Hands down, the best thing that happened to the planet Earth is the array of animals it so lovingly carries. Of course, things would be much better if humans wouldn’t interfere with their existence – however, sadly, that’s an ongoing matter that will continue being a problem for a while. Still, it’s safe to say that without animals, our existence would be much duller – as seeing their adorable faces somewhere on our feed can make our whole day or even week better.
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Nowadays, it makes folks raise their eyebrows if someone says they don’t own a pet, or even worse when they are totally not interested in having one. Dogs and cats have replaced children for many families and have been great companions to those who chose to have kids. Though, when there’s no possibility of owning a pet for one reason or another, the internet comes to the rescue and does a great job of satisfying your cute-animal “cravings”. Bored Panda decided to gather the most adorable pictures of possums and opossums that will undoubtedly brighten your day.
#1 Australian Veterinary Clinic Rescues A Rare Golden Possum, People Say They Just Caught A Pikachu
Image credits: Boronia Veterinary Clinic And Animal Hospital
Many confuse possums and opossums, thinking that they’re the same animal – however, that’s not really the case, as the animals actually live in different countries. Opossums reside in North and South America, whereas possums are native to Australia, Indonesia, New Guinea, New Zealand and lastly China. Even though both animals are marsupials, possums are the lucky ones as they’re more closely related to kangaroos (not that it really interferes with their cuteness).
Besides, the word “opossum” is borrowed from a Powhatan language – a language that was spoken by the Virginia Algonquian tribe and in essence meant “white dog or dog-like beast”. Later on, a British botanist thought that possums looked fairly similar to opossums, which is why they were given such a similar name.
#2 Possum Tries To Steal Cat’s Food, And Cat’s Reaction Is Priceless
Image credits: MrRogers247
The animals are both nocturnal and carry their babies in a pouch, though if you look at their tails, opossums have a scaly and nearly hairless tail, whilst possums have a bushy one, almost squirrel-like. Also, possums are herbivores, meaning they are all about the greens, however opossums have a broad diet, as they’ll eat anything from fruits, to carrion meat, to cat and dog food that people mistakenly or deliberately leave on their porches.
Now, talking about their famous protective reactions, opossums usually hiss – though when they understand that this particular technique is failing, they’ll play dead. In fact, this reaction is not voluntarily and is an instinctive response.
#3 An Opossum Monching On Some Foods
Image credits: lolaopossum
#4 The Australian Western Pygmy Possum Is Actually One Of The Largest Pygmy Possums In The World Despite Being No Larger Than A Typical Kiwi Fruit
Image credits: Chris Jolly
Moreover, the confusion between the two is very much real – as the word opossum is used for more than 100 different species of marsupials across America, and the word possum is applied for a group of about 67 species found in Australia, New Guinea and Indonesia. American folks often don’t realize that the name of the animal living there is opossum, causing this teeny-tiny confusion.
#5 Friends Cat Has Adopted A Baby Possum
Image credits: notnexus
#6 So A Family Of Opossums Walked Out In Front Of Me
Image credits: iTokki
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Despite all these differences and a few similarities, the animals are extremely cute, though opossums have been known to attack humans. The animals can grow up to a medium dog’s size, are lucky owners of sharp claws and also have about 50 teeth that, presumably, are just as sharp. Apart from hissing and entering the catatonic state when encountering some sort of danger, opossums will also secrete a green smelly fluid that will make the “playing dead” seem more believable.
#7 When Your Possum Demands And Finally Gets A Bed In Your Dresser
Image credits: juniperfoxx
#8 Baby Possum Got Into Our House Last Night. This Is How We Found It This Morning
Image credits: MAStalone
Essentially saying, the animals have a great and well-thought plan of potentially saving themselves when something goes south. Moreover, even though the creatures have a bit of a reputation, they can absolutely do some good for your garden by eating all the unwanted and venomous pests – so if you see one in your neighborhood, maybe think about leaving it alone.
#9 The Possum That Visits Our Deck Every Evening Brought Along Somebody Special Last Night! Meet Deckster And Backster
Image credits: strongredcordial
Essentially saying, the animals have a great and well-thought plan of potentially saving themselves when something goes south. Moreover, even though the creatures have a bit of a reputation, they can absolutely do some good for your garden by eating all the unwanted and venomous pests – so if you see one in your neighborhood, maybe think about leaving it alone.
