The Opossum's Pouch Sanctuary, Rescue and Rehabilitation

06/01/2026

This weekend was like most, really busy! Thank you all for recent donations, monetary as well as some most needed items from our wish list. We can't keep our doors open to help without those of you who help us, THANK YOU!

In the middle of a busy afternoon, my sister called and a dog had chased and bitten this little fawn. We have a large deer population that come around and have for decades knowing it's safe for them here. Fawns are placed by the mom and they wait for her to return. When stressed, capture myopathy can be a huge issue and can cause death. I immediately contacted a friend and retired fawn rehabber who instructed us what we needed to do.

It was a distance from where mom left him so we moved him to the trail they follow every evening to feed in our field. Bert stayed with the fawn while I ran to get some Lactated Ringers to Sub Q and attempt to cool the baby down. We quickly left afterwards to prevent any further stress. We were assured the mom would find her baby.

She did! The baby was reunited and we believe he recovered. Please never assume mom has ever abandoned her baby, she hasn't. More are stolen each year believing the fawn needs human intervention. Should anyone need advice please contact me and I can get you in touch with the best of the best with fawns to help you through any situation.

05/29/2026

I've had questions about opossums and their life span.... it's so short in the wild. They can live twice as long in captivity however it's still a short life. This is wonderful information...

05/29/2026

This older girl is blind, she was found walking in circles. She also has a tumor on her chin that we will have to get removed. It's tricky considering there will not be not enough skin to close the area where it's removed. So it may need to heal as an open wound. I hope to get in the to vets tomorrow or Monday to see what our options are.

In the mean time, this senior citizen cannot seem to get full! No matter what food we offer her, it appears to be her favorite! LOL

05/27/2026

This tiny little fellow came in after being found in a garbage can. He probably fell off when mom was climbing out. A bag of garbage was tossed on him before the lady could stop. She immediately removed the garbage and called me. He's so very tiny and a bit listless however I believe it's due to being so dehydrated. I'm sure the weight of the garbage bag didn't help.

Always remember to NEVER offer food or water to a dehydrated baby or adult. Hydration is the #1 medical issue that must be addressed first. I've tube fed this little one hydration fluids most of the day and he appears to be feeling better. His urine is still a little dark so we'll continue with hydration and hopefully start on some weakened down formula in the am. (Well it is the am, lol) Lets say a bit later today.

3 other larger orphans came in and in good health. When tiny they can go in with others their own size to keep them from being alone. Once they get a bit older, they do not play nice with one another! So enclosures with 1, 2 or maybe 3 are really taking up some square footage this season! However, what cute tenants!

05/26/2026

I was able to snap this picture quietly so I didn't wake her up. I didn't use a flash so not the best photo. This girl came in pretty torn up by a dog. Regardless of her injuries she raised her 7 babies. Molly has trouble walking due to a broken pelvis and right rear leg. Her wounds have completely healed but she will remain with us here. If released she would be bred again and carrying babies on her back would be impossible and unfair to her. Seeing Molly safe and having an easy life is worth the long hours most rehabbers put in daily. I wish this was a paying job! ☺️. I would be so wealthy, I'd never worry about keeping them all fed again! lol.

05/25/2026

This boy was struck by a truck and quickly picked up by a nice girl who called about 1am Friday night. He had a gash also on his back, and loaded with ticks around his face and ears. His nasal passage is swollen and wow can he snore! Tonight he's much more alert, his eyes are looking much better but very sweet and loves to be cuddled. Not quite the normal behavior so we'll have to evaluate in the days to come if he'll be a non-releasable due to the head trauma. It's such a relief to have one with less harsh injuries, which is rare!

05/24/2026

I often take calls from a long distance away. Figuring out how to set up some form of a relay back to me can really take a village. In this older girls case, she was over 2 hrs away. Jessica Strickland helped get her safe and evaluated. The process of removing and treating for maggots began. This is so common this time of year and it's so sad for the animal. Frances and his wife Rachel relayed her and met me so I only drove about an hour, 2 hr round trip.

We have no clue what happened but she appears to be blind in the uninjured eye and unsure due to the injury about the other. Her pouch was also full of maggots and badly infected as was her face. There were old wounds. I feel better about her pulling through due to her appetite being pretty good for as sick as she is. She's very sweet and so easy to work with. I wish laws would change in every state so those who cannot return to the wild could be given a home the way we can in SC. We keep fighting bills they attempt to pass taking away our freedom to help all wildlife. It's disturbing to know you can kill all year around, but heaven forbid you want to save them. Thank you all for the continued support!!

05/22/2026

A number of orphans have arrived with injuries and often with babies it's usually it's a larger animal attack. The first photo is Wrenny. We believe she was caught by a cat due to the marks on her neck and back. Right now she's moving her back legs but unable to walk due to nerve damage. We're doing the Trager Therapy to hopefully allow her to stand again. The second photo is Sydney. He also has some nerve damage in all four legs however this front legs are already moving really well. We're unsure what could have happened with him but he seems not to react to his surroundings normally. There could be some minor head injuries and we are also working with the Trager therapy to help him also. Space can be limited sometimes so these two share a little sleep pod with an enclosed net for their safety. Sydney is more mobile so he crawls into Wreny's blanket for snuggles and they get along perfectly! (Both had just been syringe fed their formula so a mouth wiping is due, lol)

We also took in a pretty sad situation with an old lady, which I'll post about tomorrow. We're feeling guarded but do believe she's going to recover nicely. She was over 2 hours away and it indeed took a village to help her.

05/21/2026

Several of you have asked for the Amazon Wish List to be posted. In the past I've had some issues with it posting properly, but giving it a try again....

05/21/2026

Two posts down is Manny, who was one of the latest intakes below. He was so beaten up with wounds all over his face. His gums were ripped from his jawbone on one side and I've been packing it with sugar. The infection is looking better. Manny has been tube fed a few days now due to how weak he's been. He ate all by himself tonight! He's so emaciated, his meals have to be in small portions and given 3-4 times a day. So he will have another meal in a bit (4am here) and we're keeping his foods bland so it's easy to digest. Just to see him feel like eating was such a relief! He had me worried but to see him actually want to eat makes me feel much better for his recovery!!

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