SKUNKS

Skunk Facts

     There are four different kinds of skunks found in the United States.  The spotted and striped skunks are the most widely distributed and therefore more likely to come into contact with people.  The hooded and hog-nosed skunks are rarer and found mostly in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.  The spotted skunk prefers the country and spends most of its life near farms.  The striped skunk is more adaptable and lives in a variety of habitats.

     Skunks are placid, retiring and non-aggressive.  They try very hard not to get in harm’s way.  They have a home range of a few hundred acres at most.  They are primarily nocturnal and usually solitary – except when mothers are raising their babies.  They are active throughout the year, but in northern areas, they spend the coldest parts of the winter in their dens.

     Skunks eat mostly insects, many of which are pests to humans.   They are therefore very beneficial to have around.  They also eat some plant material, including wild fruits, apples and corn.  In winter and spring they may eat mice and the eggs of ground-nesting birds.

     Breeding usually occurs in late winter or early spring and gestation averages about 60-75 days, so babies are usually born in May or June.   Second litters and late births do occur.  After mating, a female can store the male’s sperm and delay initiating pregnancy for some weeks.  Litters range from 3 to as many as 10 young who remain in the nest for about two months, after which they begin to follow their mom as she forages.

     All skunks seem able to dig their own burrows but will also use abandoned dens of other animals, hollow logs, wood or rock piles, under buildings, stone walls, hay or brush piles and trees or stumps.

     The skunk’s main defense is a complex chemical substance that includes sulfuric acid that can be fired from either one of two independently targetable anal glands.  Because of this ability, skunks will stand and face a threat rather than run away.  This works well with people and animals but is useless against cars. As a result, many skunks die on roadways -- to the point of being wiped out entirely from areas with a lot of traffic.

     Skunks can carry rabies, but it is important to remember that not every skunk is rabid.  Only if an adult skunk seen in the daytime is showing abnormal behaviors such as paralysis, unprovoked aggression, moving in circles, self-mutilation should you call your local animal control officer or police department.

Problems and Solutions

     Occasional skunk sightings in a neighborhood doesn’t necessarily mean there is a problem.  Measures can be taken to discourage skunks from sticking around.  These include removing garbage and pet food left out at night and eliminating convenient denning sites such as wood and rock piles, elevated sheds, openings under concrete slabs and porches and access to crawl spaces under houses.

     Skunks are usually announced more from smell than sight.   Musk odor might linger for days where a skunk has sprayed.  Persistent, faint musk smells associated with a 4-6 inch diameter hole under a building or woodpile indicates that a skunk may have taken up residence.  If you discover a den that you suspect might belong to a skunk, first check to see if the occupancy is current.   This may be done by loosely filling the hole (or holes) with soil, leaves or material such as straw.  If a skunk is present, it will easily push its way out that night and reopen the hole.  If the plug remains undisturbed for two or three nights (and it is not winter), it is safe to assume that the hole is unoccupied and can be permanently closed.  If a skunk, or any other animal, is present, either harassment or eviction using a one-way door system is recommended.

Harassment - When it is safe to displace skunks, mild harassment can be very effective.  First try repacking the hole the skunk is using with leaves or other material to see if it will get the message and move elsewhere.  If this fails, place ammonia-soaked rags near or inside the burrow to one side so that the skunk has to pass them to get in and out.  Make sure the skunk is not close by before taking either of these measures.

Eviction – A skunk may be evicted from an active den by installing a one-way door over the entrance to allow it to leave but prevent reentry.  These doors are available commercially. One company that sells them is the

Tomahawk Live Trap Company
P. O. Box 323
Tomahawk, Wisconsin 54487
Tel: 1-800-272-8727

Care must be taken to ensure that the door can open without hitting an obstruction.   Leave the door in place for two or three nights to be sure that the skunk has left.   Be sure that no new holes appear nearby.  Remove the door and close the opening.

PLEASE NOTE:  Do not install a one-way door in May or June when there may be babies left behind in the den.   The babies will starve and possibly discharge their spray before dying.   Instead, either wait for the skunk family to move or use mild harassment to try to accelerate the process.  The mother skunk will, under the right circumstances, carry her babies to a new den.  Do not permanently seal the opening until the plug remains undisturbed for several nights.

