Possums & Poses

A Fredericksburg, Va., possum yoga class mixes mindfulness and marsupials

April 2026

by Amanda S. Creasey, Outdoors Writer

When I arrive at Possum-bilities Gift Shop and Gallery in Fredericksburg, Va., Karen Brace, the shop owner and a licensed wildlife rehabilitator at Awesome Possumz, greets me in a lavender-scented storefront full of whimsical, quirky merchandise. Possum earrings dangle from her ears, and she’s wearing a possum-patterned shirt. Before I can return the greeting, I’m distracted by the enclosure of tiny, palm-sized quail to my left, the little birds scurrying around busily. Once I regain my attention, Brace directs me upstairs for the reason I have come today: possum yoga.

Together with Dawn Deiman, owner and CEO of Rising Dawn Yoga Studio, Brace created possum yoga. The first class took place in July 2023. “The idea of possum yoga was a little confusing to some,” Brace says. “People asked if the opossums were going to be walking on them like the goats do in goat yoga.” The short answer is no. Only those listed on Brace’s exhibition permit are legally able to hold the possums, so the animal ambassadors, who Brace and Deiman refer to as “Possum Yogis,” snooze in their stroller during the class and then do a meet-and-greet after the class. “Folks get to pet the opossum, ask questions and take pictures,” Brace says.

Today’s Possum Yogi is named Eva. Deiman, a Rappahannock Electric Cooperative member, brings the tiny marsupial into the room clinging to her chest to the delighted “awws” of all in attendance. Deiman gently places Eva in her stroller at the front of the room. I’m lucky enough to be right next to her, and I can see the sunlight glinting off her silky whiskers and hear her whispery sniffs as her little pink snout explores the confines of the stroller, leaving clear mucus on the screen.

As Deiman settles on her yoga mat at the front of the room, I turn my attention to my practice, becoming mindful of my surroundings. Warm sun pours in through three large windows behind Deiman. A square of sunlight falls onto my lap, warming my legs. My fellow participants begin to settle around me. Most have come in pairs or trios, romantic couples and small groups of friends. A portion of their registration fees for today’s class will help cover the medical and food expenses of the possums in Brace’s care. Deiman opens our practice with fun facts. She and Brace are interested in sharing information and dispelling myths about both possums and yoga.

ADDRESSING MISCONCEPTIONS

Misconceptions about possums proliferate. Many believe the marsupials to be vicious rodents, but they are generally docile. Brace says, “They are not rabies-vector animals. They are extremely resistant, though not immune, to rabies.” Many people may also believe possums to be dirty and smelly, but they are actually “very clean animals that groom just like cats do,” Brace points out.

The only native marsupial in the U.S. and Canada, possums play an essential role in maintaining healthy ecosystems, serving as scavengers that keep the environment clean by eating carrion, rotten fruits and veggies, and harmful bugs and other pests. “They do their very important job without complaint and they ask for nothing in return, except to simply be left alone and allowed to exist,” Brace explains. “They are the kindest, sweetest animals and so beneficial to our environment,” Deiman adds. In class she tells us, “Like yogis, possums can twist and turn like I’ve never seen, and they’re very solitary animals.” Possums, Deiman says, remind her of the way yogis retreat inside for peace.

Misconceptions about yoga are also common. “It’s not just an exercise program. It’s a journey of self-awareness and self-love,” Deiman explains. While a physical component exists in yoga and that is helpful to one’s wellness, the real goal is for one to learn to love and appreciate the body and mind. “It’s also not a religion,” Deiman says. “Our hands at our heart center are not prayer hands; they are called a mudra, a hand posture that elicits a physiological response of balance within. Placing the palms together helps to balance the right and left hemispheres of the brain. Yoga teaches, through the poses, how to move past resistance and the busy mind chatter, bringing a more peaceful existence to the practitioner.

Karen Brace, licensed wildlife rehabilitator and owner of Awesome Possumz, holds wildlife ambassador Eva, a blind Virginia opossum.

MEET THE MARSUPIAL

As we continue class, our poses and flows are infused with possum facts. One of the most important: Keeping any native wild animals, including possums, as pets in the state of Virginia is illegal. (It’s illegal in Maryland too.) Possum Yogis are tame, not domesticated, only serving as animal ambassadors because they are not able to go back to the wild. “The goal of wildlife rehab is to 100% get these animals back to the wild,” Brace says.

She is able to care for Possum Yogis because, in addition to her permit to rehabilitate possums and skunks, she holds state and federal licenses and has permits to keep the ones that can’t be released back into the wild.

“Stuart was my first non-releasable opossum and the very first ambassador in April 2019,” Brace points out. “People still tell me stories about meeting him for the first time and how that one meeting totally changed their perceptions and feelings about opossums. Stuart made them love opossums. That’s the highest compliment anyone could pay us. And that’s why I continue to do what I do.”

Currently, Brace cares for seven possums, and has lost nine others. With an average lifespan of one to two years in the wild, possums in captivity typically live three to four years. “Our oldest ambassador, Sweet Pea, was almost 4 1/2 when she passed. She had an exceptional career. She was part of a marriage proposal and was ring bearer at a different wedding,” Brace shares.

“Nugget was the first Possum Yogi,” Deiman says. “Since then, we have had all of them rotate through the classes. They live short little lives, but each one has truly touched my heart.”

Born without eyes, today’s Possum Yogi, Eva, cannot be released back to t he wild. Despite blindness, Brace says, “She’s the most adventurous one we have.”

Yoga is an ancient practice, and possums, Deiman tells us, have been around for 70 million years. “The adaptability and resilience of these little animals can help remind people of their own adaptability and resilience.”

As I stretch, contort and breathe, I overhear two women across the room from me whispering. “This pose feels really good,” one says. “Possums sure know what they’re doing!” her friend responds. “Maybe that’s why they’ve been around for millions of years!”

As the practice comes to a peaceful close, I muse on animals whose individual lives are so short, but whose species have survived for so long. We end with a chant — not quite the traditional “om,” but instead, “possummm.”