Possum Lady’s Furry Patients Facing Eviction

Nine severely injured possums lie in the cages of a makeshift hospital room at the home of Sally Lambert, known to some as the Possum Lady. The 15- to 20-pound hairy critters are recovering, their wounds stitched and patched, covered with bandages and blankets.

Lambert lifted one of the creatures from his cage.

“This one was torn up by a dog,” said Lambert. “Most of them are in critical condition.”

For 11 years, Lambert has helped to heal the wounds of severely injured animals and release them back into the wild.

She now faces a Monday deadline to remove the animals from her home. The City of La Mesa prohibits the keeping or boarding of animals, fowl or bees for others in a residential district. The city says the Possum Lady’s makeshift animal shelter violates the ordinance.

“I don’t know if I could do anything else,” said Lambert, who cradled one possum that had 16 breaks in its jaw as a result of being hit by a car. The possum’s long pink snout was wired shut.

“They’re only housed here temporarily. They are not here as pets.”

Lambert is a volunteer for Project Wildlife, a nonprofit group that treats and provides shelter to animals and birds that have been abandoned or seriously injured. Animal control officers and police and fire departments from throughout the county often take or refer the non-domestic animals to Lambert, who specializes in caring for possums.

“I have studied that particular animal in detail,” said the La Mesa mother of three who had been been an assistant to the original Possum Lady, who died. “It’s a very interesting animal, you have to admit.”

She said she has a waiting list of farmers who want to use the possums to help eliminate rodents and other insects that feed on their crops.

Besides the possums, Lambert is now treating a young California gray fox that was hit by a car and three squirrels that suffered a variety of injuries. One of the squirrels has brain damage.

Seriously injured animals are likely to recuperate at the home for about two months, Lambert said. Surgery is often performed for free by two veterinarians.

But neighbors have complained and the city’s Planning Department has asked her to remove the animals by Monday.

Neighbor Bettye Wynne, 72, said, “I don’t want a hospital next door to us. This is a residential neighborhood. I don’t care what she does, I just don’t want those animals next door.”

Bettye Wynne’s 76-year-old husband, Burl, softened the blow.

“She’s a kind person and the thing that she’s trying to do is a fine thing,” Burl Wynne said. “(But) this is a residential area and it’s not zoned for this type of business.”

Bettye Wynne said that during the hot summer months, a strong odor coming from Lambert’s home permeates her backyard.

Lambert denies that any smell comes from her home. She said she gets up at 6 every morning to clean and wash the animals.

Lambert said her family and the Wynne couple have basically kept to themselves over the years.

“I haven’t had a lot to do with her, but every time I look over there she’s looking over here,” Lambert said. “She hasn’t complained to me personally, only to tell me that I should raise orchids and not possums.”

Sheila O. Garrett of the La Mesa Planning Department said her department would like to avoid an injunction against Lambert.

“I’ve tried to get them to voluntarily remove them. We’re certainly not interested in anyone going to jail,” Garrett said.

Lambert said she and other pro-wildlife groups hope to address council Tuesday on the issue.