#10 A Different Easter Bunny
Image credits: mustbeaweasley94
#11 Possum Trashes Woman’s Office In Australia, Becomes A Meme
Image credits: FF_notes
#12 A Possum, Skunk, And Raccoon All Having Dinner Together! Apparently, There Was A Fox At One Point As Well! My Colleague’s Sister Took This Photo From Her Back Yard
Image credits: PlasmaReuse
Turns out, the animals are not only adorable but are often misjudged by us, when they’re actually quite helpful to the environment. Let us know if you’ve already happened to befriend your local possum or opossum. And now that you know about their benefits, next time you see it sticking out of your trash can, maybe give it some dog food for being so great.
#13 I See Your Shoulder Cats, Is It Too Late For A Shoulder Baby Opossum?
Image credits: allyboo1620
#14 My Step Dad Stumbled Across This Little Guy While Hunting
Image credits: Sretlaw
#15 Australian Possum. She Found A Strawberry
Image credits: crikeyguvna
#16 Little Opie From The Rehab Center I Work At
Image credits: _Conservative_Hippy_
#17 Rare Pygmy Possums Just Got Rediscovered After Fears That Bushfires Wiped Them Out
Image credits: Kangaroo Island Land for Wildlife
#18 Missing My Field Site And All Its Amazing Critters
Image credits: Amanda McLean
#19 An Opossum Got Into My Buddy’s House And He Snapped A Selfie With It While He Was Carrying It Out
Image credits: reddit.com
#20 Owner Finds A Baby Possum Clinging On To Her Dog’s Back
Image credits: Sally Watkinson
#21 Cute Baby Opossum I Found In My House
Image credits: reddit.com
#22 This Possum Being Caught Out
Image credits: 1Darkest_Knight1
#23 This Rescue Opossum My Mom Met At A Nature Center
Image credits: MojitoJesus
#24 Golden Brushtail Possum
Image credits: unoiamaQT
#25 Have A Happy Possum!
Image credits: OryxTheJimmy
#26 These Possums Live In My Window
Image credits: dsfenasni
#27 I Think That He Likes The Legos
Image credits: pinkcloyd
#28 I Met A Woman With A Possum And A Beautifully Sincere Smile
Image credits: ladypugsworth
#29 Possum Of The Day
Image credits: avec.possum
#30 This Little Pygmy-Possum Is Having A Snooze
Image credits: Conservation Volunteers Australia
#31 My Friends And I Saved A Baby Ring Tail Possum! Here’s Her With The Vet
Image credits: Coragiran
#32 Rescued Baby Opossum
I rescued this baby opossum found in our parking lot yesterday. With the lid of the box closed we could hear her running around but whenever I opened the lid she would play dead. Here she is playing dead with a piece of food in her mouth.
Image credits: Im_The_One
#33 Ready For A Slumber Party
Image credits: itsmesesame
#34 Found A Baby Opossum In My Recycling Bin This Morning
Image credits: LovingMap
#35 Volunteering As A Wildlife Rescue Rehabilitator Is Often Hard And Heartbreaking Work. But Having Tiny Babies Fall Asleep In Your Hands Makes It All Worth It
Image credits: linneah15
#36 Starry & Daff Moments To Warm Our Hearts
Image credits: itsmesesame
#37 Don’t Forget To Brush Your Teeth!
Image credits: PossumEveryHour
#38 This Heck Of A Thing Hanging From Your Kitchen Window Screen At 2 In The Morning
Image credits: LookingOutAtTheDoomedEarthSheBreathedaSighAsEverythingHadBecome
#39 A Racoon, A Opossum And A Stray Cat Enjoying A Peaceful Meal
Image credits: borninthe313
#40 Mushroom The Possum
Image credits: juniperfoxx
#41 Gloria The Possum
Meet Gloria. Gloria was shaking. She was terrified. And her 7, 8, 9(?) babies clung to her back and neck with all their strength. Thing is, as a nocturnal animal, Gloria shouldn’t be out during daylight. The fact that she was out in the open at 6:45AM carrying her entire family on her back means something went terribly wrong. This poor baby and her babies must have lost their safe home, and she was looking for safety… Or help. We called a vet, they recommended we call Malibu wildlife rescue. Malibu recommended we leave Gloria as-is, as long as she didn’t look injured (which she didn’t).
