Skunks....

[kide]

Anyone had experience with the "Flybait/Coke" solution to varmit control? Skunks are tearing up my yard, and yes I know, it's supposed to be because of grubs, but actually, I think there PO'd because of a lack of 'em.. I've heard that the flybait/Coke works well on Racoons (with proper care of where it's put, of course), but that Skunks don't go for it... I've got a large live trap, but trapping a skunk seems to be a less than desirable activity.

 

[jlhayes]

Kendel a small live box trap will work to catch them I have made some off the pattern the game wardens use to catch pesky rabbits.

as long as they can't get their tail up over their back they can't spray.

Police have taken them away in their trunk and released them for target practice.

I only lost one trap because the officer shot it too soon as it was leaving the trap and not a good kill.

 

[rmclements]

FWIW...Years ago I had a gentleman trap a skunk that was living under my front porch.

He put the live trap in a black plastic bag so no light could get in. Told me that if the skunk is in the dark that is feels safe and won't spray.

Then he put a raw (uncracked) egg in the trap for bait. The first night he got the rascal, put the trap in his truck and left.

He told me that he would either "gas" it from the exhaust of the truck or let it go in the woods.

As long as it was far enough away, I didn't care. I don't know if I would be gutsy enough to try this but it worked for him.

 

[kide]

Hey, I'll try anything - plans for a small live trap, anyone??

 

[rmclements]

I've got one at work that we have been using to keep the coon population in check since we are temporarily not manufacturing. I'm in mid-michigan...if you are interested shoot

me an email.

Rob

 

[bbrigham]

I've trapped at least 30 skunks for a trailer park. All I've ever used was a Have-a-Heart trap baited with canned cat food, gets em every time. No need to worry bout being sprayed either, all you have to do is walk up to the trap calmly and talk to them so ya don't scare it and cover the trap with a towel, then carry away. I've only used a towel a few times if someone or dogs have been pestering them. I used to take them bout 5 miles away and release them into the woods. I had one that I woke up in the morning, he raised his head to look at me and went back to sleep. When I got to the release site he didn't even want to come out of the trap. I ended up reaching into the trap and pulling all the grass and weeds out that he pulled in during the night to make his bed. I thought I was going to have to pull him out, when he finally did stroll out he looked around a bit, stretched and walked off as I sat right next to the trap. They are really very docile animals, very much like cats. They actually make very good pets.....once descented....are quite friendly even in the wild.

 

[fcurrier]

Brendan: Best answer yet!

A Havarhart trap skunk size is about $35? I think I'll post a pic tomorrow of what they've done on our local golf course. I think now I have to!

 

[kmcconaughey]

...

 

[lhinds]

We had a family move in at our truck bay at work. We finally trapped all of them with a hav a heart trap. We would put them to sleep with starting fluid and relocate them about two miles away.

 

[mhomrighausen]

Brendan B. Years ago a girl had a skunk as a pet. She called him Sassy. She said that when guys would come to visit her if the skunk didn't like them he would try and "bite" to scare them away. Not hard or anything just trying to protect her. She said that she wondered what the skunk would do around me. Unfortuantely we never had the chance to find out. She met and married s super nice young man that apparently the skunk liked.

 

[mfrade]

We had a skunk in the yard who sprayed one of our dogs. After the second time I contacted animal control and they loaned me a trap. I used the can of cat food as bait also. When I finally caught him, he was less than happy. As soon as he saw anyone, he'd be spraying and he couldn't lift his tail more than a couple inches above horizontal. I had to cover myself with a huge sheet of plastic and then shuffle over to the cage to toss the plastic over the cage and then carry the whole mess to a barrel full of water. It took weeks for that side of the yard to "air out"!

 

[rpalmer]

When I was in my 20s I was hunting on state land. I came across a dead skunk. It looked in good condition and I thought a skunk skin would be cool. So I took him home and skinned him. WHAT A MISTAKE! I can't even remember what happened to the skin.

 

[jlhayes]

Mike I know why the skunk sprayed it felt threatened because I'll bet ya it was an open wire trap.

The kind I made were closed on all sides but the front end that made the animal more comfortable going in as it could see out the other side.

A door on the back side would drop at an angle so if the skunk tried to back up it automatically raised its rear and kept the tail down. don't leave too much room as to let him turn around.

I wish I could draw it for you very simple to build, but hard to explain.

 

[mfrade]

Jim, it WAS threatened for sure! Someone had told me that a skunk can't spray without raising his tail. And that's not always true! Had I been sharper at it, I would've put the whole deal in a plastic trash bag to protect ME! rofl.. I borrowed the trap from animal control, didn't need to make it. The first time he sprayed the pup the dog ran right under my bed at 3 am! Now that is no way to be awakened!!! 8-(

 

[bnolte]

Back in 2001 I was working outside during the nice September weather on a furniture restoration project. Nearby I had my almost new 2000 Accord opened up so I could listen to tunes while I worked, when a skunk sauntered out of a brush pile nearby and started taking interest in my car. The skunk was intent on hanging around, and my timid attempts to shoo him away fell on deaf ears. She stayed there for what seemed like an eternity, but eventually it looked like the coast was clear. I decided to turn off the radio, get the keys and close the car doors, but I had to drive the car later that night. Luckily the skunk decided to move on, rather than take up residence under the seat of my car, but I drove to work that night with a little more than the normal amount of apprehension.

