Wheelchair-bound opossum from Greensburg will be featured in international calendar

Olli the Virginia opossum was one lucky marsupial.

As a baby, Olli was attacked by several predators, leaving him with major bite wounds and abscesses and a severely injured spinal cord. He was rescued by a veterinarian and eventually came to Cheri Berri, 48, of Greensburg, who has been doing volunteer animal rehabilitation work for about two decades.

Thanks to Berri’s dedication, and some help from a fellow rehabilitation specialist, Olli got a used wheelchair that eventually landed him a spot in the 2024 calendar created by Walkin’ Pets, the company that created the wheelchair.

“He was the sweetest boy, and I just fell in love with him,” said Berri, who is working to rehabilitate four opossums. “But opossums don’t live a very long life, and he passed away of natural causes last week. I’m really devastated.”

In the wild, opossums live roughly a year-and-a-half, according to Pennsylvania Game Commission officials. Originally native to Central American and the southern U.S., their range has expanded northward over the years to include southeastern Canada through New England and down the East Coast to Florida, and west to Minnesota, Nebraska and Texas.

They are opportunists and will eat almost anything including dead animals, which is how they frequently end up being struck by cars and becoming dead animals themselves.

Berri found Olli’s wheelchair through the Wilderness Trail Wildlife Center in Kentucky. At the center, rehabilitation specialist Tonya Poindexter had a spare Walkin’ Pets wheelchair she’d been using for an opossum named Kewpie who had recently died.

“Kewpie was a much larger opossum, but the Walkin’ Pets device was completely adjustable and came with different accessories, so I was able to size it correctly to fit Olli,” Berri said.

Berri said Olli’s rehab progressed to the point where he was able to occasionally move around in his enclosure without the use of the wheelchair.

And while he will be featured in the Walkin’ Pets calendar, Berri was quick to point out that opossums are not — and should never be considered — pets.

“The vet determined he was unable to be released back into the wild,” Berri said. “A lot of people think they’re cute and want them as pets, but you have to have a permit to keep local indigenous wildlife. They’re difficult to care for, their diet is very specific, and it changes throughout their growth stages.”

Berri began her volunteer rehabilitation work with skunks before moving on to opossums.

“I really fell in love with them,” she said. “They’re such sweet creatures, and they’re really misunderstood.”

Olli beat out contest entries from across the world in order to make the final dozen animals that will be featured in the calendar.

“I’m really excited about it,” Berri said. “The last few days have been hard since he passed away, but there’s been such an outpouring of support and love. This whole thing has been such a great experience.”

Copies of the Walkin’ Pets 2024 calendar can be preordered online at HandicappedPets.com/calendar.