Living in the City and Skunks

[SW CQB 45]

For years, when it rained for days, we would see a skunk in our fenced in back yard when it was dark. Since rain has been thin for years in South Texas…..it has been many years on the last sighting.

Recent constant rains brought back another sighting, then the next night and again and again.

As a young police officer in the late 80s and early 90s, I would respond to trapped skunks and animal control would ask us to shoot them with a 410 smooth bore that we had.

Just recently, we discovered a skunk was living under the short raised portion of our back yard deck. I located two openings where they are getting in and out and I covered one of them. I bought two traps and with canned cat food, caught one.

We thought the problem was gone. Animal Control came to pick up the one I caught and got sprayed. AC walked into my garage and it stunk for days in my garage.

Come to find out…..there are at least two maybe more skunks still under the deck.

I have baited traps, set them to a "light" touch and I am not catching these guys. I am feeding ants. last night, I laid a trail of marshmallows to the traps and I caught nothing. Traps are still set with ants on the food.

I don't want to shoot to violate laws or city ordinance plus I don't want to take a chance of stinking up my back yard or rear patio.

These maybe babies or very young skunks. They are deep underneath my deck. when I say deep…..they are on an opposite corner from the entry/exit, about 15'.

I don't want to yank deck boards in fear of getting sprayed or my deck as we hang out there a lot. Animal Control told me the young skunks will spray.

I do have a bottle of ammonia and prepared to dunk a ball of rags as I read they cannot stand the smell, but what about me and my family. will several balls of ammonia bombs keep us from going out too?

I wish I had a silenced MP15-22 with a laser so I can shoot them in the head at night. shhhhhhhhhhhh!

There are loose cats everywhere but they have seemed to disappeared from my back yard. I am not catching nothing in my traps.

any viable suggestions for living in a city residential area with firearm restrictions? Air rifles/pistols included. I want these skunks gone and then I will seal up my deck.

 

[arjay]

Id give the ammonia a try or use mothballs to drive them out and close up the hole.Once they are gone you can pull a few boards and retrieve the stink bomb.They will spray if shot...

 

[SW CQB 45]

do these guys dig?

We can hear them move around under the deck boards….I can see the black and white striped fur and then no noise.

This deck was there when we moved in back in the 90s. the boards have never been removed.

I am thinking they dug a hole either under my foundation or the original concrete patio floor as they disappear or no more sounds of them scurrying around.

 

[arjay]

They do dig.Ive had em around every house Ive had but I haven't been sprayed yet [emoji1].My dogs on the other hand....

 

[bgrone]

Politicians

When I read the title to this thread I thought it was about politicians.




Jim in Iowa

 

[raisedin99]

last night, I laid a trail of marshmallows to the traps and I caught nothing.

Have you considered kosher dill pickles?

terry

 

[loutent]

I have had some success by spreading diatomaceous earth (pool filter stuff) around where critters enter/exit - they don't like getting that stuff in their fur - pretty nasty but odorless - worked with a family of groundhogs a few years back - the just moved on. They were going down a hole so it was a little easier to deal with than your situation.

 

[SW CQB 45]

thanks Y'all. I will try pickles tonight and will look into the other stuff. I think the problem I have right now….only one is coming out at night. I think they dug a hole underneath my foundation or patio slab which is covered by my deck boards.

 

[arjay]

Sounds like she has a litter under there and they haven't left the nest yet.

 

[kozmic]

We had a persistent skunk that would relentlessly dig the perennial bulbs out of our big "island" in the front yard. I stopped replacing the bulbs every year and eventually he just stopped showing up.

Now it's seldom that we catch a glimpse of any.

In our case we eliminated the food source. It doesn't sound like that will work for you. Good luck!

 

[SW CQB 45]

I don't know what the food source is. There is no dig marks in my grass. Maybe frogs or lizards. We may have them for a while before they come out.

If I block their exit.....will they dig a new exit hole?

