Possum’s visit via the chimney results in a wild night of havoc

• Author: Natasha Gordon
• Published date: 18 June 2022
• Publication title: Weekend Herald

Residents of a home in the Auckland suburb of Te Atatū were shocked to wake up yesterday to discover their lounge in a shambles

Jasper Gapusan and his wife slept soundly on Thursday night but in the morning found paw prints all over their couch and walls, indoor plants knocked over and “wees and poos” everywhere.

The fluffy trespasser’s prints led the pair to think the mess had been made by a cat. But then Gapusan realised: “I thought, a cat can’t make this mess, the whole lounge is trashed.”

Instead, they now think a possum had climbed in via the chimney, a conclusion deduced from the fact all the windows were closed, and the metal cover on the fireplace had been knocked over. Gapusan said their couch pillows, office table and walls had paw marks, and the creature had even left paw marks on paintings.

Some pot plants had been eaten.

They were lucky the living room door was closed because the possum could have come into the bedroom, or...