Image credits: vohit4rohit
#42 A Local Brisbane Brushtail Possum That Stops By My Window Every Now And Then
Image credits: catfish08
#43 A Rescued Baby Ringtail Possum Warming Up In Front Of A Car Heater
Image credits: unnaturalorder
#44 Correcting The Injustice Of The Lack Of Baby Possums
Image credits: IwishI_had_rabies
#45 A Rescued Baby Possum Thinks My German Shepherd Is Its Mom
Image credits: combatpaddler
#46 An Itsy Bitsy Pygmy Possum
Image credits: Kate_4_President
#47 Bailey, Our Golden Brushtail Possum
Image credits: WILD LIFE Sydney Zoo
#48 Clementine, Reminding Everyone That All Animals Love, And Love To Be Loved! (Rescued Virginia Opossum)
Image credits: Retired_Young
#49 Police Rescue Baby Opossum, Name Him “Stone Cold Steve Opossum”
Image credits: Nekussa
#50 I Had An Opossum Visit My House So I Asked If They Were Friendly Or Not In This Facebook Group I’m In. An Animal Rescue Company Replied With This Photo. His Name Is Bobo
Image credits: Carl_Gordon_Jenkins
#51 This Is Hank. Hank Lives In My Aunt’s Garage He’s Very Old And Has A Hard Time Walking So She Set Up A Warm Place For Him To Rest And Feeds Him Lots Of Treats
Image credits: damndirtycracker
#52 Enjoying The Music
#53 My Friends Cat Adopted A Baby Possum
Image credits: zampel331
#54 Graduation Day! Releasing My Foster Babies Now They Are Old Enough
Image credits: Kendradollx
#55 Goodnight! Sleep Tight! Don’t Let The Bed Bunny Bite
Image credits: itsmesesame
#56 This Possum And Her Baby Fell Down Our Friends Chimney
Image credits: kate9871
#57 I Work At A Wildlife Rehabilitation Center And Volunteered To Foster 5 Virginia Opossum Joeys
Image credits: alwaysumpteen
#58 Opossum Baby Gets A Brushy
Image credits: appalachianwild
#59 Kika My Opossum
Image credits: overlordzelli
#60 Georgie The Cute One
Image credits: itsmesesame
#61 Nonreturnable
Image credits: itsmesesame
#62 Leave Your Cupboards Open And I Will Come Visit Your Teapot! Cookie Jars Are Ok Too But I Will Eat All The Cookies First
Image credits: itsmesesame
#63 She Is Beauty, She Is Grace. She Will Bite You In The Face
Image credits: reddit.com
#64 Current Mood… My Sister’s Possum
Image credits: msCassafrass
#65 I’m Part Of An Opossum Rescue Group. This Is One Of The Babies
Image credits: AngrySnakeNoises
#66 Señor Chonk Is Back With Frend
Image credits: monetyangggg
#67 Freya
Image credits: itsmesesame
#68 What A Pure And Tiny Face
Image credits: itsmesesame
#69 I Have A Baby Opossum Holding On Line 3. Baby Opossum. Line 3
Image credits: TarekValon
#70 Possum Riding A Baby Deer
Image credits: aarongrc14
#71 A Visitor Arrived
Image credits: FawnCoyoteOnline
#72 Every Holiday Tree Starts As A Seedling!
Image credits: itsmesesame
#73 Enjoying The View
Image credits: itsmesesame
#74 Cought Red Handed
Image credits: Animals With Powerful Auras
#75 Smile
#76 Pretzel The Possum Snacking On Fruit For The 1st Time
Image credits: blachat
#77 Blessed Possum
#78 My Sister Rescues Opossums And She Just Sent Me This
Image credits: Ruthguthrie
#79 My Cousins Adopted A Baby Opossum After His Mom Was Hit By A Car. Meet Gimli!
Image credits: carsonwl
#80 We Hope You’re Still Staying Safe!
Image credits: itsmesesame
#81 One Of Australia’s Not So Scary Animals, The Pygmy Possum
Image credits: JebusDuck
#82 I’ll Never Be This Cute
Image credits: Icanhazacat
#83 Smiling Opossum Is Molly The Cat’s Best Friend. They Share Cat Food And Smiles. Here’s A Smile For You Too
Image credits: persephonesphoenix
#84 This Is Courtney Ann, She Helped Our Beautiful Wild Friend When He Got Stuck Under A Car
Image credits: itsmesesame
#85 The Cutest
Image credits: itsmesesame
#86 People Need To Know The Cuteness Of A Baby Possum
Image credits: barret1
#87 The Possum Orb Does Random Stuff When Thrown At Another Entity
Image credits: Zuckaluckuh
#88 There’s A Little Guy Taking A Nap In My Hammock Right Now
Image credits: shavinghobbit
#89 Opossums Get A Lot Of Hate, But They Clear A Lot Of Unwanted Bugs And Parasites From The Ecosystem And Are Generally Helpful Friends
#90 Saved This Adorable Baby Opossum From My Dog. Look At That Face!