A couple of days later I was out there again working, and discovered she had a family. They eventually moved on or became roadkill, one night later that fall there was the strong odor of skunk in the air, the next morning I found a flattened skunk a few hundred feet down the road from my house.

 

[mfrade]

Bruce, HMmmmm.. I wonder if it was searching for your car? LOL.. I was doing a job on a house lot for a couple and we had a small wooden "structure" for an office. Barely big enough to open the blueprints! One afternoon the property owner was inside with the door open and in wanders a skunk and just like a cat it rubs against his leg so he drops his hand down to "pet" it!.!.! It took a moment for him to realize he didn't own any cat and looked down to check it out! He froze in place and began saying silent prayers to the man upstairs and after a few minutes of investigation the animal just wandered off on his own accord. And I just about died from laughing so hard! I wish I had a camera to take a picture of his face! White as a sheet!

 

[kmcconaughey]

My wife works nights 3 nights each week, she leaves for work around 10:30pm and we often leave the garage door open on our tuck under garage as I'm outside working and there is no service door. Why close it for an hour or two only to open it again. Figured we'd save on wear and tear. One evening a couple years ago around 11:00 after my wife had left, I was in the room that is above the garage reading and I heard a loud noise. Assuming that one of our cats knocked something off of a shelf in the basement I went looking. Not finding anything amiss I thought perhaps something fell in the garage. I opened the door from the basement into the garage and saw a skunk just a few feet away, in the closed garage!

I quickly closed the door. I started to think how am I going to get the skunk out of the garage without it spraying? Then realizing that it didn't spray when my wife walked into the garage, got into the car, started it, backed out and closed the garage door, it likely would not spray if I carefully opened the basement door and pressed the garage door opener button. I had hoped to shoot it when it got a "safe" distance from the house, so I turned on all the yard lights, grabbed a revolver, loaded it, grabbed a battery operated spot light, opened the door to the garage slightly, reached in and pressed the garage door button. I then went upstairs and watched out the windows to watch if I could see where it went. I never saw anything so I went back to the basement and opened the door into the garage. I turned on the spotlight and shined it under my truck, no skunk, I carefully entered the garage and shined the light into every shadow, no skunk. It must have left the garage and traveled close to the house so that I couldn't see it from any of the windows, or I was looking the wrong way.

In any case it left and didn't spray!

We no longer leave the garage door open late unless we are actually still outside working...

 

[aaytay]

This is strange, I just remembered this story...

I came home one after noon from work at about 4:30pm. As I pulled up the driveway (about 110yrds long) that beautiful summer afternoon I saw what I first thought were baby kittens scattered all about my front yard. Turns out it was a large litter of very young skunks. There must have been a dozen of them, just wobbling through the grass in all different directions. There was an adult with them, but when I drove up the driveway, it ran away. The babies sure were cute, but they had to go....

I called the neighbor to the one side of us, told him about the skunks and said, "They're going to go bye-bye in a few minutes, so that's what the shooting-noise is about.." I called the neighbor on the other side. Her house "views" our yard. I guess she's a bit more tollerant of "nature's creatures" than I must be. When I told her about the skunks she said, "I know aren't they cute?" I replied, "Well, they're not going to be cute in about 5 minutes, so close your curtains on the back side and keep your youngest away." She goes, "Oh GAWD!" and hangs up the phone...

The S&W .22 pistol did the rest.

I'll admit, it wasn't a proud moment for me, but 12 baby skunks usually turn into about 8 adults, and there's too many kids in the neighborhood for that!!

 

[kide]

Neighbor kitty corner 'cross the road from us called about three weeks ago.... She said something was burrowing under their front porch - did I have any ideas what it was and how to get rid of it. I told her this had been a verrry active summer for skunks, raccoons and woodchucks. I told her that my next door neighbor had borrowed our large live trap and had gotten rid of four raccoons. I also related to her that I'd gotten rid of nine woodchucks so far this year. She said that they had a live trap and that she'd suggest to her husband getting it out and, as we suggested, baiting it with cat food.
She inquired how far away we were taking the raccoons and woodchucks.....
I said "oh, just back in Mike's woods"
She said "but - that's only three or four hundred feet - that's not far enough"
I said - "Uhhh, Roseanne - it is when they're feet up" .......
Long pause followed by "Ohhhhhhhh"..........

(BTW - the wood chucks weren't trapped - got 'em with my trusty old Glenfield-Marlin .22 w/scope)

 

[bbrigham]

Sweet...When I was about 8 years old I asked my parents if I could get a bb gun. They said sure can, gotta save up for it though. I'd been savin for almost a year, 50c for doin dishes don't add up too fast, and I came to them showin how much I had. Dad says well I think you have enough, when your mother and I get back from town we'll pick it up. Well mom and dad got home caryin an unmarked box and seems it didn't say Daisy I figured they didn't have enough. Dad says we couldn't get you the bb gun so we got you this instead, I was so upset that it wasn't a bb gun till I opened the box then damn near peed myself I was so happy....it was a Glenfield-Marlin .22. Woohoo I was in heaven. Now I'm back to the part of being upset...I don't have it anymore.