Opossum removal that gets them out — and keeps them out
Most opossums are harmless, and honestly they do the yard some good. The trouble starts when one dens under your deck, shed, or crawlspace. We get it out humanely, seal the gaps so it can't come back, and clean up after — across Palm Beach County, with a free assessment first.
Exclusion-first
seal it, don't just trap it
Free
on-site assessment
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insured · humane methods
Most of what you've heard about opossums is worse than the animal.
We'll level with you before you spend a dime: the opossum itself is rarely the problem. It's a slow, shy, mostly beneficial native, and a lot of the time the right move is simply getting it out of a spot it shouldn't be in — not exterminating it. Here's what's actually true.
Mostly harmless, not aggressive
The Virginia opossum is Florida's only native marsupial, and it's about the least confrontational animal in your yard. Cornered, it hisses, bares its teeth, or faints and 'plays possum' — bluffs, not attacks. Bites are rare and usually the result of someone trying to grab one by hand.
They actually earn their keep
An opossum patrolling the yard eats ticks, roaches, snails, slugs, and even rats and mice. For most homeowners the honest answer is that the animal itself isn't the problem — it's where it decided to den. That's why we lead with getting it out of the wrong spot, not exterminating it.
They rarely carry rabies
This one surprises people: an opossum's low body temperature makes it a poor host for the rabies virus, so cases are genuinely uncommon compared with raccoons or foxes. We're not saying handle one — just that finding one under the porch isn't the health emergency people fear.
The animal's fine. The den is the problem.
An opossum passing through the yard at night is doing you a favor. An opossum that's moved in under the structure — or is raiding the trash and pet food that keep it coming back — is a different story. These are the four spots almost every Palm Beach County call comes down to.
Under decks & porches
The most common call by far. A dry, dark space under a deck or front porch is prime denning cover, and once a female settles in with young you'll hear scratching and smell it before you see anything.
Sheds & crawlspaces
Gaps under a shed floor or a torn crawlspace vent screen turn into a nest. In a crawlspace they can tear ductwork and insulation and leave droppings across the footprint of the house.
Trash & pet food
An open trash can, a bag of pet food in the garage, or a bowl left out on the lanai overnight is a standing dinner invitation. Remove the food and half the reason they keep coming back disappears.
Pet doors & garages
Opossums are slow but they climb and squeeze, and a pet door or a garage left cracked at night is an open door. Once inside they'll den behind boxes or appliances and are a mess to coax back out.
Get it out, seal it up, clean it out.
Trapping alone just clears the spot for the next one. Our whole process is built around exclusion — sealing the property so no opossum can den under it — with live-trapping used only where an animal actually has to come out.
- 1
Inspect
We walk the deck line, shed, crawlspace, and roofline to find the den, the entry points, and what's drawing them in. Tracks, droppings, and the smell usually tell us whether it's one animal or a female with young.
- 2
Live-trap if needed
Where an animal has to come out — one denned in a crawlspace or with young inside — we set humane live traps on the active route and check them promptly. Trapping is a tool here, not the whole job.
- 3
Exclude & seal
This is the part that actually ends it: we screen and seal under decks and sheds and close the crawlspace gaps and vents, using one-way doors so nothing gets sealed inside.
- 4
Remove attractants
We point out the trash, pet food, and fallen fruit that made the property attractive and give you a short, plain list of what to secure so the next opossum keeps moving.
- 5
Cleanup & prevent
We clean up droppings and nesting material, confirm the seal held, and leave you with a property that's harder to den under than the neighbor's — which is the whole point.
We'd rather seal your deck than haul an animal away.
Because opossums are beneficial and mostly harmless, extermination is the wrong tool for the job — and Florida's nuisance-wildlife rules put real limits on relocating them anyway. So our approach is to get the animal out on its own with one-way doors and then close the property up for good. It's more effective than trapping, and it's the humane call.
