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Find an old blanket, cloth or towel and hold it open wide. Keeping in mind that a skunk won’t spray what it doesn’t see, approach the trap slowly and quietly (but not too quietly – I recommend talking in a soothing voice to avoid catching the skunk off guard) and slip your cover over the cage.
Is it OK to relocate a skunk?
Relocating skunks—even to wild or wooded areas—is illegal in most states and will likely result in their death because they will have trouble finding adequate food, water, and shelter and won’t have a natural immunity to foreign parasites and diseases.
How long will a trapped skunk live?
The average lifespan of a skunk in captivity is seven to ten years, much longer than that of most wild animals.
Can skunks find their way back home?
This is because skunks are good in locating their food sources and their dwellings. For that reason, if you relocate them to a place within your vicinity you will still live to deal with skunks problem as they will definitely come back to take their place in your property or garden.
How do you get a skunk to leave?
A bright light or a motion sensor flood light will scare skunks away. Most animals, including skunks, dislike the smell of citrus fruits. Place orange or lemon peels around the yard as a natural skunk repellent. Predator urine (dogs, coyotes) can be used to repel a skunk.
How far will a skunk come back?
They do travel as much as a mile a night but seldom venture more than four miles from their den. You can use skunk repellent to get rid of skunks and keep them off your property, but if they continue to cause damage, relocating a problem skunk is quite easy as these are not territorial creatures.
How far will a skunk travel to get back home?
The normal home range of the skunk is 0.5 to 2 miles in diameter. During the breeding season, a male may travel 4 to 5 miles each night. Skunks are dormant for about a month during the coldest part of winter.
Are skunks scared of humans?
Skunks are naturally introverted animals – they do not like human attention, so they will not seek this type of interaction. Instead, they rather keep to themselves and find food without anyone getting in harm’s way.
Can skunks freeze to death?
If there was a group of, say, skunks that opted for a burrow somewhere that wasn’t deep enough, they could freeze to death. Or they could all succumb to respiratory infections, which is pretty common and easy to share in confined spaces.
Will a skunk spray when it dies?
A skunk will almost always spray when it is killed and your best bet for not getting sprayed is of course, for you to be a good distance away. This is why a lot of people opt to shoot, but by all means, do this only if it is safe to. The best method still remains to live trap the skunk and relocate it somewhere else.
How do you relocate a skunk?
Working from behind the trap or alongside it, pull back the tarp just far enough to be able to open the door. Once you have it open, prop it open with a dowel or stick and move away to let the skunk find its way out. Once it’s free, it will instinctively want to move away from you and run for cover.
Will a skunk come back?
The skunks can easily leave the space but cannot come back in. When you’ve successfully removed them from your home, remember to clear away the remaining skunk poop so the skunk smell doesn’t linger even after the creatures are long gone.
What does it mean if a skunk is out in the daytime?
Skunks might come out during the day if there is a food source available at a particular time, if they have been frightened out of their daytime sleeping spot, or if there is high competition in the area at night from other nocturnal animals. Baby skunks are also commonly seen outside during the day.
What to do if a skunk is in your backyard?
Mild repellents, such as used kitty litter, can be placed near or inside the den to one side so the skunk has to pass them to get out; commercial or homemade capsaicin or castor oil repellents may also be tried.
Do skunks leave their den every night?
From early spring until late fall, skunks migrate from den to den every few days or so. Other than possibly digging a few holes in your yard and getting into your trash, damage from skunks is not usually cause for concern. For this reason, the best course of action is to wait out their stay until they move on.
What time of day do skunks come out?
Skunks are nocturnal, usually active from early evening through the night. They typically spend their days sleeping in dens, although they may bed in vegetation during the warm months.
How do you find a skunk den?
Typically speaking, skunks live in dens they dig with their front claws. They can also make abandoned fox holes, hollowed-out logs, or wood piles a new home for their family. If you look in your yard and see holes, it could be a skunk den.
Where do skunks go during the day?
Even though skunks are the most active during the night, they are also active during the day. Skunks will, however, spend the most of the day in hiding. They will be leaving their dens, but they will als hide from plain sight.
How do you put a skunk to sleep?
It is also called ‘putting the animal to sleep’. The skunk gets injected with sodium pentobarbital so that the death can be painless. The injection may be administered by a long, extendable syringe to avoid getting sprayed in return. Care should always be taken to guarantee the animal is euthanized humanely.