Image credits: thunderheart26
#91 Possum
Image credits: tessssa
#92 My It Guy
#93 Scared Little Guy
Image credits: mister42
#94 Here’s A Cute Opossum To Brighten Your Day
Image credits: SteveHarveysTalkingMustache
#95 Burrito With Extra Poss
Image credits: Redkiteflying
#96 Where Are The Snacks!
Image credits: prof.jasper.opossum.phd
#97 A Friend Of Mine Got A Lobster Costume For Her Possum
Image credits: ZombieBisque
#98 A Summertime Photo To Cheer Everyone Up. She Dens Nearby And Still Visits My Back Yard Regularly, But Not Every Night During The Winter
Image credits: Opossum_2020
#99 Fern, The Sweetest Opossum
Image credits: brittsandgravy
#100 My Coworker Is A Wildlife Rehabber Specializing In Opossums. This Little Girl Is Getting Her Beauty Rest
Image credits: fender8421
#101 “Shiver Me Timbers! I’m A Pirate!” – Seymour
Image credits: seymourtheopossum
#102 Goodnight Lovely Friends!
Image credits: itsmesesame
#103 Pocket Protector
Image credits: itsmesesame
#104 Truck Looks Like It Has A Possum Logo
Image credits: Ih8hate
#105 Shopping In An Nc Walmart Right Now And This Man Has A Live Possum On His Shoulder
Image credits: anniepharr
#106 Do Not Touch My Burger King
Image credits: Thereisnocureforbeingacunt
#107 The Opossum Is North America’s Only Marsupial, They Can Eat 5000 Ticks A Year And Are Almost Immune To Rabies! Their Body Temperature Is Too Low For The Virus To Survive
Image credits: itsmesesame
#108 The Circle Of Life
Image credits: Sesame the Opossum
#109 Baby Donut Friend Playing The Harp
Image credits: itsmesesame
#110 Woman Takes Care Of Orphaned Opossum, And Now It Refuses To Be Released Back Into The Wild
Image credits: Opie Kass
#111 Leadbeater’s Possum Was Presumed Extinct By 1960 Simply Because No Live Specimen Had Been Seen For 50 Years. Then, In 1961, A Single Possum Was Rediscovered
Image credits: Friends of Leadbeater’s Possum Inc.
#112 Took My Girls Out For Some Sun Today
Image credits: savanah37615
#113 Ready For Haloween
#114 A Cool Guy
Image credits: Animals With Powerful Auras
#115 Possums Are Cute, Too!
Image credits: tomahawklibrarian
#116 Squirt Says Mornin
Image credits: Sarnt_Krayon
#117 I Raise And Rehab Baby Opossums! I’ve Been Taking Care Of These Guys Since They Were The Size Of My Thumb And I Released Them In The Fall
Image credits: plantcoffeegoblin
#118 Milkshake
Image credits: itsmesesame
#119 Relocated A Mama And Her Babies Away From Our Construction Site The Other Day
Image credits: Earthsincebirth
#120 Found This Guy On My Way To Work Today
Image credits: Miky617
#121 It’s Me!
Image credits: firetyger
#122 I Realize Some People Are Averse To Opossums Because They Can Be Mean And Nasty Creatures, But Take My Word For It, Smeagol Is A Really Cool Dude
Image credits: reddit.com
#123 Opossum In A Onesie
Image credits: itsmesesame
#124 My Whole Life I Have Rehabbed And Owned Opossums! This Is Our Newest One, Little Baby! She Is Quite Photogenic
Image credits: hanna_trevizo
#125 Had A Guy Bring A Opossum Into The Pawn Shop Where I Work Today
Image credits: fastfaust12
#126 This Is Fred
Fred is an idiot who apparently lives around our house somewhere. Fred woke me up at 5 AM freaked out because he was on the ground, and his mom was on our fence waiting for him to figure out how to climb the wall. We reunited Fred with Momma and his three other siblings (more on that in a sec). They wandered around our yard and we started our day. These photos aren’t from 5 AM though, they’re from around 3 when I let our dogs out and heard them freak out. Fred spent a little time in both their mouths, but appears generally unharmed. Assuming Momma is still near somewhere, we put him behind our garage with water and an egg cracked into a cup. As of 10 PM, he was still there chirruping for his mom.