     If a skunk becomes trapped in a window well (the basement window area), the best method of freeing it is to provide it with a means of escape.   In the well, place a rough board (or one with cleats) that is long enough to act as a ramp to the top.  The board should lean no steeper than a 45 degree angle.   The board should be slowly and carefully placed by approaching the well low enough to be out of sight of the skunk.  If possible, a second person with a vantage point high enough to see the skunk can warn of any signs of its becoming agitated, indicated by the skunk raising its tail or stamping its front feet.  If this happens, stop and rethink your strategy.  Another method of placing the board is to tie it to the end of a long pole and lower it by holding the opposite end of the pole.  Once the board is placed, keep people and pets away from the area until nightfall when the skunk should leave on its own.  To prevent this situation from reoccurring, place exit ramps or tight-fitting covers at each window well.

Removing Skunk Odor–

On Pets: Skunk odor may be neutralized with liberal amounts of vinegar or tomato juice. This will make the odor tolerable. Only time will eliminate it.

On Clothes: Combine 1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide with l/4 cup of baking soda and 1 teaspoon liquid soap (laundry or dishwashing soap).

On Inanimate Objects: Chlorine bleach, ammonia or commercial products containing neutroleum alpha may be used.

On People: Carbolic soap and water are safe to use on skin. Liberal flushing with cold water will ease the discomfort of skunk spray in the eyes.

     Each year untold numbers of skunks are killed because someone is afraid of getting sprayed; yet those who are familiar with skunks know that it takes a lot to get sprayed.  Hopefully, through education people will begin to recognize and understand the role that these mild animals have to play and the benefits of tolerating their presence.

FICTION

Fiction: All skunks are born rabies carriers.

Fact: Skunks, like any other mammal, only get rabies when infected by another rabid animal. Typically, skunks get rabies by either getting bitten by or eating the carrion of a rabid animal.

Fiction: A skunk's defensive spray is its urine.

Fact: A skunk's spray is not urine. It is a musk produced by a pair of 'musk glands' about 3/4" in diameter and located on both sides of the rectum. Although similar glands appear in many other mammalian species, the skunk's must glands are highly developed.

Fiction: Skunks attack with their musk.

Fact: Skunks only use their musk for defense, not for attacking. I remember reading that the only time a skunk sprays another skunk is when two males fight over a female, however other sources say no. (A friend of mine witnessed a pair of skunks fighting in his backyard and said the area smell strongly of musk so I suspect the answer is 'sometimes')

Fiction: When a skunk uses its musk for defense, it sprays a little on its tail and then 'flings' it at an enemy with a quick tail-flick.

Fact: I'm not sure where this myth came from, but it could be a misinterpretation of a striped skunks's warning display. [ skunks instinctively raise their tail like a warning flag when startled... other warnings include hissing, back-arching, foot-stamping, and hand-stands (most often for
spotted skunks). ]

Skunks don't need to 'fling' the musk at all... Powerful muscles surround the skunk's musk glands which can squeeze the musk out of a pair of 'retractable nipples' located on each side of the anus. This spray can reach an enemy 10 to 15 feet away. Often little or no musk gets on the skunk's fur. Skunks apparently try to avoid getting ANY musk on their fur.

The PBS documentary series "Wild America" showed this on their episode titled "Those Smelly Skunks". Click on this link to see the musk spraying segment [828k]. This shows the 'retractable nipples' in action. WARNING: EXTREME GROSS-OUT ALERT

Fiction: A skunk cannot spray when held up by its tail.

Fact: Apparently this is still up in the air (no pun intended). Sometimes a skunk will spray when held up by its tail... sometimes it won't. It appears to depend on the individual. The big question is: What provokes some skunks to spray when held by their tails and others not to? An article by Richard van Gelder [Natural History, Aug. 1990, pp6+] suggests that if a skunk is lifted by its tail BEFORE it gets agitated enough to protrude its 'retractable nipples' then it cannot spray. If lifted after the nipples protrude, then a skunk can successfully spray. Jerry Dragoo (as seen on the 'skunk experts' list on these pages) disagrees with van Gelder and belives it depends on the skunk's personality and perception of danger... 'does it feel threatened enough to use its musk?' [his reply to van Gelder is in Natural History, Oct, 1990, p4 (letters section)].

P.S. It might look cruel, but skunk's tails are strong and picking up a skunk this way shoudn't hurt it as long as you pick it up by the BASE OF THE TAIL
(never the end) and as long as the skunk is not greatly
overweight.

Fiction: Skunk spray can cause permanent blindness.

Fact: The spray, if gotten into the eyes, often causes temporary blindness (and also burns like heck), but apparently there aren't any cases documented where it has caused permanent blindness.

