Skunk Trapping

Momma skunk with her babies
A mother skunk with her babies.
(Artwork by Sharon Davis. Contact us for her contact info.)

From my perch up in the tallest tree, I can pretty much see everything that goes on around me on this property, and one of the most interesting things I’ve witnessed over the last few weeks was the owner’s attempt at skunk trapping.

As a bird, I’m not really that opposed to skunks myself.  They can’t really hurt me, as a raven, and if they spray some stupid dog or fox, I just fly away from the smell.  But, I could tell this skunk was really getting on this guy’s nerves over the last few weeks!

First, it made free to dig up in the guy’s vegetable garden as it hunted for bugs to eat.  Destroyed some of the crop and left a horrible mess.  Then, it decided to burrow under the guy’s front porch.  He was afraid he’d be sprayed if he surprised the skunk while walking out to his yard, and even I could see it was going to damage the concrete, making it sink down eventually.  One night, the skunk got hungry and toppled over the garbage can, munching on everything edible it could find.  The owner came out the next morning to find a horrible mess on the lawn.

What really sent the owner into a horrible rage was when the skunk got into the chicken house and ate up some of the eggs.  It even attacked one of the chickens.  At first, the owner thought maybe a fox was to blame, but when he figured out it was a skunk, he reached the end of his rope.

He went out and got himself a skunk trap, set it up in the vegetable garden, and caught that smelly skunk.  Problem was, he had no idea what to do with it after that.  He was so afraid to approach the skunk in the trap.  He tried walking up to it really slowly and quietly, he tried throwing a tarp over it.  I spent a good three or four hours just watching this guy circle the cage, try all kinds of things, work up his nerve just to get scared again.  Highly entertaining!  Truth is, that guy just didn’t know what to do with the wild skunk, and he didn’t know what it could do to him.

He should have called a professional to come out and trap the skunk in the first place.  A wildlife removal specialist already has the skills and experience to get rid of a skunk, and will do it legally.  Eventually, he called in an expert at skunk trapping, who not only got rid of the skunk, but repaired the damage the skunk caused.

Now, I wonder if we can get another wild animal to attack the guy’s house again.  I’ve got to get my entertainment one way or another, and watching him fumble around with wild animals is always good for a laugh!

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