Skunk will not leave!!

[sagealbright]

Hey everyone!

A few weeks ago we had our first encounter with a skunk. The guineas started going nuts around 7pm and all the hens ran out of the coop and were running around in the dark. I normally go out around that time to close up the coop for the night. When I went into the coop a found an adult skunk sitting in the corner. With all the commotion he ran out right away into the woods.

Then about a 5 days ago I went out around dusk to check on everyone and the chickens were all huddled in one corner of their fenced in area. Once again, there was a skunk right outside the coop. This time it was eating the chicken food.

Now today I got home around 4 and heard the guineas going nuts. They normally do this when I get home because they want their treats. However, when I went out there a baby skunk was out in broad daylight eating the chicken food! It took me about an hour to get it to leave.

I know for a fact these are different skunks. Each one has looked completely different and are different sizes. The chickens are in a coop and we have a huge fence going around the coop where they roam around all day. I can't even figure out how the skunks are getting into it. Unless they are climbing on something and jumping in. My two roosters don't seem to be much help, they are more scared of the skunks then my hens are. The guineas just fly around and scream.

Anyone know how I can keep them away? I'm worried the one from today had rabies. It was out in the middle of the day and it didn't care how close I got to it. I poked it with a broom to push it out of the fence and it didn't even run. It looked like it was limping the entire way to the woods.

 

[bobbi-j]

How you deal with them depends a lot on where you live. If it were here at my place, they'd get shot if they were outside the buildings. Skunks are major carriers of rabies in my state. The one that wouldn't leave today - if it was a baby - may or may not have had rabies. Or, it could be that it was just a stupid baby that hadn't had contact with people before. If you're in a town, you obviously can't shoot them, so you'd have to call animal control or whoever takes care of these things for you. I'm guessing you don't live on a farm, as most farmers would take care of the problem themselves without giving it any thought. That's what we do, anyway. One thing you can to to discourage them is not give them access to what they're after - eggs, chicken feed, or your chickens themselves. You need to secure your run, put the food in the coop if you have room, and make sure nothing can get into that coop except your chickens.

 

[sagealbright]

Thanks Bobbi-j

I live in Lancaster Pennsylvania. We live all around farms and there are woods behind the house. We would be able to shoot it. I'm just not the type of person that could do that. I'm too much of an animal lover. I would trap it but I'm not sure how I would move the trap without getting sprayed and I have no idea where I would take it.

My coop is completely secure. The only reason the first skunk got in was because it was out there before I closed the door to the coop for the night. I'll have to try to think of more ways to secure the fence. It's dug into the ground and is almost 5ft tall. That's why I'm not sure how they are even getting in there.

 

[aart]

If you're not going to eliminate the pest...hot wire on the outside of your run fencing might keep them out.

What kind of fencing is it?

 

[Folly's place]

Shoot it! Letting a sick or injured animal wander off isn't humane either, and it will return to your food daily. I don't have food outside of my coop and run, which has helped keep the raccoons, etc, from visiting. Rabies is a very real issue, I wouldn't take any more chances. I hope all your animals are vaccinated, of course not the chickens. Mary

 

[bobbi-j]

Thanks Bobbi-j

I live in Lancaster Pennsylvania. We live all around farms and there are woods behind the house. We would be able to shoot it. I'm just not the type of person that could do that. I'm too much of an animal lover. I would trap it but I'm not sure how I would move the trap without getting sprayed and I have no idea where I would take it.

My coop is completely secure. The only reason the first skunk got in was because it was out there before I closed the door to the coop for the night. I'll have to try to think of more ways to secure the fence. It's dug into the ground and is almost 5ft tall. That's why I'm not sure how they are even getting in there.

Do you have a friend that could come shoot them for you? I have close friends who had to put down every animal on their farm, and the family had to go through the rabies vaccine series. The kids were quite young at the time - 5th grade, 1st grade, and a preschooler. The daughter had gone outside one morning to find their mama cat all bloody and beat up, smelling like skunk. The skunk had gotten into the nest of kittens and killed them, and the mama fought it off. The next day, the skunk was walking around in circles in one of their outbuildings. They killed it, had it tested, it was positive. When you or someone you know goes through something like that, it's not too hard to eliminate them.

 

[EggheadWI]

Call a local wildlife rehabilitator. They will know what to do and if there's a "no kill" solution they can help.