Help! A Nightly Visitor......Skunk......

[antiquebuff]

I have a skunk that has been visiting every night. I keep my chickens in their coops at night so he can't get to them, but he prowls around and they start making a terrible commotion in the middle of the night. Last week when I was up around 2 am he was on the porch and I turned on the porch light and opened the door and he just looked up at me and it didn't seem to bother him at all. It scared me to death...I though he would spray me...We want to get rid of him...what is the best way without getting sprayed?

 

[redhen]

wish i could help you!!! sorry

 

[Kitchenella]

As for the porch. Sprinkle alot of moth balls around. How close does he get to the coop? If the area is not to large you could try the moth balls there also.

 

[SussexInSeattle]

If you can afford it, I would hire a professional pest control company who will humanely trap and release into a less populated area, hopefully many miles away.

You could try to do this yourself but you risk getting sprayed when you have to handle the cage unless you tarp it all around and transport in the bed of a pick up truck. You can buy humane cages that are meant for stray cats OR you may be able to rent a cage like this from your local county Animal Control. They rent them out for people with feral cat problems, I don't think I would tell them you intend to use it for skunk, if the trap gets sprayed, tell them you accidently caught a skunk.

I believe you can bait it with fresh or canned salmon. If anyone knows what skunks find irresistable, maybe they can add to the bait list.

EDIT they can spray 15 feet or more, they are usually solitary and the babies are born during May or June so now would be a good time to trap and release since you should not be removing a mother from its babies. Their natural enemies are Great Horned Owls and coyote. They are omnivores so the salmon should work well, you could also used chicken parts but why give him a taste of what we want him to avoid?

 

[#1California Chick]

Other food treats for lures: cat food, tuna.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

A heart/lung shot will dispatch it without spraying, most of the time... If you hit the head or the spine and disturb the central nervous system they tend to spray. If you catch it in a live trap you can attach a syringe full of acetone to the end of dowel. Talking very nicely, and moving slowly, introduce the syringe into the cage and inject the acetone into the lungs.

Here's a video of somebody dispatching a skunk with a syringe:

http://s3.photobucket.com/albums/y65/flatset/?action=view&current=skunkpole.flv

 

[bluey]

Thanks Mac...I was wondering whether a heart/lung shot would take it down without it spraying.

 

[Padre]

I don't like skunks very well, but I would still not kill it. Do you have a male dog? put him on a leash and let him mark his teritory around the coop and run. I would also include the free range area as well. This will comunicate to the other preditors that this area is taken and they will pretty much avoid it.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Quote:
Trap and release is not the answer. It spreads disease and tends to make your problem somebody else's. Either put up with it, deter it, or dispatch it.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

You need one of these to keep your head warm while feeding the chickens: