Skunks how problematic are these animals

[49er12]

My neighborhood has some, a few live under my neighbors shed I told him oh they don’t bother anybody. Oh rabies etc, you experts tell me what’s skunks can do harm

 

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[GoDeep]

Humans are far more dangerous than Skunks...

 

[signal_line]

Rabid skunk bites family pet, pet gets rabies and attacks family. Be sure your pets have rabies vaccination. Baby skunks are cute. Some people keep pet skunks. Theuy can remove the scent glands. Many people who get sprayed end up vomitting. Most of the rabid skunks around here live by the garbage dump. A Native American woman told me she loved the smell of skunks and wished they made skunk perfume.

 

[49er12]

Seriously I’m a big animal lover many over the years, I’m not worried about one attacking me however neighbor directly behind me has a shed and they live under there and big holes and just noticed it I said they have rabies and he said they don’t bother anyone, point is you and everyone has pets dogs etc, If they got bit than different story even in town we have them, I’m not trying to kill anything just trying to fill in the holes they keep digging. Ok enough just asking folks cute animals but can carry disease unless I’m wrong thankyou

 

[Fat]

I like a skunks smell from a distance. It reminds me of the smells from a greatfull dead concert.
They are easy to catch in a box trap.

 

[releventchair]

Skunks get busy hunting at night.
A den is a base. And of course handy for getting birthed young started.

Rabies? Till a skunk has rabies , or rabies is a local issue I wouldn't worry about rabies. Lots of critters could carry/transmit rabies.
By the time someone eliminated skunks and racoons and potential carriers , that still leave bats don't it?

Skunks digging grubs and raising my metal detecting plugs affect a lawn. No problem in my opinion. They are entitled to live.
Didn't appreciate one in one of my fox sets when I trapped but that was not the skunks fault either.

Let em go about thier business. They'll be skunks.
An owl might find them too. Horned owls I think nab them now and then.
A hound I owned could kill one and not bring stench into the house.
And there's nothing like fresh skunk stench/acid/sulphurous repellent /nausea gas. Makes a whiff of a skunk going about it's business or a road hit a pleasant smell. L.o.l..

 

[GoDeep]

Skunks don't just have "rabies", no more then humans just have "rabies"

I've lived most of my entire life in the sticks....the only animals to truly fear are Humans. Respect nature and it'll treat you well.

 

[GoDeep]

Homo Sapiens: Stealthy, unpredictable, susceptible to fits of incontrollable rage and frequent mental illness. Even unprovoked, they manifest in their minds crimes of passion, crimes of flesh and crimes of revenge and hatred. Though evolved, once triggered, they quickly devolve and tend to multiply their force with the use of deadly weapons often leaving their victims mutilated or dead for no appreciable reason.

Skunks: Curious creatures but shy when approached. Spend most of their time foraging for small food scraps. When provoked, will often attempt to flee and often gives adequate warning to the provoker that they are going to spray. No known cases of weapons possession or manifestations of purposeful harm to humans plotted.

 

[releventchair]

Homo Sapiens: Stealthy, unpredictable, susceptible to fits of incontrollable rage and frequent mental illness. Even unprovoked, they manifest in their minds crimes of passion, crimes of flesh and crimes of revenge and hatred. Though evolved, once triggered, they quickly devolve and tend to multiply their force with the use of deadly weapons often leaving their victims mutilated or dead for no appreciable reason.

Skunks: Curious creatures but shy when approached. Spend most of their time foraging for small food scraps. When provoked, will often attempt to flee and often gives adequate warning to the provoker that they are going to spray. No known cases of weapons possession or manifestations of purposeful harm to humans plotted.

Food scraps?

Skunks are omnivores, which means they eat both meat and vegetation. Their diet consists of plants, insects, larvae, worms, fruit, eggs, reptiles, small mammals and fish.

https://www.livescience.com/55151-s...fruit, eggs, reptiles, small mammals and fish.

 

[49er12]

They dig a bunch of holes in yard looking for grubs at night

 

[DizzyDigger]

Skunks are cool little critters, and for the most part if you leave them
alone they'll leave you alone.

If a few live under your neighbors shed, then in a short time they'll
be several more little stinkers added to the family.

And yes, there have been cases of a skunk being rabid in Penn.,
but it's a pretty rare occurrence. You might want to review this
report from Pennsylvania's health department:

https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/Documents/Programs/Rabies/Annual Animal Rabies Report 2017.pdf

If you don't want them under your house or shed, take steps now
to close off any potential access sites.

Releventchair: In this area we often get Western Spotted skunks, and
they are the ripest, nastiest smelling of the whole skunk family. They
generally hang out in watershed areas, creek banks, etc., which were
the same spots I trapped mink. Releasing them was never fun.

 

[49er12]

Go deep not talking about blowing up the dam neighborhood for cripes sakes, just saying they have rabies living under neighboring shed , and dig the hell out of the yard at night looking for grubs, it’s not a crime but subject I posted, humans are the reason the country is f up that’s another story I post about on political post, thankyou, oh in middle of night dam smell so strong it comes through house

 

[GoDeep]

Food scraps?

