- Apr 23, 2007
- 95
- 3
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***Warning, this post includes an unhappy ending if you are a skunk or a skunk lover. Stop reading now if this makes you uneasy.***
Thanks to those of you who responded to my last post, my skunk problem is a bit less of a problem. Last night I had my 10yo bait a spring loaded cage trap with a slice of zucchini smeared with peanut butter. (Found the trap on sale at Menards for $17.99 this week FYI).
When I came home from work this morning, I had a captured skunk outside of my coop. As I stepped out back to check it out, I saw a skunk walking up to the outside of the cage in the light of day. Decision time!! I hadn't planned on seeing this and figured I'd have to trap the buggers one at a time for a few nights. I quickly ran inside and grabbed the .22 and some hollow points, returned outside and approached from behind a tree.
"Holy chickens, there are THREE skunks outside--an adult and two babies."
I was able to kill all three with very minimal smell. Then I approached the trap and found two more younguns inside. I covered the trap with an old towel and carried it to the edge of my yard abutting a bean field. There I opened the trap and shot these as they ventured out. After I buried all five, I called it a day, but I plan to set the trap for a couple more nights in case there are more under the coop.
Two observations: 1. I was pretty nervoius about carrying the skunks in the cage with my hands, but it went well just as I had googled about others' experience. 2. The smell of these wasn't the typical skunk smell that I find almost appealing as an imported beer lover. The smell from these was comparable to a VERY hot garlic smell, IMHO.
Anyway, I wanted to post not to be gruesome, but to offer what I found to be a solution to a pest/predator problem. Hope you all don't mind me 'giving back' a little to this most helpful site.
Polychickens
Thanks to those of you who responded to my last post, my skunk problem is a bit less of a problem. Last night I had my 10yo bait a spring loaded cage trap with a slice of zucchini smeared with peanut butter. (Found the trap on sale at Menards for $17.99 this week FYI).
When I came home from work this morning, I had a captured skunk outside of my coop. As I stepped out back to check it out, I saw a skunk walking up to the outside of the cage in the light of day. Decision time!! I hadn't planned on seeing this and figured I'd have to trap the buggers one at a time for a few nights. I quickly ran inside and grabbed the .22 and some hollow points, returned outside and approached from behind a tree.
"Holy chickens, there are THREE skunks outside--an adult and two babies."
I was able to kill all three with very minimal smell. Then I approached the trap and found two more younguns inside. I covered the trap with an old towel and carried it to the edge of my yard abutting a bean field. There I opened the trap and shot these as they ventured out. After I buried all five, I called it a day, but I plan to set the trap for a couple more nights in case there are more under the coop.
Two observations: 1. I was pretty nervoius about carrying the skunks in the cage with my hands, but it went well just as I had googled about others' experience. 2. The smell of these wasn't the typical skunk smell that I find almost appealing as an imported beer lover. The smell from these was comparable to a VERY hot garlic smell, IMHO.
Anyway, I wanted to post not to be gruesome, but to offer what I found to be a solution to a pest/predator problem. Hope you all don't mind me 'giving back' a little to this most helpful site.
Polychickens
