Author Topic: The joys of home-ownership  (Read 2539 times)

MechAg94

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 33,620
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #25 on: July 27, 2022, 12:05:28 PM »
There is at least one opossum that comes through my back yard occasionally.  I usually leave it alone.  It seems to be coming through foraging and doesn't mess with my house or stuff.  I am more annoyed by the cats that come hang out. 
“It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones.”  ― Calvin Coolidge

RoadKingLarry

  • friends
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 21,841
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #26 on: July 27, 2022, 12:13:05 PM »
Yeah don't want opossums under your house but other than that I'll leave them alone in the wild.
And while Virginia Opossums -  Didelphis virginiana, are welcome on the property the armored opossums - Didelphis heemeyeris (AKA armadillos) are not and will be terminated with extreme prejudice.
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or your arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen.

Samuel Adams

MechAg94

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 33,620
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #27 on: July 27, 2022, 12:16:10 PM »
Agreed.  Armadillos just dig up your yard.  Not as bad as wild hogs, but you still find holes in the yard. 
“It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones.”  ― Calvin Coolidge

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #28 on: July 27, 2022, 01:56:05 PM »
I've killed a couple armadillos since moving here.  Little bastards are hard to find.  I found a tunnel under the rear stairs, filled it in with some rocks, brick pieces and a couple bags of concrete.

I haven't bothered the opossums that have come wandering around, they didn't bother me & I didn't bother them.  If these hadn't decided to move in, without permission, they'd still be running around. 

The toilet's in and working.  Passed the plumber at the end of my road as he was heading out.  He did a couple minor upgrades, (larger bolts, better flange), with no extra charges.  And he used the wax ring.  Said he didn't care for the other type.  Over the phone he'd quoted $200 +/- to only replace the flange, total came in at $215 with the toilet installed.  I'm good with that.

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #29 on: July 27, 2022, 02:34:58 PM »

snip

Possums will generally only bite if they are REALLY provoked. Because, generally, they're not aholes. Like raccoons or squirrels. Or humans.

I'm sure you're not referring to any "humans" here....

Jim147

  • friends
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 7,587
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #30 on: July 27, 2022, 05:09:32 PM »
Well, I'm an ahole.

I was doing a heat pump/furnace install for a friend's son in a small lake community just northeast of me a few years back. Customer was at work but gave me a key. I went to the back bedroom closet to turn the power off to the 220v so I could install a disconnect. Out of a hole in the wall pops out a baby opossum. I yanked my pistol and said WTF? Go back in your hole and leave me alone. Turns out it was a pet.

Groundhogs and possum on the half shell get shot on sight here due to the damage they do to around the buildings. The opossum's get played with by the dogs until the dogs get bored. 
Sometimes we carry more weight then we owe.
And sometimes goes on and on and on.

BAH-WEEP-GRAAAGHNAH WHEEP NI-NI BONG

K Frame

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 44,007
  • I Am Inimical
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #31 on: July 27, 2022, 05:15:50 PM »
I'm sure you're not referring to any "humans" here....

Did I stutter?
Carbon Monoxide, sucking the life out of idiots, 'tards, and fools since man tamed fire.

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #32 on: July 27, 2022, 05:25:57 PM »
According to some, I've been an ahole for decades.  Their opinion hasn't caused me to change my ways.

If I'm not going to allow a human to *expletive deleted*ck up my *expletive deleted*it, I'm sure as hell not going to let some 4 legged creature get away with it.  Whatever it takes.

Poisonous snakes fall into that category too.

K Frame

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 44,007
  • I Am Inimical
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #33 on: July 27, 2022, 05:38:24 PM »
Jesus wept, I'm not saying for you to turn your home over to the possums. Live trapping and having them relocated is an option. Search online as there are quite a few wildlife rescue groups that will do that at no charge to you.

As for the snake slithering into the same area as the possums, sure, that means that the possums aren't doing their job and are relying on Uber for their meals.
Carbon Monoxide, sucking the life out of idiots, 'tards, and fools since man tamed fire.

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #34 on: July 27, 2022, 08:22:36 PM »
https://tpwd.texas.gov/regulations/outdoor-annual/hunting/fur-bearing-animal-regulations/nuisance-fur-bearing-animals

Quote
Nuisance fur-bearing animals may be captured and relocated if the person has received authorization from the department and the owner of the property where the release will occur. A monthly report is required and must be submitted to the department on number and kind of fur-bearers captured, location of release site, name and address of person authorized to release.