Skunks are omnivores, which means they eat both meat and vegetation. Their diet consists of plants, insects, larvae, worms, fruit, eggs, reptiles, small mammals and fish.

https://www.livescience.com/55151-s...fruit, eggs, reptiles, small mammals and fish.

Yes, those are scraps to me and would leave me quite hungry still!

 

[49er12]

So you eat skunks ground hogs, etc

 

[DizzyDigger]

I was driving long haul back in the early 90's, and there were a few weigh
stations that were known for writing some very expensive citations for somewhat
minor infractions (Calif. needed money).

Thanks to the CB, drivers always knew ahead of time when they were doing
truck inspections.

One particularly hot day I had to cross one of those scales, and while pulling
out of the yard I had just loaded at, I saw (and smelled) a recently dead skunk
on the side of the road, and damn was it ripe..

Pulled over to check the straps over the load, and while I was at it I grabbed
the shovel off the headache rack and scooped up that skunk carcass and dumped
it into the spare tire mounted under the trailer. You couldn't see it, but it'd make
your eyes water..

The DOT man was standing outside, watching as I was slowly crossing the scale.
He started to walk up to my door (meaning they were going to pull me in for
inspection), and then that wonderful skunk essence smacked him right in the
face; I thought he was gonna puke, but all he did was cover his nose and wave
me on..

I pulled over a mile or two down the road and got rid of that stinker; that
trailer still stunk for a month after.

 

[ToddsPoint]

I worked on the dock of a trucking company and every once in a while a trailer would come to the dock that had hit a skunk on the inbound trip. Normally one guy unloads one trailer. The skunk trailers got 4 or 5 guys working on it so we could get it unloaded and out of there. For a small critter, they have some real power. Gary

 

[pepperj]

just saying they have rabies living under neighboring shed , and dig the hell out of the yard at night looking for grubs,

How do you know that they have rabies?

Just because there was a rabid skunk one time-they're all rabid. Sounds like the wide paint brush is at work here also.
Easy to know go out and light up the area at night, is there just 1-2-a litter with the adults?
When they're out foraging-close up the skirting of the shed.
A rod of chicken wire is a cheap fix-comes in 25/50/100ft rolls.

Just have to contact the local agency to know if they've done baiting for rabies. (Little foil packs dropped by an airplane) I find them all the time detecting in the bush, fields, so I know the area is free of rabies if the control has been done.

Same goes for detecting, dig a plug, come back plug is opened up, little stinker has been working that night. I have seen holes redug out in the fields, looks like the moon. I try to toss the free lunch grubs off to the side of the plug/hole and it helps them from digging it out again.

I love the smell of skunk-I open the windows up in the truck a bit when I get a slight whiff-AH Spring is here again.........

[h=2]Signs of rabies in animals[/h]In the "furious" form, wild animals may appear to be agitated, bite or snap at imaginary and real objects and drool excessively. In the "dumb" form, wild animals may appear tame and seem to have no fear of humans.
There are other signs, such as the animal appearing drunk or excessively wobbly, circling, seeming partially paralyzed, acting disorientated or mutilating itself. However, most of these signs can also be indicative of other diseases like distemper or lead poisoning. There are few behavioral signs that are telltale of rabies alone.
If a typically nocturnal animal, such as a raccoon or skunk, is active during the day and exhibiting abnormal behavior, you should seek advice from your local animal control, animal organization, wildlife rehabilitator or state wildlife agency.

 

[tamrock]

They stink. My dog two summers ago was spayed point blank in the face in the back yard. The smell lingered for weeks. I'd call a professional critter removal person myself. Thankfully the skunk that had its eye on a nesting area under my shed moved on elsewhere after the dog encounter. I don't think skunks all that often pass on rabies through bites on pets, because of their other unique defense seems to generally get the job of warding off a threat just fine. I read that used pee smelling cat litter sprinkled around a skunk den gets them to move on. I did do that around my shed and no skunks have been there since.

 

[pa plateau hiker]

Skunks will paw at the front of a beehive and when the bees come out to investigate, the skunk will eat them. I used to have this problem with my beehives, but now my hives are higher off the ground. Skunk oder doesn't bother me. I'd rather smell skunk oder over fresh dog poop.

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

Skunks can dig up your lawn looking for grubs and moles (they will eat mice and moles), steal chicken eggs, make your dog smell very bad.

Otherwise pretty harmless.

We were sitting on a marina jetty around a fire-ring one evening and I heard a scuffling noise and a skunk was walking under my folding chair. I said to my wife - "Be quiet, but look what's under my chair." So she screamed and ran off, overturning her chair, and the other couple with us stood up and ran off. So I said to the skunk "pay no attention to them" and he/she looked around and continued on it's way sniffing for dropped scraps.

I don't think they're any more prone to rabies than a fox, raccoon, opossum or bat. All are potential carriers.