Help! There is a skunk in my coop now!

[Birdtalk6233]

once he's gone... for the smell:
Mix together:

• 1 quart of 3-percent hydrogen peroxide (available at any pharmacy)
• 1/4 cup baking soda
• 1 teaspoon liquid dishwashing soap

Also... though not in a coop... we’ve kept a skunk from returning under our porch by placing a very fragrant bar of soap underneath... apparently their sensitive noses find perfumed soaps repulsive?

The mix worked wonderfully when my dogs interacted with a skunk.

 

[goldies99]

get i live trap......put tuna .....can cat food.....meat....eggs....for bait in the back of the trap...
cover the trap with an old sheet or blanket....so only the front is open where they would walk in....do this in the evening, and close your coop door to keep other animals out...once you trap the skunk you will be able to take the trap out .....when the skunk cant see you he will not be threatened and wont spray....then you can decided what you want to do with him...i have removed 5 skunks through the years this way, and always had luck!....good luck to you!!!

 

[Ledgeroad Chickens]

I went out to close the door on my coop, there was a skunk drinking out of the water dish! My girls are up on their roost. I brought the old blind girl in. She's in the basement in my hospital coop for now. How can I get him out of the coop ? It smells awful in there. I feel so sorry for my girls. I left the door open, thinking maybe he will just leave? I threw a 4'x4' at him, that's when he sprayed.
There have been reports of coyotes in the area. I hate to leave it open, but, that's how he got in. My hens were out free ranging and I leave the door open until it's their bedtime. How can I get him out? Will he hurt my girls?

For everyone who suggests shooting the skunk. If you absolutely have to do it please don't shoot them in the head first. That will result in a spasmodic spray event. A trick I learned from an old trapper was to first shoot them so that you hit the spine in the mid back. That cuts the connection to their squeezing muscles. Then shoot them in the head. If you can get standard velocity 22 shorts use them as they are effective, much quieter and less likely to penetrate your coop walls but still might do that. Be aware of what is behind your coop wall. Wouldn't want to ding your pickup, tractor or propane cylinder!

But really try your best to coax or trap the poor skunk first. If you have them in a box trap put a cloth cover over it as you approach. They don't like to spray when they are confined. Good luck

 

[cmom]

I have caught a lot of skunks and luckily they have never sprayed while in the traps. I did not cover the traps and the skunks went in them. Maybe hunger drove them in. I did put the bait way in the back of the trap so they had to trip the door. I did cover the traps when I relocated them to the hole I had dug for them.

 

[cluckmecoop7]

For everyone who suggests shooting the skunk. If you absolutely have to do it please don't shoot them in the head first. That will result in a spasmodic spray event. A trick I learned from an old trapper was to first shoot them so that you hit the spine in the mid back. That cuts the connection to their squeezing muscles. Then shoot them in the head. If you can get standard velocity 22 shorts use them as they are effective, much quieter and less likely to penetrate your coop walls but still might do that. Be aware of what is behind your coop wall. Wouldn't want to ding your pickup, tractor or propane cylinder!

But really try your best to coax or trap the poor skunk first. If you have them in a box trap put a cloth cover over it as you approach. They don't like to spray when they are confined. Good luck

That's inhumane. I think the first shot should be the kill.

 

[DiDiMyDarlin]

Farm girl here. Must get rid of a skunk. He likely will kill the chickens, and dont think that they cant climb. I agree with the others, you must be careful about rabies especially if thos guy is out on daytime. Take no chances. Get canned cat food to attract him outside the coop. Shoot him if you can, because he will return.

 

[Bobbie3504]

I was surprised by a skunk one night when locking up the coop, he was under their roost, I thought it was one of the hens and almost grabbed it, imagine my shock when I saw it was what I THOUGHT was a skunk. (sure enough it was!!) I ran in and got my husband he went in and got the rifle, we stood, in the dark, in our pjs hiding behind a tree until he stuck his head out of the coop...then. shot him. OMG! he let his stink out as he died! We stunk to high heaven and had to get in the shower as soon as we could and wash ALL OUR PJs that night! We had been missing eggs, we weren't anymore after getting rid of him! We still laugh at our actions that night, the way we were hiding behind the tree with a flashlight and rifle in our pjs!! Our back yard stunk for what seemed like weeks! hopefully as one said earlier, once they let their stink out, the tank is empty! Otherwise... beware! LOL!!!

 

[cassie]

Vinegar helps kill the stench, after washing in Dawn or Murphy's, or something similar. There's a product called 'Skunk Off' that works very well too.
Mary

For skunk spray forget the vinegar and everything else. You can make your own very effective skunk spray removal that works because it chemically breaks down the spray. It was formulated by an organic chemist who I think had too much time on his hands. Or maybe he got sprayed. It is made up of a mixture of water, peroxide, baking soda, and a squirt or two of Dawn dishwashing liquid. It has to be mixed up immediately before use. It won't keep. You can find the exact formula on the internet. As often as I had had to use it you would think I would remember and not have to look it up each time.

 

[Folly's place]

It's a good recipe, if you have all the ingredients at 2am when you need it! In a true emergency, washing, rinsing, and then rinsing in dilute vinegar helps a lot.
Skunk Off works best, but again, it's 2am!
Mary

 

[cassie]

Farm girl here. Must get rid of a skunk. He likely will kill the chickens, and dont think that they cant climb. I agree with the others, you must be careful about rabies especially if thos guy is out on daytime. Take no chances. Get canned cat food to attract him outside the coop. Shoot him if you can, because he will return.

I don't agree with killing the skunk. Frankly I like them. They are unlikely to spray unless they are frightened. I see them around my place at night and when I was feeding outside cats they would help themselves to the cat food. Anyone who finds a skunk in their coop may not realize it but they have a much bigger problem than the skunk. If a skunk can get in a raccoon sure can and they can wipe out your whole flock in one night. My neighbor can tell you all about that. Killing the skunk won't help this problem. Fixing the coop will. I realize this is not really applicable to the OP's case because the skunk got in through an open door. But if you find a skunk in with your chickens and the door isn't open you need to fix the coop because you may soon find you have no chickens even though you killed the poor skunk.