The week before, I killed four skunks in five days. Two inside the chicken pen and two outside trying to get in. The first one I shot with a 22 pistol in the head and there was no smell. The rest, I killed with a shotgun and they all stunk. Just dont get too close behind them when you shoot. I prefer to shoot them from the side or head on. Those skunks showed up like clockwork, between 8 and 830pm every night. I saw the one skunk slip into a three inch gap between the fence and the barn. I lost two hens back in September, one to a coyote and the other to a skunk. Since ridding the skunks, the girls are sleeping in peace now. I still go out every night and check for predators, me, my spotlight and my gun.