An Australian couple was expecting a quiet evening at home, but their dog had other plans. As they settled in front of the TV, their dog began barking uncontrollably, clearly agitated. Wondering if there was a rat in the house, the couple looked around but couldn’t find anything unusual—until they noticed a hole in their living room wall.
Close to the ceiling, a small hole in the plasterboard revealed a tiny pink nose peeking through. It wasn’t a rat, but a brushtail possum, a nocturnal marsupial native to Australia’s east coast.
The couple initially thought the possum might be stuck and tried to help by cutting a larger hole in the wall, but the possum quickly scurried out of their reach. Unsure of what to do next, they contacted Amy Wregg, a wildlife emergency trauma responder and veterinary nurse from the Gold Coast.
When Wregg arrived, she asked if she could cut a little more out of the wall to help the possum. The couple was more concerned for the animal’s welfare than the wall and agreed.
Once the hole was widened, the possum wriggled out and managed to return to the roof, eventually finding her way outside. The couple was left wondering why the possum had ventured into their home in the first place.
Wregg speculated that the possum might have been attracted by a nearby fruit bowl. “I think they had a fruit bowl nearby and maybe it could smell it,” she said.
To prevent any future visitors, the couple patched up the holes and decided to install a possum box outside, providing a safe refuge for the creatures. Wregg praised the idea, noting that unless the entry points were sealed and an alternative shelter provided, the possums would likely continue trying to enter the house.
“It’s a great idea,” Wregg said. “Unless you fix the problem where they’re getting into the roof, and provide [a] habitat for them, they’re just gonna keep coming in.”