California Woman In Disbelief After Discovering Who’s Living Inside Her Stove

possum in stove

We can never be too careful when it comes to keeping our house doors closed. It only takes a few seconds of inattention, and suddenly, the entire animal kingdom can come inside.

Something similar happened to Jackie Felix from California. However, the worst part was that she had no idea how long the animal had been inside her home…

It all started on a beautiful, quiet day in Jackie’s apartment in Union City, California. The peace and calm were interrupted by an unusual smell coming from the kitchen.

people and stove
Source: Jackie Felix

Jackie had no idea where the smell was coming from. Curious, she went to the kitchen to investigate. At first, she thought it was trash, so she took it out. But when she returned, the smell was still there.

That’s when she realized something was wrong, though she couldn’t even imagine what she was about to find.

Determined to get to the bottom of the smell, Jackie pulled an appliance out from the wall – and was left in utter shock. She discovered a massive pile of poop on the floor.

After this shocking discovery, Jackie was sure an animal had hidden in her home, but what she didn’t know yet was what kind of animal it was…

man breaking a stove
Source: Jackie Felix

She then shone a light into the cracks behind the stove, only to see a tiny pink nose and two eyes staring right at her.

It turned out that the animal hiding inside Jackie’s stove was a possum. No one knew how it got inside or how long it had been there, but Jackie knew it had to be removed. She shared in an interview:

“I have no idea how long the possum was in there. Based on the poo it would have been at least a week. I’m not sure how it survived, but it seemed pretty healthy once we got a chance to look at it.”

Jackie immediately called her roommates for help, and the three of them worked together to get the possum out of the stove and out of the house.

tiny possum
Source: Jackie Felix

The mission wasn’t easy, but after two long hours, they finally succeeded. Jackie shared what happened during the rescue:

“We took off the stove’s top and had to push as hard as we could. My roommates then continued to push the stove top up whilst I waited with gloves on to catch the possum once it got out. But when it raced out, it just jumped right through my hands and ran behind the washing machine.”

Since their plan didn’t work as expected, Jackie and her roommates lured the possum out with food and caught it in a glass jar before releasing it outside.

woman holding a possum
Source: Jackie Felix

After they captured the possum, Jackie felt a huge sense of relief. However, it was only then that she realized there had been clues earlier in the week. She said:

“The oven makes a ringing sound whenever it gets hit, which we heard a few times earlier in the week. I live in a house with six cats and currently two foster kittens, so I always just assumed it was the cats making the noise.”

Despite these clues, she never imagined it was a possum hiding in her stove. She added:

“The smell was what really made me think something was wrong. At first I thought someone had spilled some oil but as I pulled the stove back, I just saw more and more poop. I knew immediately that there must be something like a possum living in the stove.”

possum in jar
Source: Jackie Felix

No one knows exactly how the possum got into the house or the stove, but Jackie believes it entered through the back food cat flap. She said:

“We didn’t get it on camera or anything, but that must have been the way it got in. I now make sure that cat flap is locked at all times. It means my cats have to be let in and out manually, but it’s worth it to not have that happen again.”

Fortunately, this rescue mission had a happy ending. Jackie no longer has unexpected residents, and the possum was safely returned to its natural habitat.

This story reminds us all to pay more attention to the openings in our homes, especially during times when wild animals may be seeking warmth or food sources to survive.

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