honest in his claim, something like "He was out and came home to find the mess". The poor Doberman had multiple cuts & lacerations that saw it in Mosman vet hospital for a week...
Now how do you get a possum out of such a space? I'm told the best way to rid yourself of possums in confined spaces is to spray insect spray in there and leave a clear opening, stand well clear and ensure your dog or perhaps vigilant cat is secure, the possum will according to my informant, a man of considerable veterinary knowledge, leave the space forthwith....

We had a possum stuck in metal flue of our slow burning wood heater. Had to lift the flue out (with possum inside). It bolted off, albeit with a slight limp.

I wonder whether dropping a rope down the flue would have done the trick? (Let him climb out.)

Like you we put chicken wire over the flue after the possum episode plus a number of wattle birds trying to find nest sites. But be warned: the chicken wire significantly reduces the flow of smoke from the flue. Best to take it off before lighting a fire.

glad you got it out, my suggestion was to stick the old 12 gauge up and kablam.