Fiction: A skunk's musk consists of 1-Butanethiol.

Fact: This is from a century-old chemical analysis. T.B. Aldritch [J. of Experimental Medicine, v. 1 p323-340, 1896] examined skunk musk and claimed it was primarily 1-Butanethiol (a/k/a n-Butyl Mercaptan). Many books which talk about skunks continue to use Aldritch's results.

A much more recent analysis of the 'volatile' components of the musk shows 7 chemicals (for striped skunks), one component had never before been seen in nature and another had never been reported anywhere (natural or man-made) yet none of them were 1-Butanethiol. Two were minor variants. The following page describes this analysis of skunk spray.

Skunks :General Information and Control

General Skunk Information:

• Skunks are a member of the weasel family.
  People generally relate skunks to the foul-smelling, defensive spray they discharge when scared or threatened. Many people have experienced this unpleasant odor along roadways and on dogs that have come in contact with skunks.
• In many parts of North America, skunks are the major carriers of rabies. The two most common in the U.S. are the striped skunk and the spotted skunk.
• The striped skunk characterized by a black body with a narrow white stripe on the forehead and wider stripes that extend from the neck along each side of the back. It is about the size of a large domestic cat while the spotted skunk is half that size.
• Skunks are nocturnal, usually active from early evening through the night. They usually spend their days sleeping in dens, although during the warm months they may bed in vegetation. Dens are usually below ground but may be found in a stream or pond banks, lumber piles, or beneath porches or in crawl spaces.
• Skunks have sharp claws on the front feet used for digging insects and worms. There footprint and moving pattern distinguishes them from other similar-sized animals.
• During the colder winter months, several skunks will gather and share the same den.
  Skunks do not hibernate but generally remain inactive during winter, surviving on their fat stores. However, they may leave the winter den for short periods during warm weather.
• Mating occurs in late winter(February and March) and the young are born from mid-spring until mid-summer. Generally, there are 4 - 6 young per litter. The young skunks are weaned at 2 months and usually leave to establish their own den by fall.
• Their diet consists of insects such as crickets, grasshoppers, beetles , cutworms and various insect larvae. They will also sometimes eat poultry, eggs, garden vegetables and fruit. They can dig and root in the soil looking for insect larvae. Sod lawn damage by skunks often has the sod"rolled back" in a similar fashion as done by raccoons. They will also feed on mice, rats, ground squirrels, shrews, moles and other small mammals. They are beneficial in keeping the rodent population down when not being a nuissance.
• Skunks are known for their discharge, an obnoxious odor when provoked. This is released primarily in self defense. A skunk can release a spray of oily liquid as far as 10-15 feet and spray up to six times in succession. The fluid is painful if it gets in a person's or pet's eyes and may cause temporary blindness for about 15 minutes. Skunks will usually stamp their feet, hiss or growl and raise their tail erect as a warning of an oncoming discharge. After a full discharge, it takes up to 10 days to replenish the supply.
• A skunk generally sprays only as a last resort, preferring to retreat from danger.

Skunk Control:

Dog or cat food left outside for family pets can be very attractive to skunks. Discontinue this practice if skunks are a problem.

Skunk Exclusion:

Many problems with skunks around homes and farms can be prevented by excluding skunks from spaces beneath buildings. Skunks can be prevented from living or entering under buildings and other structures by closing all spaces with wood or metal screen.

When skunks are already living under a building, they can be coerced to leave in the following manner:

