They weren’t expecting that.
Late last month, a clothing boutique owner in Seaford, New York, discovered that an unexpected guest had quietly made himself at home inside her shop.
Hidden beneath a wooden desk was a frightened opossum, tucked away in a dark corner and clearly unsure of what to do next.
The boutique’s front door had been left open throughout the warm summer day while deliveries were being made. At some point, the opossum likely wandered inside unnoticed and headed straight for the first quiet hiding place he could find.
Realizing the wild animal needed help getting back outside safely, the owner contacted local animal rescuer Karenlynn Stracher.
Stracher soon arrived and carefully began coaxing the opossum out from beneath the desk. Using a net, she guided him toward a carrier so he could be moved without anyone getting hurt.
But the nervous little visitor wasn’t quite ready to leave empty-handed.
“He ended up grabbing some wires, and in doing that, he knocked all the gift cards that were on the counter right into my net,” Stracher told The Dodo. “It was very funny, as if he was determined to get something for his trouble.”
Despite the brief commotion, Stracher successfully secured the opossum and gave him a careful examination.
Fortunately, he appeared to be perfectly healthy and had no injuries requiring treatment. All he needed was a safe ride back to where he belonged.
Stracher transported him to a nearby nature preserve, where she opened the carrier and released him into the grass.
After his unexpected shopping trip, the opossum was finally back in the wild — and hopefully his next adventure will keep him a little farther away from boutique counters and gift cards.