Under front porch, not too big. What food do I place in capture cage to lure, so I can release at Forest Preserve? Other suggestions? Do you suppose there may be others, since this one looks young? Are they dangerous? Thank you

This response was provided by Darryl Coates, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, District Wildlife Biologist.

Good Morning,

All wildlife should be handled with great care and with extreme caution. Trapped animals can be aggressive toward the person handling the trap or cage. Wear personal protective equipment like heavy gloves. Handling any wildlife is dangerous.

Having wildlife under your porch is considered a nuisance wildlife situation. I would recommend using a "Have-a-Heart" live trap or commercial box trap which is designed to trap and hold an animal rather than to kill it. I suggest these types of traps be used so a non-targeted animal like the neighbor’s cat may be released. The target animal(s) captured under nuisance permits should be killed and buried. The State recognizes burial as the carcass being double bagged (put into two garbage sacks, one inside the other) and placed in a municipal garbage service receptacle. Catch and release is not advised - over population at the release area, possible spread of disease, distances required to release an animal so it will not come back to the trapping site (it's home range) -- just to name a few. Typically, dry cat food is the bait of choice for opossums, skunks and raccoons. Removal of wildlife such opossums, skunks, and raccoons requires a nuisance wildlife permit. Permits are issued by an IDNR Wildlife Biologist. View:"How to Solve a Problem with Wildlife at Your Home Article: Hiring a Nuisance Wildlife Control Operator Vs. Do-it Yourself" on this web site. Select - Find a Wildlife Professional left-hand column. Contact your local IDNR Biologist by left clicking on Find Your District Wildlife Biologist should you chose to Do-it Yourself and to receive a nuisance permit. Left click - Find Operators by County or Region to locate a Nuisance Wildlife Control Operator in your area should you chose to hire someone to come in and remove the opossums for you. For more information on opossums - damage prevention and control measures- look under Directory of Wildlife, Mammals, then select Opossums and you will see additional recommendations. For more information on preventing additional occurrences, review: "How to Prevent Problems with Wildlife." To insure all animals have been removed, keep a trap set for five consecutive nights after the last animal has been removed. Now, fix the damage to prevent further uninvited guests. Thanks for contacting us.

Please be aware that releasing wildlife into Forest Preserves or other natural areas is not allowed. If an animal is to be relocated from the property where it was trapped, you must get written permission from the landowner of the property where you plan to release the animal before releasing the animal.