Nope.  I am NOT going through that *expletive deleted*it for a opossum.

https://hartzpestcontrol.com/animal-relocation/

Quote
For just $125, Hartz Pest Control will bring a live trap to your home and help relocate any pests on your property.

That one's in S. TX, and the listed price seems to be for one animal - not a family.  They aren't driving up here.  A quick search didn't bring up any closer than Dallas or Tyler, no prices listed, & I'm not going to call them.

Quote
Landowners or their agents may take nuisance fur-bearing animals in any number by any means at any time on that person's land without the need for a hunting or trapping license. However, fur-bearing animals or their pelts taken for these purposes may not be retained or possessed by anyone at any time except licensed trappers during the lawful open season and possession periods.

No limit, no season, no license.  OK.  (Bolding mine)


https://miwallcorp.com/cci-blazer-ammunition-22-long-rifle-40-grain-lead-round-nose-50-rounds-brass-case/   $0.68/rnd


K Frame

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 44,007
  • I Am Inimical
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #35 on: July 28, 2022, 07:10:40 AM »
Well, then I suggest you pull back and nuke it from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

Carbon Monoxide, sucking the life out of idiots, 'tards, and fools since man tamed fire.

MechAg94

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 33,620
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #36 on: July 28, 2022, 08:48:26 AM »
https://tpwd.texas.gov/regulations/outdoor-annual/hunting/fur-bearing-animal-regulations/nuisance-fur-bearing-animals

Nope.  I am NOT going through that *expletive deleted*it for a opossum.

https://hartzpestcontrol.com/animal-relocation/

That one's in S. TX, and the listed price seems to be for one animal - not a family.  They aren't driving up here.  A quick search didn't bring up any closer than Dallas or Tyler, no prices listed, & I'm not going to call them.

No limit, no season, no license.  OK.  (Bolding mine)


https://miwallcorp.com/cci-blazer-ammunition-22-long-rifle-40-grain-lead-round-nose-50-rounds-brass-case/   $0.68/rnd
Just get a list of people you don't like that live either far enough away or on the other side of a natural barrier like a river.  Don't want the pests coming back.
“It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones.”  ― Calvin Coolidge

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #37 on: July 28, 2022, 09:10:42 PM »
Just get a list of people you don't like that live either far enough away or on the other side of a natural barrier like a river.  Don't want the pests coming back.

Think 1200 miles (+/-) is far enough?

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #38 on: August 04, 2022, 09:24:23 PM »
As of Tues evening, the total's up to 5 dead opossums.  Dog & machete for one, dog & Taurus 4" .357 for the other.  Overkill?  Maybe.  But that's two more that aren't living under the house.

I've been a bit concerned about my lack of practice with any handgun lately.  This encounter showed that I'm not as far out of practice as I thought.  About 9pm I was on the porch watching the dogs do their evening thing when one of them started hunting back & forth, as if she was tracking something.  She dropped over the edge of the pond where I couldn't see her & started barking.  Since this was the same area the other dog had started chasing a skunk, I hustled on over.  It's 40 - 50 yards from the house, and due to my asthma & CPOD I was huffing pretty good by the time I got there.  The opossum was about 5' lower on the hill and running away through the weeds.  Stopped him first shot at about 25'.  Missed the head shot but got him mid-body, about 3" back.

Those of you in the north (~1200 mi. from here) can hug 'em and stroke 'em however you like - no judgement here (well, maybe a little).  Down here in rural TX I'm gonna decorate my fence line with their skulls.

K Frame

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 44,007
  • I Am Inimical
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #39 on: August 05, 2022, 06:33:48 AM »
Oh, don't worry, even if you're not judging, I'm judging six ways from *expletive deleted*ing Sunday, with enough left over to carry well into the following week.
Carbon Monoxide, sucking the life out of idiots, 'tards, and fools since man tamed fire.

MechAg94

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 33,620
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #40 on: August 05, 2022, 09:08:26 AM »
I agree with the "moving in" comment.  If the rodents just pass through and go back to wherever they live, that is fine.  If families try to move into the yard, that is another matter.  No squatters.   =)
“It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pass good ones.”  ― Calvin Coolidge

Ben

  • Administrator
  • Senior Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 45,738
  • I'm an Extremist!
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #41 on: August 05, 2022, 09:15:15 AM »
I agree with the "moving in" comment.  If the rodents just pass through and go back to wherever they live, that is fine.  If families try to move into the yard, that is another matter.  No squatters.   =)

That's how I try to look at it. Other than it's open season on the dirty racoons after the Steve incident. They want war? They got war.
"I'm a foolish old man that has been drawn into a wild goose chase by a harpy in trousers and a nincompoop."

