A Thriving Nest of Possum Memes

Emmy Pratt • Senior Editor

Jul 17, 2022 8:00 PM EDT

When I was younger, I wondered if possums were Irish immigrants, dropping the "O" in opossum to Americanize their names. Unfortunately, that astute theory was untrue, as opossums originate in North America. Drat!

Possums are not considered great pets; you don't need an animal scientist to figure it out. The best way to determine if an animal is suited to be a pet is to watch how your mom reacts to seeing one while driving in the car. Dog? Oh yeah, for sure, a pet. Horse? You better believe that is a domesticated animal. Raccoons? Ummm…no. Skunks? Don't even think about it. Possums? Absolutely not.

Even though possums are not suitable for the home, they make the perfect stars of memes. There has been a surge in disgusting rodent-esque animals being the crown prince of memes, and I am all here for it. I'd rather have them on my computer screen than in my house.