1. Seal all openings except the main skunk entrance. Use sturdy wire mesh (1/4-inch hardware cloth or similar materials) to screen vents near ground level in houses and other structures. Tightly seal holes in foundations or under porches to prevent skunks from entry and making homes there.
2. To determine entry points that the skunks would be making, you can use "tracking patches" of a fine layer of sand, flour or dust placed at suspected entrances.
3. After dark, when the skunk has left seeking food they will leave tracks at the den entrance. Inspect the powder for exiting skunk tracks.
4. Once a skunk has left the building, immediately seal the entrance with the hardware cloth "door" described below. You will not want to permanently exclude at this point, not being sure of of the number of skunks present. To temporarily exclude the skunks ,a 1/2 -inch hardware cloth "door" can be used. Attach a section of 1/2-inch hardware cloth to the opening, hinged at the top and left loose on the other 3 sides. It should be larger than the opening so that it cannot swing inward. The skunks will push it open to leave, but cannot re-enter. The following evening, re-apply tracking patches- powder, and re-open the entrance to allow any other skunks to leave before permanently closing the opening.
5. Once you are sure all skunks are out, permanently seal the opening. Extend the wire screen or other materials used to block the entrance several inches below the ground to prevent the skunk from digging under it. Or, the barrier can include a wire skirt at ground level extending at least 12 inches horizontally outward from the entrance. Young skunks may remain in the den from April through August. Be sure all animals are out before sealing up the entrance. Moth balls or moth flakes (naphthalene or paradichlorobenzene) scattered or placed in porous cloth bags suspended in the den area, or liquid ammonia solution in a shallow pan, may discourage skunks from returning.
6. Bright lights placed under buildings may serve a similar function.
7. When skunks have become trapped by falling into a window well, cellar, or hole in the ground, carefully lower a cleated board into the hole to allow them to climb out and escape.
8. The presence of skunks near homes and farmyards can be further discouraged by removing brush piles, stacked lumber, wood piles and similar sources of shelter which they may find inviting. A fence can exclude skunks from landscaped areas, gardens, school yards and other such places.
   One-inch poultry netting in a 3-foot width is recommended.
   The bottom 12 inches should be below the ground surface, extending 6 inches down and then 6 inches outward in an "L" shape.
   This will discourage most skunks from digging under it.
   Only rarely will skunks climb such a fence.

Trapping Skunks




Safeguard Live Trap with Cover
• Live traps such as Safeguard 24x7x8 trap w/ cover-Skunk Trap may be used to trap and remove skunks .
  Packaging: 1 Trap (M 50063) with poly cover
  Measures : 24" x 7" x 8" with an 1" heavy gauge wire mesh.
  Covered by a 1 year warranty against manufacturer's defects.
  Made in the USA.

Safequard professional front release trap with cover, making is spray proof for trapping skunks(they spray you if they see you). This trap cover is made of a heavy polyethylene panels which are hinged to fit over the sides and top of the skunk-sized Safeguard trap.This greatly decreases the likelihood of spraying. The covered trap blocks sun rays and protects the animal from elements. The covered trap also makes is easy to for people to transport who fear to pick up the cage with live animals in it. Will also catch rabbits and large squirrels.

• There is obviously a special problem when trapping skunks. Skunks don't like to spray if they can't see their target.
  Safequard professional front release trap with cover, making is spray proof for trapping skunks(they spray you if they see you).
  This trap cover is made of a heavy polyethylene panels which are hinged to fit over the sides and top of the skunk-sized Safeguard trap.This greatly decreases the likelihood of spraying. The covered trap blocks sun rays and protects the animal from elements. The covered trap also makes is easy to for people to transport who fear to pick up the cage with live animals in it.
  Will also catch rabbits and large squirrels.
  
  
• Traps should baited with with fish (canned or fresh), fish-flavored cat food, chicken parts, bacon, or peanut butter on bread. The trap should be set in the trail immediately in front of the burrow's main entrance. Logs, twigs, boards, or stones placed on either side of a path between the burrow opening and the trap will aid in funnelling the animal toward the trap.
• All traps should be checked in the morning and early evening.
• Slowly approach the trapped skunk and cover the trap with an old blanket or piece of thick burlap, if not already set. The covered trap will be less fearful for the skunk and it will less likely discharge it's scent.
• Carefully pick up the covered trap and place it gently in the back of a pickup truck for transporting elsewhere. Avoid sudden, jarring movements or loud noises which may frighten the skunk. It is much more difficult to handle spotted skunks successfully in this manner, but striped skunks seldom release scent when these precautions are taken.
• Trapped skunks can be transported 10 miles or more and released. Some states have laws which say that a trapped skunk cannot be released elsewhere and must be killed. Check your local state regulations.
• To release a trapped skunk, stand more than 20 feet away and release the trap door using a string or fishing line. This is not generally recommended because of the potential for spreading rabies if by chance the captured animal is infected.
• Never release a skunk that shows signs of aggression, very nervous activity or salivation. It may be rabid and should be destroyed.

Shooting Skunks

It is not recommended to shoot skunks, in that it often results in release of their odor. Also not recommended if the skunk needs to be captured for rabies testing.

Skunk Odor Control:

Bathing in tomato juice will help treat odors on dogs. Pour it on the dogs straight. Massage then shampoo.

A compound called Invade Bio Zap will begin to destroy malodors almost immediately upon contact, then continues to effectively capture and destroy malodors until the offending odor is completely broken down and destroyed.