If you find injured or orphaned wildlife:

• Call ARC for instructions or read the information provided      in this site.
• If it is determined the animal needs assistance, then: Pick      up the animal gently with gloves on;
• Place animal in a small box with soft cloth on the          bottom. Secure lid and create ventilation.
• Place a heating pad set on "low" half way UNDER the box,   or a plastic bottle filled with hot water and wrapped in a cloth        IN the box;
• Place the box in a quiet, dark room. DO NOT give food or water.

The Virginia opossum is a unique creature, as it is North             America's only marsupial, and is related to kangaroos and koalas. After a brief gestation of a mere 12-13 days, the tiny      undeveloped young (weighing only about a tenth of a gram and      the size of a lima bean) crawl from the birth canal and find their     way into the mother's pouch, a fur-lined cavity on the outside of      her abdomen. Once inside the pouch, the babies each fasten to a nipple, which expand to "lock" the little ones in place.

Should you find a dead opossum, check immediately to see if it       has a pouch (males will not have pouches). The pouch will appear   as a slit running the length of the abdomen. Any babies will be located on the undersides of the "flaps" on either side of the slit.      If the mother has been recently killed, the babies will still be           locked onto the nipples. Using one hand, firmly pinch the nipple      with your thumb and forefinger. With the other hand, firmly but gently grasp the baby's jaw and snout. Pull in the opposite      direction to release the suction and free the baby from the          mother. In some instances, the nipple may tear and remain in        the baby’s mouth. If this happens, carefully use a pair of           tweezers to remove the section of nipple.

If mom has been dead for a while, the babies may have already    separated from the nipples. You may even find one or two             outside the mother's body. Be sure to check the mother's pouch anyway to be sure they are all removed and rescued. A female opossum may have as many as 13 babies.

Keep the babies in a warm, dark, quiet place until you can get           them to an ARC rehabilitator. Do NOT try to feed the babies, and      do not try to give them water. Offering food or water before they      are stabilized could be detrimental to their survival.  For more          information, call ARC at (704) 552-2329.