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #42 on: August 05, 2022, 09:17:15 PM »
There's at least one skunk, I don't know how many feral cats, an uncountable amount of squirrels & who knows what other nominal pests running around the area.  Hell, I've even run off a couple coyotes - without using anything lethal.

They stay out of my house, away from me & mine, and we're good.

Oh, don't worry, even if you're not judging, I'm judging six ways from *expletive deleted*ing Sunday, with enough left over to carry well into the following week.

People have been judging me my entire life, and it will continue until (at least) the day I die.  There have been less than a handful who's opinion actually mattered to me.  You, Sir, are not one of them.

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #43 on: August 05, 2022, 09:31:36 PM »
To brag a bit, the shot was taken after cycling the first 3 cylinders without firing.  I keep the first 3 cylinders loaded with snake shot, the other 3 with hollow points.

Bogie

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 10,153
  • Hunkered in South St. Louis, right by Route 66
    • Third Rate Pundit
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #44 on: August 05, 2022, 10:23:19 PM »
Back when I was living in the apartment in Dogtown here in St. Louis, we had a possum move into the basement, and drop a litter. The landlord (about 24 apts in the building) liked to rent to college girls, and other "low impact" tenants, and some of them thought the possum babies were just SO cute...
 
Then the entire first floor in the back of the building (where she set up possum habitat) developed fleas...
 
And then I had the college girls knocking on my door, wondering if I could do anything about the critters. You see, I'd helped install better locks on the doors, etc., after an incident (Perd, Dick Ford's kid was a tenant, and painted the walls with one of the girls...), and they thought I could help. I told 'em that I could do that...
 
I didn't tell them that it involved a trenching tool and the dumpster.
 
So, got 'em down to pretty much just Mama Possum, and one of the gay guys from the back of the building is knocking on my fire escape door... They have Mama cornered, and she's in the ceiling over the laundry room.
 
I tell him that it's gonna be handled, and though for a moment... I went and got a Yugo Mauser that I had, along with a Mad Mike-sized bayonet. Walked downstairs, rounded the corner, and the dude saw that, his eyes rolled up, and he hit the floor in a dead faint. So, the rest of the crowd woke him up and took him upstairs, and told him that I was just going to prod her toward the door with my wall display.
 
With them gone, I ganked her and put her in the dumpster with a cardboard box on top.
Blog under construction

MillCreek

  • Skippy The Wonder Dog
  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 19,963
  • APS Risk Manager
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #45 on: August 06, 2022, 03:37:39 PM »
_____________
Regards,
MillCreek
Snohomish County, WA  USA


Quote from: Angel Eyes on August 09, 2018, 01:56:15 AM
You are one lousy risk manager.

HeroHog

  • Technical Site Pig
  • Administrator
  • Senior Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 8,030
  • It can ALWAYS get worse!
    • FaceButt Profile
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #46 on: August 06, 2022, 06:01:53 PM »
NOTE, that is read from Right to left, top down.

Right Jahe Sama?
I might not last very long or be very effective but I'll be a real pain in the ass for a minute!
MOLON LABE!

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #47 on: August 06, 2022, 07:48:37 PM »
snip....
 
I tell him that it's gonna be handled, and though for a moment... I went and got a Yugo Mauser that I had, along with a Mad Mike-sized bayonet. Walked downstairs, rounded the corner, and the dude saw that, his eyes rolled up, and he hit the floor in a dead faint. So, the rest of the crowd woke him up and took him upstairs, and told him that I was just going to prod her toward the door with my wall display.
 
With them gone, I ganked her and put her in the dumpster with a cardboard box on top.

Well, you did "prod" her, just a bit harder than they thought....   :rofl:

Cliffh

  • friend
  • Senior Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 2,225
Re: The joys of home-ownership
« Reply #48 on: August 07, 2022, 04:42:52 AM »
Re-reading my last, it looks as if I were laughing at the "prodding".   That's not what I meant, instead I was laughing at the human element -especially the fainting part.