Greetings, all:

I've apparently got a skunk denning under the shed in the back yard. Had a close call this morning between said skunk and our dog--we've been down *that* road before and do not care for a repeat.

So, how do I get Mr. (Mizz?) Skunk to move on to greener pastures? We're in town, so shooting is out of the question. Would spreading mothballs around the area help? Need some ideas here.

Thanks, and Semper Fi.

Ron H.

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Wishin' don't make it so.

Mothballs might work, ammonia does a good job. if you have access to some that are not incendiary, smoke bombs can be effective. The thing is to 'contaminate' the site so it's not attractive to return to . . .

good luck !

Sounds like a job for BP...

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Travel light..stay aware..

Put a little TV under there and play episodes of The View.
If it's a female play the Three Stooges. Really. It'll work.

We had groundhogs a few years back - destroying our vegetable garden. I put an electric wire around it and that cured the problem. Critters hate to get zapped on the nose. Not very expensive for a small area - check the garden store.

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Lou

I have a friend whose had 2 pet skunks (squirters removed, of course).

Using what he's told me for a reference point, a skunk doesn't have the mental ability to tell if its stomach is full. Therefore, they can literally eat themselves to death, given the opportunity.

With this in mind, you COULD place a live trap nearby, baited with yogurt covered raisins. Once the trap is sprung, if you could throw a tarp or some such cover over it, you can contact animal control to come and get it.

try to live trap it.
even with a quiet weapon like a bow, suppressed firearm, mutant pellet gun ... you do not want to dispatch it ... trust me, doubly true in the hot weather.
you wont get away with it be you urban or rural.

so live trap it. check out your $#!+ list for a worthy recipient. transfer the critter into a reasonably roomy length of PVC pipe WITHOUT letting it SEE you. then deliver some cold served vengeance ... between the hours of 1 and 3 AM.

Of course you could omit the vengeance part, but for the careful planning and work involved ... it just seems kinda wasteful not to take advantage of it.

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it just needs more voltage

Getting it to STAY away is the real trick. Ya might try one of those electric ultra-sonic things that chase critters away. I had a problem with possums living in my parked van a few years back. I put a small jar of ammonia in a paper bowl of baking soda. On a very humid day , I shot the jar , breaking it and releasing the ammonia into the baking soda. The resulting cloud worked like tear gas. As they exited , popped 'em with a .22.

Since you live in town, I would call authorities.

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Wayne
Torn & Frayed

When I first saw this I thought it said "Skunk under the bed!"

Reminded me of a story about somebody who had a skunk wander into their house, so they thought it would be a good idea to chase it around popping it with a BB gun....

That did not end well...

DOWN BY THE RIVER!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pee in their hole-the smell of human urine will scare them off. Kinda like the time we were squirrel hunting and found a tresspasser's tree stand. four of us peed all around the stand-he didn't get much shooting

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Forum consigliere

"Final Blox" pellets...place under shed. Keep away from the dog. Takes care of pesky red squirrels & chipmunks too.

PestPoolAndLawn.com

3 to 4ft length of PVC pipe, capped at one end. Bait far end with sardines or whatever. Skunk will enter the pipe, cannot turn around, and for some reason will not back out. He cannot "fire" without being able to lift his tail, so the end of the story is for you to write.

If it's a male Warner Brothers documentary on this suggests that you should find a black female cat and paint a white stripe down its back to lead skunk away.

I've got one under my shed, too. This is the second year. I've just decided to live and let live but "they" tell me that if you catch a skunk in a live trap, as long as you keep a tarp between you and the trap as you approach it, the skunk won't squirt.

I am not going to verify this.

Ive had occasion where I had to test this.
It seems to work but I am NOT going to study the repeatability of the result

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it just needs more voltage

Gophers Pest Control | Moles Burrowing Rodents @ Rodenator

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"I also cook."

Move to another neighborhood.

I had a skunk in the wood pile one time. Moth balls encouraged him to leave. Never had another visit.

Ronco Skunk Begone

Having trapped and never been sprayed (knock on wood) by a skunk so far, I'll tell you the best way I can think of. Get a decent size Have a Heart trap (raccoon size will do). Cover the trap on both sides, the top and back with either a dark colored sheet or tarp leaving only the handle and front door exposed. (A real Have a Heart trap has a door that you cannot see through). Get some peanut butter cookies, skunks love these things. Toss these things in the back of the trap and set it. When the skunk enters and gets caught, bring the trap to a remote location (killing the skunk will cause it to spray) and carefully open and prop up the front door (I use a small fork stick that I checked before hand and know that it is the correct length). Don't walk in front of the trap, slowly back away and give the skunk time to leave. Sometimes it takes 5 minutes, sometimes an hour. The stick propping the door up will keep the skunk from setting off the trap again so it can leave. You might have a whole family, so keep trying after you catch the first one.

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Vaya con Dios

A conibear trap will do ...

Burn it with FIRE!!!

Aloha,

Another reason to live in Hawaii.

We don't have skunks.

Deodorant?

Call the animal control department for your city and ask them how many rounds and what caliber they reccomend to shoot a skunk.

They will be right out to correct the problem.

Move the shed, leave the skunk

Skunks are nocturnal. They avoid light. If you want to keep it alive and not hassle with how to deal with a trapped live skunk, put a nice bright light under the shed, suitably configured to avoid igniting burnable or explosive stuff.

I got a good laugh on that one!!! I know I would get out from under there in a hurry!!!!!!!!

A Supersoaker loaded with ammonia will give you some distance when you let him have it.

LOL!! This is priceless!!
Anywho, I would suggest a live trap like Havaheart, then drown the sucker, keeping the trap covered with an old sheet.

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Inconsistently consistent

+1 on the bright light. Once they're gone use chicken wire. 2 foot wide folded in half. One foot tacked up on the wall and one foot out from the wall, slightly buried, all the way around. Use something moveable in front of the door like logs, so you can get in and out. It works.

......moon

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NRA Life Member

We invite critters for a swim (here shown stepping out of the pool):



Sometimes, our groundhog guests overdo it tho:



Yes - our backyard this spring. Took a good 2 weeks for the smell to dissipate.

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Lou

Had that problem at another location about 5 miles from here. Fox urine was recommended. My recollection is that it worked. The main trick was training the fox. (Actually, our local hunting outfitter had the stuff in a bottle.)

Be glad you can't shoot where you live.....they will spray when shot; don't ask how I know.

Smoke bombs followed up with mothballs is probably the best route. Also, pack hardware cloth into wherever it is getting in.

Crawl under the shed and blow in the skunks face. They hate that and might leave!

Whatever you do - don't wrap it in the towel and stash it in the bathtub like a possum.