Australian woman's AC starts growing fur, animal control uncovers a possum nursery of joeys inside

Ayala Sorotsky • Writer and Editor

Sep 24, 2026 8:15 AM EDT

Oh, Australia, the wildlife gift that keeps on giving.

Whenever we hear anything crazy related to wild animals, the first question we have to ask ourselves is, "Is it in Australia?" Because, statistically speaking, you'd be correct most of the time. It's like 50% of all the weird animal stories come from Australia, and the other 50% is from the rest of the world. That's a statistical anomaly in the animal kingdom. And that's also fertile soil for the craziest stories we encounter online.

This one woman's AC unit started growing fur. Now that's unusual, to say the least. But, you know, she's from Australia - weirder wildlife stories have been coming out of there for all of its existence. And have you seen Australian animal memes? It's as weird and cute as their wildlife variety. But anyway, we digress. What this woman discovered in her AC looked like some kangaroo joey, but soon after, they discovered the truth. A whole family of possums settled inside! That's a true sight of strange delight.

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The wildest POV of the week

via @5foidsonfifth
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She shows the people where the AC needs a trim

via @5foidsonfifth
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Oh, hello there, little guy!

via @5foidsonfifth
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The AC is half taken apart, and totally out of commission

via @5foidsonfifth
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One little guy out, but that's not all...

via @5foidsonfifth
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Hi there, tiny thing

via @5foidsonfifth
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Literally the size of a thumb

via @5foidsonfifth
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AC is taken apart even more

via @5foidsonfifth
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Here comes mama!

via @5foidsonfifth
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AC off the wall? AC off the wall.

via @5foidsonfifth
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Rest here for a second, okay mama?

via @5foidsonfifth
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Getting pocket baby back to mama possum

via @5foidsonfifth
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Now that's what we call a man at work

via @5foidsonfifth
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Hi mama, don't worry, your babies are coming

via @5foidsonfifth
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They latch onto her, adorable

via @5foidsonfifth
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via @myweinerdogiscute
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via @jo_m_kelli.author
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via @lizthemuffin
Fun fact! Both kangaroos and opossums are marsupials.
And what are those? It's the name of a mammal sub-group, distinctive by having under-develpoed offsrings. These babies, called joeys, stay inside their mother's pouch (like a kangaroo) or attached to her body (like an opossum) until they're grown enough to survive without being completely dependent on this closeness.
And with about 70% of all marsupials living in Australia and the nearby islands (on a whole-world scale, that's close), it's no wonder both the kangaroo and the possum's joeys look very similar when they're so young.
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via @futureboostedmedia
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via @kamal.b787
That's a great rule of thumb - if it's not clear what animal you're looking at, even if an animal looks like an outright alien, it's probably from Australia. This country isn't known as the land of the weirdest animals possible for nothing.
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via @pirate_critters
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via @shannmcw
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via @randallbehm
These people raise a fair point - the Australian possum is so cute! With their small face and general roundness, the Aussie possum is considered conventionally cute. So why does their North American cousin look like a hillbilly who didn't shower for two months?
That's another fun fact! Because… get ready for it… They are completely different animals! They might share a name, and they are both marsupials, but the Australian possum and the North American trash thrasher are not even cousins. They are on two far ends of this animal family tree. So, that's why they're different. Because they are, shockingly, different.
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via @veritorossi
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via @seba_dama
This commenter doesn't have anything to worry about, because… ready for another fun fact? Australian opossums can't give you rabies! Or, more accurately, they don't have rabies at all. In fact, all of Australia is rid of the rabies virus. There's a certain caveat with a certain type of bat in Australia that carries something similar, but the connotation of a bat carrying deseases it's not something to talk about right now. Too soon.
Aaaaaanyway, back to the possum - the fact is that they have a very low body temperature, so it's very hard for the rabies virus to live in their body and replicate. So, really, no risk there. But you still don't want to get bitten by an opossum. They can carry various other bacteria you don't want in your body, and it just hurts.
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via @v.georgiewaax_
This question here will give you the final fun fact for today, which is more fact than fun, but still, information is important. So, opossums tend to get into bizarre places, like the AC, because they just search for a hideout that is warm and safe. It really helps that they are practically master climbers, with specialized paws for this exact matter. Opossums are also very determined, so small places become a challenge.