It's raccoons. Possums don't do a thing and a cat would not damage plants. We have fox, possum, skunk, feral cats and other critters and in 18 years, none have done anything but drink out of the pond. The coons, on the other hand, have ruined plants, killed fish, frogs and snails. We trap them.

Jan

I agree....it's a racoon. Cats might on occasion steal a fish, but not cause damage. Opossums would rather have an easy (already dead) meal. Catching fish is just too much work! Raccoons make a horrible mess in a pond.

It's definately not a oppossum. There is one that lives in my area and I live in a mobile home park at the edge of town. It never bothers the ponds or plants. Me and a nature-lovin' neighbor actually released one caught in a trap meant for a cat.

Happy ponding,
Scott

It sounds like a raccoon....they did the same thing to my pond, more than once. Tried everything(scarecrow,urine, vinegar etc) the only thing that truley works is an electric fence called Fido Shock. You can set it on a timer so that it only comes on at night(raccoons are nocturnal). My cats know that they can not go near the pond at night, they learned that real fast. Now they don't go near it even when the fence is off during the day.

It's true. Opossums look guilty but they don't cause the damage that is typical of those precious, sweet-faced delinquents. I am a bad sleeper and often sit by the pond at night so I see all the critters that come to the water. None of them cause the damage that a raccoon can do in a matter of minutes. Raccoons often come in pairs or triplets that are from the same litter and even if they are not seriously looking for food they will empty flower pots for roots or bulbs and then make the pond muddy by washing whatever they may find. They can swim so nothing is out of their reach. Many of them have lost their fear of humans which is a very bad thing. I finally resorted to spraying them with a hose with a high pressure nozzle. They really did not like that. Now when the little darlings see me they stay away. The scarecrow gives a good warning and it makes them keep their distance. The fido fence is a last resort and I haven't gone there yet but I have considered it. Sandy

Raccoons are the most likely culprit. Cats seem to get a bad wrap, neighbor cats at least the wild ones can get to be a problem. Were there 'remains' around the pond? Raccoons seem to get interrupted or just don't finish a lot of times. I'm sorry to disagree with 'sleepless..' but raccoons can swim, but not hunt and swim at the same time so the fish can get away from them if your pond is at least 6' at the narrowest point and two foot deep.
If there was mass destruction are there any mink in your area? I live in the Omaha, NE area and they are a massive issue. Some animal rights group released a farm a few years back and now all ponds are in jeopardy. Where raccoons can't hunt and swim and that slows them down, mink can do both and therefore much more damage. If a whole pond or large chunks disappear, it could be a mink. Not much you can do about them, they can be very difficult to remove or trap. Some suggest to dye the pond black so they can't see the fish, well... neither can you than.
Its probably an efficent raccoon, but keep an eye out for mink or ask a DNR guy. Live traps can work, but mink are tricky little buggers.

I never thought of mink! They could really do a job on a pond but I wouldn't expect to find them in zone 9. Aren't they usually found in colder climes? An otter could cause severe damage to the fish population too and I would expect to see them before I saw a mink.
Please note I said "nothing is out of their reach" while talking about their destructive behavior, not hunting behavior. A robin's nest was built on top of an Electric Companies box under the house eaves and we were delighted they had found such a safe location. Sadly, one morning the babies were gone long before they were fledged. A raccoon had noticed them and climbed a trellis then rocked it back and forth until it could get to the nest. It made a perfect ladder that ended just a foot under the nest. That took a bit of smarts. They will make the proper connections to capture their prey. I have watched them in the water and they can float for a short time so it is possible they were hunting but I interrupted them before that could happen. Maybe our raccoons are smarter than yours. After observing for many years, I can say the raccoons in Wisconsin are smarter than the ones here even if these are no slouches. When I had only a small shallow pond the fish population was frequently destroyed by raccoons who didn't eat them although they would catch and play with them until they stopped moving. Sandy

I have the beginings of a raccoon problem. Someone suggested spraying with homemade pepper spray. I tried using mace (no, I didn't spray it in the face). So far no return visits that I can determine, but it's only been a 3 days. We used to have golden retrievers that had the run of the yard both day and night. No problem with coons then. At the moment, the dog space in our family is empty, so we have to use other methods.

It was a raccoon.

No way would an opossum, mink or cat cause that sort of damage. Classic raccoon. They pull apart plants and dump out pots looking for food. They aren't just after fish. They eat all sorts of things including frogs, tadpoles, snails, salamanders, crawdads etc. They are very thorough in their search.

A Fidoshock fence was the only thing that worked for me to stop them. DH upgraded it's looks by using bamboo for the posts and copper tubing for the wire. More attractive than the plastic and wire.

Raccoons are nationwide and you almost never see them but when you have a pond, they will eventually find it.

Opossums and cats are often blamed because they are more visible and can get caught with the remains when the more afraid coon drops it and hides.