Mister and Missy: Opossum longevity

[franm]

I was delighted to read about your adorable 'possums'.
As a zoo volunteer for 14 years, I have been taking opossums to schools and community centers, and they are, far and away, the most interesting species to present.
It would require multiple pages to present the fascinating details, but I must offer the one that has relevance to your narrative. Sadly, the Virginia Opossum has a life span of
only two years!
At the zoo, with the advantage of onsite veterinary care, we usually manage to give them an extra year, but by that time they have become terribly debilitated and can barely drag themselves around.
At some point, during their second year of life, they begin to show the most conspicuous sign of aging-- the eyes start to protrude and appear to be crossed.
They are so fascinating, beautiful and loveable. It's great that you have rescued Missy and Mister and given them a loving home.
FRAN

[jackiesdaisy1935]

Mister and Missy your human is right you have it made. You are both real cuties and quite the gourmets. Congradulations on being the cutest, sweetest, most adorable Pets of the Day.

[Karen]

Franm, welcome! Glad to have your expertise, I thought the longevity was wrong, but hey - our Great Dane lived to be 14 1/2, when they're only supposed to livr to age 7-9 by most estimates, so maybe Missy and Mister'll do it, too!

[franm]

Originally posted by Karen:
<STRONG>Franm, welcome! Glad to have your expertise, I thought the longevity was wrong, but hey - our Great Dane lived to be 14 1/2, when they're only supposed to livr to age 7-9 by most estimates, so maybe Missy and Mister'll do it, too!</STRONG>

Thanks for your note, Karen!
Visitors to the zoo have spoken of pets such as domestic ferrets and guinea pigs which have outlived their expected life spans.
One factor may be that a pet in a home may be given more opportunity to get out and live a more active and stimulating life with more exposure to interacting with people.
At the zoo the animals receive excellent care, but spend most of the time in cages with no one to give them that special attention that comes only with a dedicated owner. I wonder if that isn't a factor. I hope it will be so with Mister and Missy.
It's ironic that in this species, which has survived 70 million years, the individuals are so short-lived.
I'm also wondering if, given that they are male and female, they will breed. Now that would be very interesting!
F R A N