Woman Shocked To Find Someone Furry Curled Up In Discarded Lettuce Bag

Brit Heck was throwing things away out in her barn when she saw something that made her heart stop. At the bottom of the trash can was a discarded lettuce bag — with something big, gray and furry stuffed inside.

Initially, she thought it might be a dead animal, but then she saw the bag moving ever so slightly, as if whatever was inside was breathing. Worried whoever was in there might be injured, Heck carefully grabbed the bag and lifted it up — and quickly realized it was Richard Nibbler, the family’s barn opossum.

Heck and her boyfriend found Richard in their barn three years ago, and he’s been hanging around ever since. They even set up beds and feeding stations for him, since it was clear he had no intention of moving out anytime soon. He usually just does his own thing, but on this particular day, it seems he smelled something in the lettuce bag that he liked and ended up getting himself a little stuck.

Heck managed to free Richard from the lettuce bag, but he didn’t exactly say thank you.

“He was sort of indignant when I freed him,” Heck told The Dodo. “Oh, he was grateful, but that was hidden under a veneer of sharp-toothed unhappy face and the [opossum] equivalent of, ‘Go away and let me enjoy this trash in peace!’ Richard Nibbler is a barn mascot, but that doesn't make him pleasant.”

Heck carried on with her day, assuming the trash can drama was behind her. Instead, Richard had other plans.

“Richard responded by getting RIGHT BACK IN THE TRASH the next day,” Heck said. “Classic Richard. Obstinate. I think it was the smell of wet cat food because I throw the cans in that big trash can after I feed our two barn cats, Finn and Krebin … That smell was enough to bring Richard waddling back in and heaving himself into the trash can once again to look for a special treat. I had to gently take his tail and lift him out, with Richard defiantly clinging to pieces of trash the entire time.”

Despite his antics and his attitude, Heck and her boyfriend love having Richard around. He causes trouble sometimes, sure, but he also seems to know that the couple’s barn is a safe space for him, and they’re honored to give him a place where he can relax and be himself.

“Opossums are absolutely harmless to you and do a lot of good in the world,” Heck said. “Evolution didn't give them a lot of defenses, and so we take extra good care of any of them that we come across here!”