 

[arjay]

Yup,they are nocturnal so you could block it at night to keep them out once the young start traveling

 

[meaneyedcatz]

Certain farm stores have smoke bombs that produce a poison gas. Light them and shove them in the hole to flush them out or after lighting seal all holes to kill them.

 

[SW CQB 45]

Have you considered kosher dill pickles?

terry

All I had was hamburger chips and YES….caught two youths in one trap. we can still here at least one more underneath our deck.

I have two traps set next to each other so hopefully tonight brother or sis will join the rest of his family so AC can haul them away tomorrow!!!!!!!

thanks for the pickle bait!!!!!!!!

once all the skunks are gone, its time for all the stray cats so they will stop fighting in my back yard.

 

[David LaPell]

When I used to nuisance trap I got more than one out from under a deck. Take a Have a Hart trap, wrap a tarp or old dark colored sheet around the sides and top leaving the handle exposed so you can pick the trap up. I find that skunks LOVE peanut butter cookies. Take the trap out somewhere remote, get a stick to prop open the door and then hightail it because sometimes a skunk will come out right away and sometimes they take their sweet time. I think the longest I ever had was a big one that took 20 minutes. Never did get sprayed.
Of course you live in the city, so to me skunks would be the most welcome sight compared to some of the residents in those places these days.

 

[raisedin99]

All I had was hamburger chips and YES….caught two youths in one trap. we can still here at least one more underneath our deck.


thanks for the pickle bait!!!!!!!!

My pleasure…

terry

 

[SW CQB 45]

Of course you live in the city, so to me skunks would be the most welcome sight compared to some of the residents in those places these days.

hahahahaha. that is so true.

with the two caught….two additional youths came to their cries. One went into the entrance of the other trap and backed out. DARN!!!!

Oh well, will try again tonight!

 

[Kinman]

I lived around them most of my life, they are even common in the city around here. Usually choosing to den up in a rather uninhabited area and then visiting the local areas at night while hunting for food. They prefer cat foods over dog food but will eat dog food in a pinch, so if you feed your animals outside you are welcoming them to dinner. I prefer the company of skunks to mice and if you have a skunk in the area you will not have mice, they are the best mousers bar none except maybe your common weasel on the planet. As a youngster I was conned into picking up a large male by the tail by my uncle, the skunk was trapped in the chicken coop and my uncle told me to reach in there and lift him up by the tail. Uncle Norman said "If you pick him up by the tail, it kicks his shooter out of gear." Well sir I reached in their and grabbed his tail and hauled him out proud as can be, I was about nine or ten and the skunk weighed a good 20-25lbs, my arm got tired and I dropped him enough for him to grab my pant leg and OOOOHHHHH did he let me have it...I can attest to the fact that it doesn't quite blind you more than more of a total sensory overload, then old Sneaky got into it trying to protect me and the dog and I both got it. I remember sitting on the back porch eating a few meals with the dog because no matter what she tried Grandma couldn't cut that smell off me, it was a good two or three days before I was fit for human contact. Oddly...to this day the smell of skunk does not bother me, in fact I kind of like it, especially in the early spring...it usually means that winter is finally over. Someone once told me the reason you usually see so many little skunks dead on the road is because Mama kicks them out wholesale when she figures its time for them to hit the road and she wants to start thinking about taking up some light housekeeping with a new suitor.

 

[SW CQB 45]

Follow up-

there was actually 3 youths in my trap two nights ago.

I set up the traps again last night with pickles and two little ones were seen in my back yard but they did not set off the traps.

try again tonight.

 

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

It has been quite a few years since we lived a few miles from here and had a skunk or two hanging around, but I seem to recall that fox urine actually worked in scaring them away.

One of the benefits of having deer hunters in one's midst is that one does not have to harvest the urine from a local fox, but can buy it in small bottles at a hunting supply outlet, which is often remarkably close to the LGS.

I can't even remember why deer hunters use fox urine, but I guess it doesn't matter. Not to me, at least.