Image credits: eveyw
#127 Climbing A Tree To Nap With The Squirrels
Image credits: itsmesesame
#128 Happy Sleepy Smiley Sunshiney Sunday, Friends! Xo Emma & Freya
Image credits: itsmesesame
#129 This Sleepy Guy
#130 Despite All My Rage, I’m Still Just A Possum In A Cage
#131 Birthday Boy
#132 Despite The Big Silly Grin I Can Assure You That He Was Big Upset About Being Picked Up
Image credits: Action_King_TheBest
#133 Lovin’ Treats
Image credits: prof.jasper.opossum.phd
#134 Found A Baby Possum. Took It To A Wildlife Rehabilitator. She Sent Me This Picture After She Cleaned Him Up
Image credits: dasuberkaty
#135 A Cute Possum In Hopes Of Brightening Up Your Day A Lil Bit
Image credits: lesmax
#136 It’s My Cake Day. Here’s A Baby Possum
#137 This Kid At My School Brings His Possum Along Sometimes
Image credits: G-R-A-N-T
#138 Only A Few Months Old Rescued Possum
Image credits: Dolphin_Guy14
#139 The Rough Life Of An Unreleasable At Second Chances Wildlife Center
Image credits: NicodemusFox
#140 Cute Little Yawner
Image credits: reddit.com
#141 This Is My Opossum Mia
Image credits: Mursenary
#142 Sessie & Daff
Image credits: itsmesesame
#143 Thought You Guys Might Want To See Our Clinic’s Opossum Ready For Christmas
Image credits: DarkSenpai
#144 Shop Has A New Mascot
Image credits: Cheesy-Ascot
#145 Opossum With Babies At A Suburb In San Diego. She Was Easily The Size Of A Housecat!
Image credits: panarthropodism
#146 Flower Power
Image credits: dishbarndave
#147 Boys In Blue
Image credits: reddit.com
#148 Anyone Know What Kind Of Bird This Is?
Image credits: jsg0713
#149 Little Miss Jellybean Looks So Cute After A Nap
Image credits: Cmdr_Hannibal
#150 The Opossum Is Able To Withstand Up To 80 Rattlesnake Or Coral Snake Bites. Thanks To Him, There Is An Antidote To Snake Venom
Image credits: crazynights87
#151 Ever Seen A Baby Opossum?
Image credits: aristhought
#152 Opossum & Flowers
Image credits: juniperfoxx
#153 When This Baby Possum Looked At Me Like This
I found him in my yard looking completely lost & not really going anywhere. I try not to interfere with mother nature, but I couldn’t just leave him there knowing he would get eaten by someone’s dog or something. Following good wildlife advice, I made him a shelter with an upside down cardboard box so he could get out of the sun & safely wait for dark when his mother would hopefully find him. I put a shallow dish of water in the box & made a couple holes big enough for him to get out when he was ready. I’m pretty sure his mother found him shortly after dark.
Image credits: SeeThroughCanoe
#154 I Love My Little Tick Eating Machine
This opossum comes by my backyard frequently. I feed birds in the back and throw fruit and vegetables out for him and some bunnies that come by and have even had baby bunnies in one of my flower pots. I also have baby robins on my front porch, and have all kinds of birds visiting daily and some adorable squirrels too, whose antics can be hilarious.
Image credits: Herperchick
#155 Hairless Opossum Was Saved In Lubbock From Cold Wilderness, And The People Are Knitting Sweaters For Her
Image credits: South Plains Wildlife Rehabilitation Center
#156 Little Pip Says Hello!
Image credits: Wolf_With_Thorns
#157 Caught This Guy Stealing Cat Food
Image credits: Lmf979
#158 Monday Face
Image credits: sylvestertheopossum
#159 Here’s Daisy, My Emotional Support Opossum. I Hope She Makes You Beautiful People Smile
Image credits: goddessofblasphemy
#160 I Had The Opportunity To Meet An Educational Opossum. Their Fur Is Softer Than I Thought It Would Be
Image credits: Prosthetic-Jesus
#161 I Made A Lil Sweater For My Possum Friend
Image credits: 10ccazz01
#162 This Little Visitor I Had Last Year
Image credits: boinkish
#163 Help Me Choose A Name For This Baby Opossum (Boy)
Image credits: Im-A-Scared-Child
#164 Local Ambassador Opossum. A Little Spooked But Very Sweet
Image credits: SkyeAuroline
Source: boredpanda.com