[CholeraJoe]

I don’t know about the body temperature thing, but you are correct that rabies in possums is rare. In treating humans with wild animal bites, we are taught to assume that bites from skunks, bats, raccoons and foxes are contaminated with rabies and treat accordingly, unless the animal can be tested.

I’ll ping our resident veterinarian, Doug, for his opinion.

[vetvetdoug]

Opossums have a body temperature of 97 degrees which is only a degree lower than we humans. My first thought was that opossums are warm blooded therefore they can transmit or carry rabies (which is correct). Rabies in opossums is rare and they may have some natural immunity because they are carrion feeders or prey upon the moribund, just like the vultures immunity against botulism. Now, opossums are really nasty and vile creatures and their bite would be like that of a Komodo dragon, full of nasty bacteria. Opossums are one of the most heavily parasitized animals that I have ever necropsied. They are typically infected with a heavy burden of intestinal parasites and protozoans. Any opossum bite would cause concern for a result with an a)infection b)tetanus and rabies. Opossums carry a nasty protozoan that if a horse gets infected with it will cause a meningitis that can be debilitating. For that reason alone, opossums are lead magnets on my property. I wouldn't doubt that they carry a disease that hasn't been diagnosed correctly in humans that originates from opossums. It took years to find out that protozoal myeloencephalitis in horses originated from opossums.