Removal of a Dead Opossum in the Wall

04.12.2006 - I liked this job. I was called to this house due to the horrible odor. Sometimes the dead animal odor is faint, and this one aint. What's the past-tense of aint? Waint? Anyhow, as usual, I sniffed and I snuffed, searching for the dead animal. I had no attic space to investigate, so I had to keep my nose on the walls. The smell was strongest in the kitchen. It's usually pretty hard to pinpoint dead animals inside walls. But I'm really good at it. I found the wall with the strongest odor, and as luck would have it, I could make my incision from inside the kitchen closet, thereby eliminating the need for a fancy cosmetic wall fix (which I usually do). I removed the bottom shelf from the closet, and cut a large hole in the wall just above the area of the worst stench. Always cut just above the area - if you cut directly into the stench, you will be sorry. By sorry, I mean you and your power saw will be drenched in juices most foul. I cut the hole, and I was surprised to see, on top of a week-old dead opossum carcass, a live baby opossum! I carefully removed it and placed it in a holding cage. Next, it was time to remove the dead adult. This was not easy. When animals die, they often bloat up with death gasses. I can't describe it in more technical terms unless I do some research. So the opossum carcass was bloated, and this presents a special problem - it became wedged in the wall. I was completely unable to pull it out, because it was stuffed in there like a blown-up balloon. That's when I invented a special tool - a steel prod with a 90-degree bend and a sharp tip - I call it the Possum Popper. Like a weed whacker, it does what it says - it pops possums. I poked the possum, and PSSSST!!! …out came the air, and I was able to remove the deflated opossum. Once it was out, I cleaned out the juice and gunk and guts and stuff, and soaked the area in BioShield, and then I fixed the hole. Problem solved!