Relocating a DANGEROUS SKUNK

[KEC]

What works well is to put the trap beside an outbuilding and lean a piece of plywood  over it; keeps the skunk out of the hot sun or rain and keeps it calm. When it's caught, tilt the plywood out and carefully put an old cloth over the trap. If you put the cloth over it before it's caught it will pull the cloth off and into the mesh. Calmly pick up the trap and carry it off, load it in your truck or whatever. When I did wildlife control work I made a long wire mesh box open on one end. I'd put it end to end with a trap with a skunk in it and prop the door of the trap open and wait for the skunk to go to the end of the box and shoot it with a .22 rifle and CB cap bullets. Lung shots were less likely to cause them to spray. I handled 122 skunks one year. When handling them it is important to watch the skunks' behavior, when they get upset you back off and let them calm a bit. Not all behave the same, many are not hard to deal with and some will want to spray you from over 10' away.

[Jeff]

Well, I'm satisfied how this went. I just tried to return the trap to the nrighbor, and he says to hang on to it for now. Its a spare and he just caught number 6 today. He's a mile away, but has bee hives they are attracted to

[WV Sawmiller]

Jeff,

   That's a good point about the skunks and bees. The skunks will stand at the front of a hive and scratch on the porch and eat the worker/defense bees as they come out to defend the hive.  I don't know how they survive the stings but they apparently do. If he eats enough of them he can do serious damage to the hives production and ability to defend itself against other pests - animal and insect types.

    It is fine when you see a big hole in the ground with paper nest material scattered around where a skunk dug up a yellowjacket nest and destroyed them but not such a good thing when it is some farmers bees.

[trapper]

you worked too hard to move that skunk.  Just come in slow from the back of the trap and pull the cover all the way over the trap.  Pick it up and put it on the back of the utv.  Take it to where you want to release it.  Put trap on ground open door and let him walk out. 

[Old Greenhorn]

Well now I find myself with a similar problem. This afternoon around 3pm I went out to the garage (detached) and found a cute little coon chewing through our garbage bags. He looked to be an adolescent. I had a talk with him and explained how his behavior was unacceptable and he slowly gave up his spot and wandered toward the hole he had made in my siding. An hour later I checked in again and he was back. I repeated the discussion with a little more detailed explanation. Again he wandered off and this time I snapped a lid on the garbage can we have never needed before.
 I was tempted to just grab my .380 which was feet away, but my grandson was with me and thought the little guy looked cute (which he did). Also I had to consider 'trajectory' and it wasn't great. So I opened the front garage door for an easy exit and gave him another hour. I also closed up the hole he made. I gave him an hour, looked around and did not find him, so I closed it all up. hopefully that's the end of our relationship, but if it's not, I have to plan the next step.

 Maybe I should just stick a trap out now? I could take him a couple of miles down the raod where there is lots of open woods. I don't have a pond.

[aigheadish]

That's very sweet of you to explain how the raccoon was behaving poorly Tom. 

My wife tells every living thing in my yard that the yard is a safe place for them... So far it's been ok, but we have had a few skunks roaming around, and groundhogs, and a lot of raccoons. They have yet to be too destructive to anything but I'm interested in the day she has had enough.

Every time she mentions an animal she's seen I ask "did you shoot it?" I don't know if that'll ever make me not chuckle a little because she's very sweet about stuff like that. I don't really have much desire to shoot any of the animals either but it's bound to happen. 

There seems to be a stray cat that occasionally hangs out in the barn which I don't mind, so far, because it doesn't seem to be using the restroom anywhere and there are definitely mice in there for it to take care of.  

[Old Greenhorn]

That's very sweet of you to explain how the raccoon was behaving poorly Tom.
........

Is that what I did?
Although I find your wife to be a lovely person, she and I would have a disagreement on that issue. My wife has come around to the 'did you shoot him yet?' point of view.



 

[doc henderson]

you can do the CO route but if you let him go, I have heard they range quite a ways.

[aigheadish]

I think my wife is pretty realistic about shooting something if it really needs to happen. So far it's just a groundhog under the shed that is causing any kinds of destruction, and even that one isn't bad, it's just dug it's little house under there.