- One-way doors let them leave — nothing gets sealed in
- Under decks, sheds, and crawlspace gaps screened and sealed
- Licensed, insured technicians working within Florida rules
Opossum removal across Palm Beach County.
We're based in Lake Worth and cover the county end to end — the older neighborhoods with mature decks and porches, the newer subdivisions with crawlspaces, and the waterfront lots where sheds back up to the canal. Pick your city for the local read.
Free assessment, then a firm price.
There's no flat sticker on opossum work because the animal is rarely the expensive part — the exclusion is. So we start with a free on-site assessment: we find the den and the entry points, show you what's drawing them in, and put a firm price in writing before anything happens. No contract you can't cancel.
What the job usually includes
- A full inspection of the deck line, shed, crawlspace, and roofline to find the den and entries.
- Humane live-trapping only where an animal genuinely has to be removed, checked promptly.
- One-way doors, screening, and sealing under decks and sheds and across crawlspace gaps.
- Cleanup of droppings and nesting material, plus a short list of attractants to secure.
What sets the price
Mostly the exclusion. A single opossum ambling out from under a deck with one obvious gap to screen is a small, quick job. A female with young denned in a crawlspace behind torn vent screening, with droppings to clean up and several openings to seal, is more work — and we'll tell you which one you actually have. The assessment is free either way, and the number is set before we start.
Homes, HOAs & waterfront
We handle single-family yards, condo and HOA common areas, and waterfront lots across Palm Beach County — from a deck in Lake Worth Beach to a shed on the canal in Boca Raton. Opossum, raccoon, or something you're not sure about, we'll sort out what it is and what it takes. Have a look at raccoon removal if the noise in the attic sounds heavier, or get in touch and we'll come take a look.
What wildlife customers say.
Opossum questions.
Something denned under the deck?
Call or text Nick — he'll tell you whether it's a real problem and what it takes to seal it out, straight.
Call (561) 735-1975Are opossums dangerous?
Not really. The Virginia opossum is slow, nocturnal, and about the least aggressive animal you'll find in a Palm Beach County yard — its whole defense is to hiss, bare its teeth, or faint and 'play dead.' Bites are rare and almost always happen when someone tries to grab one. The honest risk isn't the animal itself; it's the mess and damage where it decides to den.
Why is one living under my deck?
Because it's exactly the kind of dry, dark, sheltered cover they look for — and there's probably a food source nearby. Under decks and porches is our number-one opossum call. If you're hearing scratching at night or catching a musky smell, there's likely a den, and in spring or summer it may be a female with young, which changes how we get them out.
Do you kill them or relocate them?
Neither is the goal — we're exclusion-first. Wherever we can, we get the opossum to leave on its own with one-way doors and then seal the property so it can't return, which is more effective and more humane than trapping. Where an animal genuinely has to be handled we do it humanely, and we work within Florida's nuisance-wildlife rules, which put real limits on relocating animals. That's a big reason exclusion is usually the better answer than hauling one across the county.
Do opossums carry disease or rabies?
Rabies is genuinely uncommon in opossums — their low body temperature makes them poor hosts for the virus, far less of a concern than raccoons or foxes. They can carry other issues and their droppings should be cleaned up properly, which we handle, but finding one under the porch is not the rabies scare people assume. We still don't recommend handling any wild animal yourself.
Will they come back after you exclude them?
That opossum won't, once the den is sealed and the one-way door has let it out — that's the entire point of doing exclusion rather than just trapping. Could a different opossum wander through later? Sure, they roam. But a sealed deck, a screened crawlspace, and secured trash and pet food make your property the hard one on the block, so a passing animal keeps moving instead of moving in.
How fast can you come out, and what does it cost?
We cover Palm Beach County from Lake Worth and can usually get out quickly, often same or next day. The on-site assessment is free — we'll show you the den and entry points and put a firm price in writing before any work starts. Cost depends on the exclusion involved: a single deck gap is a small job, a crawlspace with torn screening and cleanup is more. Either way you see the number first, with no contract you can't cancel.