Man narrowly avoids chopping up a possum who was hiding inside a tree

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Man comes within centimetres of chopping up a terrified brushtail possum that was hiding inside the hollow of a tree trunk he was cutting down

  • Men narrowly avoids slicing terrified possum hiding inside hollow of tree trunk
  • Two arborists finishing chopping in NSW when they found the scared possum 
  • After gently prodding its back with a stick, possum leapt into nearby bushland

By Kirsten Jelinek For Daily Mail Australia

Published: | Updated:

A man has narrowly avoided slicing a terrified possum hiding inside the hollow of a massive tree. 

A pair of aborists in New South Wales had finished chopping down a tree in dense bushland on Wednesday when they discovered a brushtail possum quivering inside a hole in the tree trunk. 

In footage posted to TikTok the two men couldn’t believe they missed chopping the possum in half by a few centimetres. 

Two meen narrowly avoid slicing terrified possum hiding inside hollow of tree trunk in NSW

‘That’s so lucky [the saw] just barely touched the back of his a***,’ one of the men said. 

They rolled away the heavy piece of wood as the back of the possum twitched and inched closer into the hollow of the trunk. 

‘This has never happened to me… come on get out you b******,’ the man said. 

The duo turned the log upright as one man sarcastically called for his mate Tom to ‘stick your hand in there and drag him out’.

The horrified possum continued to breathe heavily inside the tree trunk as the men gently prodded its back with a stick before it leapt out into nearby bushland.   

The terrified possum managed two escape into nearby bushland after the men gently prodded the marsupial with a stick (pictured)

The terrified possum managed two escape into nearby bushland after the men gently prodded the marsupial with a stick (pictured) 

The man later revealed in follow-up footage that the possum entered the tree through a burnt out branch on the side of the tree.  

The footage shocked viewers online, with many concerned about the brushtail possum.  

‘Poor guy was probably terrified,’ one user commented.

‘You entered his home and are asking him to leave?!’ Another said.  

‘Most Australian thing I’ve ever seen,’ another wrote.  

How to keep possums safe 

What to do if you find a possum:

If you have found a sick or injured possum it will need to see a vet before coming into care. 

If you are able to safely contain the possum, you can keep it in a quiet, dark, warm place e.g. wrapped in a towel in a ventilated box or carrier with a lid while you transport it to the nearest vet. 

How to safely transport the possum:  

If you are containing a possum ensure you are wearing a jacket or long sleeves to reduce the risk of being scratched and wear a face mask in addition to gloves when containing the animal. 

Gently place a towel over the animal and place it in a ventilated box with a lid and transport it carefully to the nearest vet or wait for the rescuer to arrive

How to provide a safe shelter for possums: 

Buy nesting boxes or build your own, which are favoured by Brushtail possums. Locate a suitable tree in your backyard and fix the box at least four metres above the ground. 

If you think you have a possum in your roof, it is recommended that you use humane methods to encourage the possum to move outside by providing an alternative nesting spot in a nearby tree.  

Credit: WIRES